There IS a price list that says how much a specific procedure should cost. Just ask any HMO - they have it all worked out: How much a doctor visit should cost, how much a test should cost, whether or not they PAY for a test, how much a hospital visit costs, etc.

They also have a list of how long an insured client can miss work for just about every type of ailment or surgery or emergency. And if you try to get more 'time off' due to any complications from those ailments or surgeries, you almost always get turned down. The pencil-pushers at the insurance offices tell the doctors what they can and can't do, what they will and won't pay for, and whether or not an insured person can miss any work and how much.