Let Your Fingers do the Walking – Call Around

One of the things people with insurance don’t consider is the cost of the procedures recommended by your physician. You still have a choice as to how much you pay for each and every service, in-network or not.

"The most important thing is that patients understand the cost of their care before they get their care," says Jeffrey Rice, MD, chief executive officer of Healthcare Blue Book, an online resource for fair pricing. "Most people who have insurance think that if they stay in-network they're going to get the network discount and it doesn't matter where they go" for their care. "It absolutely matters."

Shop around for facilities that offer the same services. Just because something is in-network doesn’t mean that is the cheapest option.

Also, shop for your prescription. Most pharmacies will give you the price of a medication over the phone. Check with mom and pop pharmacy operations as well as the big-box stores like Walmart or Target. They all set their own prices, and the small pharmacy may have competitive prices.

Use That Internet for More Than Recipes and Kitty Videos

If you have a medical situation, fire up your computer and find out whether the affliction is treatable at home or requires medical intervention. For a cheaper alternative, there are many tasks a pharmacy-associated clinic can accomplish inexpensively if you need medical attention.

For prescriptions, visit pparx.org for the Partnership for Prescription Assistance website. This site has links to more than 400 patient-assistance programs offering a discount on more than 2,500 medications. Each has its own guidelines for eligibility.