A woman says she paid $960 for an MRI on a family plan costing nearly $2,000 a month. She asked the self-pay price and was told ‘About $400′

Amanda Grasser took to TikTok to share what she says she learned about her health insurance after she needed medical care for a shoulder injury. The Colorado resident later reshared the video to Instagram, and the two posts have drawn more than three million views combined. Grasser told her viewers that paying out of pocket for medical services would have been significantly cheaper than using her coverage.

Grasser explained that her family plan through Aetna costs just under $2,000 every month. That amount is paid before anyone in her family even steps into a doctor’s office. On top of those premiums, she has a $6,500 deductible, the amount she has to pay before insurance covers her care. When she injured her shoulder, the ER told her they didn’t see a break and sent her for an MRI, where she says she was told she needed to pay $960 to get the scan done that day.

She recounted the moment at the facility in her video, saying, “You guys, I was so frustrated and in so much pain that I actually started crying. I gave the lady a credit card, and then I turned around and said, ‘out of curiosity, how much would this have cost me if I hadn’t run it through insurance?’ Do you know what her answer was? ‘About $400.’”

Then she learned how much the ER visit would have cost

The situation worsened when she received her ER bill, which she claimed was for a one-hour visit. The total came to $1,760, with $965 of that specifically for two X-rays. When she called the billing department to ask about a self-pay rate, she says she was told it would have been about $1,200.

Grasser expressed her disbelief, noting, “So again, without insurance, $1,200. With insurance, $1,760. And remember what I said in the beginning? I am already paying $2,000 a month just to have insurance.” She added that the MRI found her shoulder was actually broken, even though the ER had not seen a break. Attack of the Fanboy could not independently verify her bills, and neither Aetna nor the medical providers involved have publicly responded to her videos.

On TikTok, she had asked in the caption, “Can anyone explain this math.” On Instagram, she added, “Reposting this because I have a feeling there are a lot more people that this is happening to than me… share your experiences below!”

Commenters echoed her frustration about insurance. One Instagrammer wrote, “Health insurance is organized crime,” while another commented, “It is greed, period.” On TikTok, one user stated, “We don’t have a healthcare system we have an insurance system.” Others suggested that people would be better off saving their premium money to pay for medical bills directly, much like one patient whose imaging scan dropped to $480 once she skipped her insurance.

This issue of whether it is cheaper to go without insurance is a growing topic of debate. According to NBC News, while some hospitals offer self-pay discounts, skipping insurance is a risky move. Experts warn that paying out of pocket means those costs do not count toward a deductible or out-of-pocket limit. If a major medical emergency occurs, uninsured patients can be left with massive, unmanageable bills.

Grasser closed her video with a question for viewers. “Why does having medical insurance make health care more expensive? I would love to hear your answers,” she said.