A former US surgeon general says he went to the ER for dehydration and ended up with a $5,000 bill. He called the healthcare system 'broken.'

I’m defending the idea that one of the best hospitals in the world would charge more than an ordinary clinic.

Would affordability not be factored into a hospital's quality? If a hospital puts even the most routine care at an inaccessible price point, I would consider that a black mark on their ability to deliver service.

I don’t see anything wrong with incentivising people to offer better services.

Again, I don't see any relationship between the price-tag of a saline drip and the quality of service. Not when the price is that astronomical.

If you put in an order for a hamburger, the meal shows up, and then waiter hands you a check for $500, the advertised assertion that this is "The Best Burger!" does not transform a quarter pound of grilled ground beef into its weight in gold.

The best doctors and nurses should get paid the most.

There is no reason to believe a saline drip at Mayo Clinic is going to be meaningfully different from any bog standard city hospital.

All the price tag accomplishes is to screen people in need of care from the facility based on their income.