San Francisco Chronicle, "$72,000 bill for 38 hours; Hospital tab for uninsured often several times the insured rate"

          In the convoluted world of hospital billing, the amount an institution charges varies depending on a person's insurance status and has little to do with the underlying costs of delivering care. Health insurers negotiate with hospitals for large-volume, discounted fees on behalf of their customers, which are primarily employers. Government programs pay fixed or contracted rates. Individuals who are uninsured, don't qualify for government aid and don't have the clout to negotiate prices are essentially the only ones who get hit with the retail rate.
          The San Francisco law firm of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, known for filing class-action lawsuits, sued Sutter Health hospital network in federal court on June 30 over its prices. The suit, for which the plaintiffs are seeking class-action status, was filed on behalf of Duane Darr, 48, an uninsured Berkeley man who was taken in May to Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Berkeley, a Sutter hospital, after a fall. He was discharged the same day after incurring a $4, 600 bill for blood tests, a hip X-ray, medication and an electrocardiogram.
          "He (Darr) represents the typical uninsured person who goes into the emergency room and is hit with a bill that is what we believe is grossly excessive," said Kelly Dermody, a partner with Lieff Cabraser.