WSJ.com - How the Amish Drive Down Medical Costs

WSJ.com - How the Amish Drive Down Medical Costs: "The delegation of Amish and Mennonite elders came to the Heart of Lancaster Regional Medical Center to haggle with executives there over rates. They wanted discounts for their fellow worshipers, who collectively spend about $5 million a year in Lancaster County for health services, all of it in cash.

Like uninsured patients everywhere, the Amish and Mennonites often are billed a hospital's full retail price for medical procedures and pharmaceuticals, mainly because they don't have a large institution, such as an employer or insurer, to negotiate discounts on their behalf. But unlike many of the uninsured, they were able to organize and drive down the price of medical care in Pennsylvania."