Colonoscopy examinations make the most compelling example of why U.S. medical costs far outstrip those in the rest of the world, according to an article published Sunday in the New York Times.
According to the article, colonoscopies--which it says are billed as "quasi operations"--are the most expensive screening test that health Americans undergo. What's more, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that as many as 10 million Americans get colonoscopies each year.
The Times, relying on interviews with healthcare experts and economists, says the high cost of the procedure results from--among other things--business plans attempting to maximize revenue, hospitals and insurance companies haggling over costs that bear no resemblance to the actual costs of the procedure. Article