The American healthcare system and in house laboratory and medical services like Labcorp – an illegal match made in hell
Categories: news,Politics,Scams,Money,Fraud,Law,Health,Medicine,Finance,Government,Ethics
I don’t have a problem with doctors, hospitals and laboratory and medical services companies making money and getting paid, but there is a limit to where right, wrong and illegal should and do apply. Take the 1970's and 1980's for instance. Back then many pharmacies and pharmacists were actually located in house (inside the doctors offices) until the AMA and others was successfully sued under antitrust legislation. It was found that having pharmacies located in house meant higher prices (much higher) and less or no ability to shop prices. There was no competition as you couldn’t take your prescription with you and go elsewhere. This was found to be anti competitive, unfair trade and deceptive business practices and bad for consumers.
Now, today, we have these exact same matters revisited. Companies like Labcorp and other laboratory and medical service companies are locating themselves in house and are charging extremely outrageous fees for services (as per data from several state attorney generals and their subsequent and ongoing investigations into this new monopoly in the health care system). The brunt of this falls on those that can least afford it – the uninsured and underinsured. These lab companies like Labcorp bill at prices from 100% to 1000% markup from cost.
For instance lab work for a routine pap smear should be no more than $30 to $50. Labcorp charges $433 – the entire doctors bill was only $70! The lab bill was 6 times the doctor bill! They even sent the bill direct to the consumer without processing insurance when they have previously been given the insurance info – this is because they hope the consumer will just pay it as 90% or more will without first thinking they can question these outrageously marked up bills. They don’t send right away to insurance companies as they know they will knock these prices way, way down and their profit becomes much, much smaller (for more information on Labcorp and its outrageous pricing, billing, active complaints and more problems please visit the ripoffreport.com and Better Business Bureau (bbb.org) and search under Labcorp. It is important to note that their headquarters is actually referred to as Laboratory Corporation of America (as per Better Business Bureau records) – and they have one of the worst records in the history of the Better Business Bureau – go figure). Here is the link to the very negative Better Business Bureau report on Labcorp -
http://www.greensboro.bbb.org/commonreport.html?bid=1656
Why are laboratory service companies in a move quite similar to pharmacies from the 70’s and 80’s locating themselves in house? Because of the extremely high profit potential – they want first crack at the uninsured, underinsured and the misinformed as this is where the truly massive profits are. Insurance companies will spell out exactly what they will and won’t pay for with covered expenses and providers must abide by this. But go just one inch outside this covered area and they will literally slaughter you. If you are not covered, your insurance lapsed, or even if you are covered they will gladly bill you incorrectly just like banks with high check bouncing fees and such – they are just waiting for you to come close so they can pounce and charge all kinds of bounce, overdraft and other fees (just look at Bank of America at the ripoffreport.com or Better Business Bureau at bbb.org).
Then if you are one of the 10% that catches them at this game and call them on it they will first try and be tough – by being indifferent and not budging. Customer service is great at not listening or caring and they love to put you on endless hold to wear you out so most people will give up (just call Labcorp and see for yourself). They offer payment programs and some charge an additional 10% interest on top of their already outrageous prices for this. Its amazing, our government in most states has regulated pay day loans and similar with Usury laws with interest rate caps like 20% to 29%, but the medical field and especially in house laboratory service companies like Labcorp are allowed to charge markups of 100 to 1000% or more on people they conveniently have trapped at the doctors offices with this in house lab and medical services. This is how their executives afford their million dollar lifestyles with huge yachts, expensive cars and multi million dollar homes by literally stealing from the uninsured and underinsured.
If only more people knew that you have the right to refuse extremely overpriced in house lab services and to call and price out the service from any of the laboratory service companies located near you. Find out exactly what tests your doctor wants to have done and shop them around yourself. Tell them you are a cash paying customer and that you are looking for the best price – watch the price differences you will see. Oh and by the way if your doctor tells you you cannot go elsewhere and that they will not give you the list of tests to go to another lab service provider just call your state department of insurance and health and your state medical board and report them. They will open an anti trust investigation and the doctor and all other involved parties could lose their license and be sued for refusal to comply with your states and federal laws (this is per my conversation with my states board of insurance and health). Another idea is to use your states local health department and have them forward the results to your doctor - in most states they offer pretty much every test you could possibly need at actual cost - this alone could save you thousands of dollars!
The problem I have with this is that people in doctors offices never have any clue as to how much these shady laboratory service companies like labcorp will charge until they receive the bill and its too late. And anyone could easily become a victim to this extreme overcharging and abusive billing regardless of whether you are insured or not as shown above. Just like with anything else, prices should be available and shown prior to any lab work or similar medical services, especially non urgent lab work. Patients should not have to wait 3 to 4 weeks to be slapped upside the head with a ridiculously overcharged bill.
All patients get now is a doctor or nurse saying don’t worry about it, you don’t have to pay for it today, its not expensive, etc… This is clearly misleading and unfair and deceptive business practices as defined in every state. The only reason why medical companies such as Labcorp can get away with what would be a clearly illegal act to other businesses is the large medical lobbying group in
As always, if you have any opinions on Labcorp, medical billing or the health care system as a whole and politics please leave your comments. We love comments here at Bestbraindrain.com. If you feel that this article or any of the many helpful articles, reports, tips, etc... we have here at Bestbraindrain.com have helped you in some way, please provide a link back to us so that others may benefit as you have.
