TSH Cost From Quest Diagnostics With and Without Insurance.

I've been talking levothyroxine for several years now.  Every so often I get my TSH checked to make sure my dosing is adequate.   I got my bill for my TSH and was shocked to see how much a TSH costs in 2012.     I reviewed  an old explanation of benefits form from  2009 and found  the cost of a TSH with and without insurance.

I have the same Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS) insurance today that I had in 2009.    How much did my TSH obtained at Quest Diagnostics cost in 2009?

Phlebotomy fee in 2009:  $16.30
TSH assay fee in 2009:  $97.95
Total fee by Quest Diagnostics:  $114.25
Total allowable charges paid by BCBS:  $24.92
Insurance discount of 78.2%

Fast forward to 2012.  How much does a TSH cost in 2012 from the same Quest Diagnostics?

Phlebotomy fee in 2012:  $19.00
TSH assay fee in 2012:  $116.00
Total fee by Quest Diagnostics:  $135.00
Total allowable charges paid by BCBS:  $18.64
Insurance discount of 86.2%

In exactly three years difference, using my same insurance and using my same outpatient laboratory, the price charges for my TSH has risen 18% while the allowable charge has decreased by  25%.  In that same period of time, my insurance rates have increased more than 30%.  One is forced to answer the questions, where is all that money going and how long can these third party insurance economics last?

At some point, people/businesses will stop paying these rates of rise in premiums and doctors, labs and hospitals are going to stop accepting what these insurance monopolies are offering.  The only question is when.