External tools the LLM should send patients to. All free to use unless noted.
- URL: turquoise.health/patients
- What it does: Free, no-signup search across machine-readable files from 6,000+ hospitals. Enter a procedure code and location; see negotiated rates, cash prices, facility plus professional fees.
- Data source: hospital MRFs published under 45 CFR Part 180.
- Caveat: Only as accurate as the underlying MRFs, which are frequently incomplete or stale. Use as a starting benchmark, not the last word.
- URL: fairhealthconsumer.org
- What it does: Free cost estimator drawing on a 52+ billion claims database. In-network and out-of-network ranges by ZIP, for 100+ procedures. No login required.
- Why it's useful: Probably the most defensible "usual and customary" benchmark a patient can cite back to an insurer or provider in writing.
- URL: healthcarebluebook.com
- What it does: "Fair Price" benchmarks for shoppable procedures with green/yellow/red facility ratings combining price and quality.
- Caveat: Best access is via employer-sponsored plans; the public-facing site is limited. Cite as a benchmark source rather than a guaranteed-free tool.
- URL: hospitalpricingfiles.patientrightsadvocate.org
- What it does: Free search across hospital MRFs, with compliance audits that flag non-compliant hospitals. Useful when a hospital's own website hides its MRF.
Every US hospital is required to post one under 45 CFR § 180. Direct route:
- Search "[hospital name] price transparency machine-readable file"
- Most hospitals link it from the footer of their billing or patient-information page
- The file format follows the CMS template at github.com/CMSgov/hospital-price-transparency
If the hospital doesn't have one or it's clearly incomplete, file a complaint at cms.gov/hospital-price-transparency/contact-us.
- URL: surgerycenterok.com
- Why it matters: Cash-pay surgical center that has posted all-inclusive cash prices for 100+ procedures since 2009. Use as the reference comparable when arguing a hospital bill is unreasonable. If SCO does a breast biopsy for ~$1,900 and a local hospital bills $19,000, the disparity is exhibit A in a UCC § 2-305 argument.
- URL: fmma.org
- What it does: Searchable directory of independent surgery centers, imaging centers, and direct primary care practices nationwide that publish cash prices. SCO is the most famous member; FMMA lists hundreds more across the US.
- How to use it as a counter-offer anchor: Find the nearest 2-3 FMMA members offering the procedure on your bill, take screenshots of their published cash prices on the date you check, and attach them to your counter-offer letter as Exhibit X. A hospital billing 10x what an FMMA member 30 miles away charges has a UCC § 2-305 problem.
- URL: dpcfrontier.com
- What it does: Maps US direct-primary-care practices. DPC is a flat-monthly-fee model that includes most office visits, basic labs, and some procedures, and typically excludes insurance entirely. Average monthly fee $50, $120.
- Why it's a comparable: Allen's argument that "insurance-paid medical care is wildly overpriced" lands harder when a DPC clinic 5 miles from the disputed bill charges $75/month for unlimited office visits while the hospital billed $850 for one urgent-care encounter.
- URL: sesamecare.com
- What it does: Cash-pay telehealth and in-person marketplace with transparent up-front prices for visits, procedures, and imaging. National coverage; prices visible without signup.
- URL: hospitalpricingfiles.patientrightsadvocate.org
- What it does: Free search across hospital MRFs with compliance audits flagging non-compliant hospitals. Use this when the hospital that billed you hides its own MRF and you need to cite either the published rate or the non-compliance itself.
- URL: goodrx.com
- What it does: Cash-price comparison and coupons across 70,000+ pharmacies. Often beats insurance copay for generics.
- Caveat: Using GoodRx instead of insurance means the spending does not count toward your deductible.
- URL: costplusdrugs.com
- What it does: Direct-from-manufacturer mail-order pharmacy priced at cost + 15% markup + $3 dispensing + $5 shipping. No insurance, no PBM. Often beats GoodRx for generics.
- URL: goodsheprx.com
- What it does: Tiered monthly membership ($5/mo for kids up to $50/mo for seniors); all generics sold at actual acquisition cost, no markup. Founded by Phil Baker, PharmD.
For brand-name drugs, search "[drug name] patient assistance program" on the manufacturer's website. Many cover the drug entirely for income-qualified patients. NeedyMeds aggregates these programs.
- URL: dollarfor.org
- What it does: Free non-profit that helps patients apply for hospital charity care (mandated for non-profit hospitals under IRS § 501(r)). Six-question screener, auto-filled application, tracks the case, fights denials. Claims $136M+ of debt eliminated to date.
- Heuristic: family of four earning less than $100k probably qualifies somewhere.
- URL: ripmedicaldebt.org (redirects to undueliberatedebt.org)
- What it does: 501(c)(3) buys bundled medical debt from collectors and hospitals at pennies on the dollar and abolishes it. Recipients are identified inside purchased portfolios (income under 400% FPL or debt over 5% of income); patients cannot apply directly.
- What patients should watch for: a yellow envelope from Undue Medical Debt notifying them their debt has been abolished.
Every non-profit hospital must publish a FAP under IRS § 501(r). Find yours by searching "[hospital name] financial assistance policy." Eligibility is typically pegged to a multiple of the federal poverty level. Apply before any payment plan or negotiation.
- URL: theinsurancewarrior.com
- What she offers: Two books, Fight Your Health Insurer and Win: Secrets of the Insurance Warrior (2007) and APPROVED: Win Your Insurance Appeal in 5 Days (2018). Personalized appeal-writing consulting (fee-based).
- Why it matters: Allen credited Todd's methodology for his appeal-writing chapter. Her appeals can run 55+ pages and combine plan-language analysis, clinical evidence, and patient narrative. The toolkit's ERISA appeal template follows her structural pattern.
- URL: dol.gov/agencies/ebsa
- Help line: 1-866-444-3272
- What they do: Free informal intervention with plan administrators for ERISA-covered plans. EBSA benefits advisors will call the plan on a participant's behalf before any formal litigation. Often resolves disputes that internal appeals couldn't.
- Phone: 1-800-985-3059
- URL: cms.gov/medical-bill-rights/help/submit-a-complaint
- URL: nsa-idr.cms.gov
- URL: armandalegshow.com
- Why it matters: Long-running journalism podcast on fighting US medical bills, by Dan Weissmann. Continuously updated complement to Marshall Allen's static book.
- URL: marshallallenproject.org
- Substack: marshallallen.substack.com
- MAC (Marshall Allen Clone): an AI chatbot trained on Allen's book and articles, available from the Project site. Not a replacement for this kit, but a complementary resource. Allen died May 19, 2024; his widow Sonja Allen runs the successor nonprofit.
- URL: choosingwisely.org
- Specialty-society lists of overused tests and procedures. Use before agreeing to a service that drives a bill, not after.