Yes. One of the local hospitals recently went through a bankruptcy and was bought by a for-profit organization. I listened to the news at the time and heard that they intended to continue providing indigent services--but not to what degree--for five years.
So, read that for what it says: FIVE years--no commitment afterwards.
I moonlighted at a counseling center that was bought out last spring. Same thing; when the "indigent money" is gone, it's gone. No more services until the budget--supplied by local giving--comes through.
Really, some of the responses are somewhat surprising to me. Doctors pay, or borrow, their own way through medical school and to set up their own offices. It's a huge investment of time and money--the medical practice is a business. The dollars that go into a practice go right back out through salaries, office overhead, malpractice insurance premiums, etc.
I might try negotiating lower costs with a physician, much as I would a mechanic, but at the end of the day, they're allowed to charge what they want, with the exception of their negotiated contracts with insurers, just like lawers, mechanics, etc. Now, if the market won't support it, well, that's capitalism at work.
I think I'd go w/o the paper sheet just to make THEM uncomfortable in that case
