Not surprising. Worried about corruption in a single-payer system? Take a look at the private system.

Absolutely. I have a relative that works in a business supporting heathcare software. He says that the folks that enter your billing data are barely high school graduates, and the error rate is extreme. But who of us would know enough to catch that? What I see from my insurance about coverage can list doctors I've never heard of (in the case of lab procedures, etc.), services that were rendered for procedures that happened 6 months ago, etc., etc. I'm not particularly stupid, but no way could I audit my health insurance receipts unless I made it a full-time job with spreadsheets, dates, diagnostic codes, etc.

The system is insane.

In a recent instance, the insurance company denied a claim, so I called the doctor's office to pay it.

The accounting person in the doctor's office told me NOT to pay the doctor's bill. She said, call the insurance company back, and give them this particular speech, using these particular phrases. They'll review the claim and reverse the denial, although it may take a few weeks. I asked if she wanted me to pay and then send me a check once the payment was processed, and she said no, it was easier just to wait for the insurance company to pay, and she was confident they would.

It reminded me of that scene from The Incredibles.

Lo and behold ...