Source Annotation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 1

Source Annotation - Essay Example On average, Americans spend 20 to 30 or even 100 times as much on medical services and devices as what they would cost in a shopping mall (Zuckerman 1). The article tries to get a reason for the high costs. It cites the partnership of most hospitals and private insurance companies as one reason for the fee hike. The insurance companies have a power in negotiating with hospitals over a patient covered by them. They pinpoint the hospital in their grid of providers. Insured patients can get discounts that are thirty to fifty percent beyond low Medical care charges. Zuckerman (2) further adds that doctors tend to over-test to avoid malpractice and misdiagnosis to avoid malpractice and misdiagnosis. The high-tech devices used in the hospitals drive the costs to bizarre levels too. The author of the article has used information from the analysis of works of medical practitioners. For example, he has cited one Steven Brill, who initially exposed the impact of insurance companies on hospitals. The study also has much of its information from the federal government sources such as where it points out that readmissions alone cost over $25 billion a year and that medical care budget may well hit $600 billion this