One of the things I found most frustrating about the HMO system was the way you could almost see the numbers shuffling when treatment options were discussed. Having grown up in the health care system I know which tests are cheap and which cost serious chunks of the doc's budget. Treatment a la carte meant some expensive tests weren't even discussed. I lost years of my life because the one, very simple, set of tests that could prove my diagnosis beyond a doubt was simply expensive to perform. When I finally did get it, it revealed dozens of cysts... which told the story of the endocrine problems that had been ruining my life.

Paying doctors to make sure you don't get your health care does NOT work for your benefit.