BCBS IL is super straightforward. Every doctor is $20, unless it's a specialist, then it is $40. I've never actually been billed $40, despite seeing many specialists, so I'm not sure what actually qualifies. I've been hospitalized and paid <$1000 for an overnight stay, with visits from specialists, etc, so I'm pretty happy altogether.
My biggest complaint about the medical industry is the cost of prescription drugs. It's ridiculous how much we pay for drugs in this country.
Is your BCBS IL plan an HMO? That could explain the simplicity. I used to be on an HMO, but now it's a PPO with BCBS. The flexibility of choosing my provider hasn't been needed for my case.
Naw, I have a PPO. It's definitely one of the better plans I've seen offered anywhere though. My out of pocket cost is $1000 a year too, so that's pretty sweet.
It's not terribly expensive either. I just started COBRA and it is $750 a month or so.
I'm glad I don't have an HMO, as I'm not organized, and tracking down referrals and such would be a nightmare for me. I've never found a doctor that isn't in my network, so I just figure out which doctor is closest to me and isn't a hack and schedule an appointment. I live a couple of miles from Northwestern University Medical, and Rush University Medical Center, and they've got almost any type of doctor you could possibly need to see.
I don't think my PPO is complicated, but I've never found technical documents that hard to understand. Most of the complications seem to be for emergency and urgent care, but office visits are as uncomplicated as I've made them seem. Some types of lab work might cost more, but I've never been charged for any diagnostic tests outside of cat scans and MRIs.
My biggest complaint about the medical industry is the cost of prescription drugs. It's ridiculous how much we pay for drugs in this country.