How do hospitals/HMOs decide the costs of specific surgeries?

Is it by how many people are needed, what equipment, commonness of the surgery?
Is there a formula?
Thanks

they resurch what is needed and then add the amounts for each service and items used.plus time required by every person used. then of course total it to get the cost

pick em at random..actually how extensive it is

well first of all it depends on if you have insurance or not. the insurance company will tell the hospital what they are willing to pay for a particular test or procedure... if you are paying cash its a whole different ball game

When insurance companies decide to accept a physician's under their policies, the insurance companies tell the doctors what they are willing to pay.

So, hypothetically: Dr. Jones wants to be able to accept ABC Insurance. ABC will tell Dr. Jones they are willing to pay $X for a certain procedure. If Dr. Jones thinks that is too little, ABC will tell their patients to go somewhere else that is willing to charge what ABC is willing to pay.

So, the long & short of it is the insurance companies negotiate with the health care providers what will be charged for their services. For instance, a $20,000 surgery will be itemized on a bill to the patient, but it has a line-item deduction for "Insurance discount". The total is then what the insurance company had previously agreed to pay for the surgery.