Update 10/03/2007:
Upon calling numerous lab companies it was found that Labcorp was the primary lab involved in serious and rampant price gouging and overcharging. Other non inhouse laboratory service companies we found to be, for the most part, much more honest and their prices were much more inline with what they should be (it actually took only one phone call to find a lab service company that had prices 80% lower prices than Labcorp for the exact same tests and services! Tests that were found to range in price from $100 to $200 or more at Labcorp were found to be at $14 to $20 or so at Carolina Medical Lab and without bogus additional laboratory reading fees which Labcorp always tacks on (these bogus service fees are for reading the results or sending (faxing) them to the doctor and average around $70). So, take this as advice that you should always look into things before you blindly trust an inhouse laboratory service like Labcorp to perform lab services for you. I wonder what the kickback is that Labcorp provides to its doctors for allowing them to be inhouse? Do they pay the rent? Kickbacks like this need to be reported in almost every state. Bottomline, what Labcorp is doing is most likely illegal and must be dealt with. As arule, from calling around and comparing - inhouse labs like Labcorp are bad, non inhouse lab services companies for the most part are much, much better! If you have had or know someone whom has used Labcorp please tell them to review their receipts. Call around and compare prices for the results (ask your doctor to write down the tests they want done and call around). If you find or feel that you were taken for a expensive ride by Labcorp demand a refund. Call Labcorp and complain (and in the future stop using Labcorp - use a non inhouse or external lab service company and you can save literally thousands of dollars)! Then if they don't fix their wrongs (fraudulant billing practices) to your satisfaction report them to the Better Business Bureau. Also file a complaint with your state attorney gernerals office and with the Federal Trade Commission (www.ftc.org). On top of that you can seek out an attorney to file a lawsuit based on a number of things (torts) like price gouging, fraud, price fixing, anti trust (same as with the inhouse pharmacies in the 70's), unethical business practices, etc... Also be sure to fill us in on everything as we will be glad to post it here so everyone else can learn from it.
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I took my granddaughter to the doctor after calling the dr's office and being told it would be between 107-377 dollars to test her so we could start her on allergy shots. The dr sent me downstairs to LabCorp and they drew blood. The dr's office charged 107 dollars and LabCorp sent a bill for 1048 dollars. There does not seem to be anything I can do about it. She does not have insurance and her mother is the only one working in her family. Any advice?
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Just see all the complaints against LabCorp and you will know why they are on the decline. From LabScam (when the government indicted them on organized fraud) to poor service. This company needs to be dismantled and rebuilt from the ground up. And while you are at it, they need to get rid of all the dead weight - mid-level managers that are the main reason the company is screwed up.
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Following is the letter that I mailed -they sent back a letter off subject and turned me over to a collection agency
February 26, 2009
Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings
P.O. Box 2240
Burlington, NC 27216-2240
To whom it may concern:
Re: Invoice No. 57943673
Attached please find your invoice to me for a thyroid panel. I was shocked when I saw what your charges were.
Date of service 11-07-08, Provider: Labcorp, Birmingham Charge: $536.00
Due to an agreement between my insurance company and Three Rivers Provider Network, the total charge was reduced to $375.20.
This is a laboratory test for which I have paid many times. Attached please find copies of invoices for the last two occasions:
Date of service 10-04-07, Provider: Nashville Medical Group Charge: $47.00
Date of service 05-28-08, Provider: PathGroup Labs Charge: $70.41
I have checked on the internet. An average cost in Nashville is between $41 and $71. There are at least a dozen labs on the web offering this thyroid panel for $79. I checked with my doctor’s office. They requested and you provided the standard thyroid panel.
I believe someone in your organization must have made a mistake. I look forward to receiving a corrected invoice.
Rebecca Mandel
1105 McAlpine Ave.
Nashville, TN 37216
CC: Dr. Yvonne Robinson
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My Doctor ordered bloodwork and the plebotomist in his office said it usually runs about $8,000 for the tests if I submitted them through my insurance company. This insurance company's plan, a Carefirst HMO, requires that the tests go through Labcorp for the charges to be covered under the plan. Since I have a high deductible I shopped around and found that most online bloodwork companies send the blood to Labcorp and can do the same work for $1700-$1800. My insurance company's "negotiated rates" are typically at least 2 times higher than what Labcorp would normally charge and frequently 3-4-5 or even 6 times higher. Could their be something wierd going on between the two companies? Al of the cutomer service reps at Carefirst seemed shocked to find out so I don;t think it's well known among the workers but tit seems there is something fishy going on at higher levels of the company.
Does Labcorp overcharge - definitely i.e. I was surprised to find Labcorp charged $850 for a 24hr urine amino acid test. I called and said I didn't want the test but they had already run it so even though I haven't gotten the results that's the price I need to pay since it's the "negotiated rate" with my insurance company. Other companies charge i.e $320 What a scam
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