Blue Cross/Blue Shield Blue Card program, Blue Cross Idaho - Collusion between Blue Cross Idaho and St. Luke's Hospital to allow full rates charged to out-of-state policy holders. NO contract discounts given to patients Specifically Blue Cross Idaho & ,St. Luke's McCall Nationwide

I am a resident of California, with a Covered California (ACA) policy from Blue Shield with a $5,000 deductible. While visiting McCall, Idaho, in July 2014, I went to the Emergency Room for what was diagnosed as dehydration. The claim was processed thru Blue Shield of California, who sent it to Blue Cross idaho as part of the Blue Card program for out-of-state services.

Blue Cross Idaho allowed FULL chargemaster rates for the Emergency Room services. No contract discounts were applied to my bill. I am stuck with a $4,000 bill for a few tests and a bag of saline.

"Chargemaster" rates are the artificially high charges for services that are then negotiated down for policy holders. No one pays full chargemaster rates except people who are un-insured, who, unless they are wealthy, go bankrupt from medical bills.

In 30 years of buying private insurance, I have always paid lower negotiated rates for health care. These discounts were the only reason I ever bought health insurance. I could only afford high-deductible policies, and rarely met that amount, but used the discounts on doctor visits.

I've researched and filed complaints with all companies and agencies involved, and have begged for discounts from the hospital, but have hit nothing but walls of "That's the way it is."

I learned from Blue Cross/Blue Shield that different policies have different discount rates for services. Why?

My theory is this: On HIGH deductible out-of-state insurance policies, Blue Cross Idaho has colluded with St. Luke's Hospital to allow full rates up to the deductible amount. A friend who is a resident of Idaho, with a Blue Cross Idaho $5,000 decuctible policy, went to the same ER and GOT DISCOUNTS. Why didn't I? Because I'm from California. Since Blue Cross doesn't have to pay my bill, they let the hospital get as much as they can from me. 

And there's no way the Health and Human Services Department in Washington, who administers the Affordable Care Act, can know about the collusion going on because it's all hidden from view. I can't even find out if what these people are doing is prohibited in the ACA.

I want to find other out-of-state policy holders who were similarly gouged by their insurance company and health care providers. Price-fixing is illegal. Similar class-action lawsuits have been filed against Blue Cross/Blue Shield, but not for this specific crime. I need help. We might have a class-action case here.