This is not a vent board or any other kind of therapy. Before you hit the POST button, ask yourself if your contribution will add to the level of discussion going on.

Important notes on articles:

• Please do not copy entire articles into your post; rather, provide links to them.. We are now links-only for ALL Internet publications. If only a small portion of the article pertains to your post, Fair Use allows you to copy those one or two paragraphs, provided you cite the author's name and the publication for which he writes. Otherwise, put a link in the HTTP Link box.
• Even if you're copying a reference to an article, provide a link to the page from which the article came. We're trying to cut down on duplicate topics, and the posting process will check the link to your article to see if it's already being discussed on this board. At the very least, you'll save yourself some grief on the boards.
• If your first reaction after reading the article you're going to share is the author is uninformed / stupid / a jerk / all of the above, it's not worth sharing with anyone. Not every article needs to be discussed. The more the hair-pulling articles are discussed (e.g. ESPN Page 2), the more the authors will write hair-pulling articles.

Post being replied to

Except they pass other costs onto the system by AquinasDomer

A large portion of most outpatient docs day is fighting these denials. That takes up time that could be used seeing other patients.

Then there's the fact that some percent of patients will switch insurance or die in the window you're denying them. As long as that outweighs the likelihood they end up in the hospital and cost you more than they otherwise would. You win.

Then you get large systems over billing in response because of their incentives, and a lot of money gets tied up in an arms race to fight the claims process better.

Every actor is doing things that are in themselves rational, but it creates a highly irrational system.