Well just having insurance will reduce your bill, because the hospital negotiates with the payer. It’s the people that don’t have insurance and don’t have an insurance company negotiating on their behalf that you should be concerned about.

I already explained life threatening conditions and how hospitals treat them in the first response. The OP stated a minor outpatient procedure.

Edit: Grammar

You can shop around for healthcare too. As far as a life threatening surgery, hospitals do those all day long and most of those don’t pay. Somebody has to pay the bill or the hospital will close and then you’ll have no healthcare.

You have to have a down payment to buy a car. What’s the big deal about paying a down payment for your surgery?