Business ProfileforHendrick Urgent Care - Brownwood

I went to Hendricks Medical Center, to establish myself as a patient. (PPO). I went to the attached lab, and had the required blood work. I asked before they drew the blood, what my portion was going to be. Two hundred, three hundred? The lab tech told me that it would not be that high. Well, I received a bill of $2465.20. I went in person back to the doctor's office to question it. My doctor had no idea that was going to be the cost. The lab said that if I didn't have insurance, it would only have been around $276. For that amount of money, I should have been told up front. I even ASKED for the amount I would be required to pay. After speaking with the business office several times, I called my insurance carrier, Blue Cross Blue Shield. I was told Hendricks could either do one of two things: Withdraw the claim and have me pay the uninsured patient amount, or leave the claim as is, and have me pay the $276. Hendricks is refusing to do either one. When I have had surgery, the business office always lets me know what my portion is going to be, because it will be thousands of dollars. I am almost 61 years old. I've had lots of blood work completed. Never has it been in the thousands. I had two hormone levels checked. Each was over a thousand dollars. Now, I've had the same test ran before, and it wasn't more than $60 dollars for all of them, even with insurance. Bottom line: I asked what the cost was going to be and told not to worry. With my bill running into the thousands of dollars, I should have been told and given the opportunity to either agree to the price or decline the lab procedure. I will not use them again, but will instead drive the hour or so to Abilene for a more reputable business. According to my insurance, there is no one else in Brownwood that does lab work. Sounds like price gouging to me. Quest Diagnostics always lets the patient know their portion before the drawing of blood.