MediBid Allows Doctors to Bid on Surgeries

MediBid, Inc. is a start-up company that allows patients to describe the procedure they want done and put it out for doctors to bid on. “Our mission is to give better quality health care at a better price with more choice and more access, ” says Ralph Weber, a Katy, Texas, businessman and CEO of MediBid. According to investigative reporter Bill Spencer, doctors from all over the country (and even the world) can bid on the job, giving the patient the best price for that particular procedure.

Weber claims that patient customers, by putting their surgical needs out for bid, can save from 35% to 75% on most procedures. “And, ” he said, “each bid comes with a rating on that doctor and a brief history of his work.” Among the most common surgeries advertised for are hip and knee replacements.

Spencer explains that to use MediBid, a customer logs onto the website, registers his name, writes a brief history of the medical condition he wants treated and asks for bids. MediBid claims that doctors from all over the country bid on the job, giving the patient their price for that particular procedure. MediBid charges its customers $50 for each inquiry put out for bid.

Spencer tells the story of Perry Hunt, a 53-year-old construction consultant, who needed a hip replacement. Perry had health insurance but his insurance company, for some reason, refused to pay for the surgery he needed, and the out-of-pocket cost was going to be over $100, 000. “I went on the MediBid website” Hunt said, “and I ended up finding a fantastic doctor in San Antonio, one of the best in the country, and I paid just $21, 000.”

Another case was Regina Warner, an administrative court clerk in Dallas, who needed gallbladder surgery. Even with health insurance her out-of-pocket expenses for the deductible and the co-pay were going to top $10, 000. Then she found out her company had a contract with MediBid.

She went on the MediBid website and found a doctor in Nacogdoches who charged her $4, 600 for the surgery. Warner’s health insurance paid the bill and she walked away without paying anything. Instead, Spencer reports that Warner was paid $1, 000 for travel expenses.