Will All Doctors Who Accept Medicare Charge The Same Amount?
The answer is simply no. Most doctors who accept medicare insurance accept “assignments”. By accepting assignments, it means doctors are required to accept amounts approved by medicare for medical services. Doctors that do not reach an agreement to accept assignments are referred to as non-participating providers [6].
If your doctor is a non-participating provider, you might be required to pay more than the amount charged by medicare. However, there is a limit to how much you can be charged for a medical service. Doctors who do not accept assignments can only charge up to 15 percent more than the amount charged by medicare.
Nonparticipating providers can however treat medicare patients during periods of emergency and charge them according to the approved medicare cost.