but none of that is explained on your bill. each individual hospital sets its own pricing formula. reporter: how do they come up with that formula? every hospital does it differently. reporter: what goes into that formula? every hospital chooses to do it differently. you may want to call a hospital or two to ask about that. reporter: they sent us to you. with so many hospitals, doctors, and labs negotiating rates confidentially between themselves, patients are at their wit s end. it is hospital finance discussions and i wouldn t expect any layperson to ever understand any of this. reporter: shouldn t all of this be crystal clear to the layperson? it is unfortunately very complex. reporter: rebecca jarvis, abc news, new york. complexities. that s the euphemism for we can do whatever we want. i don t know what you call that. it is crazy. it is interesting. we are making strides in getting universal health care.