That is what I thought about the bougie. I do have to say my insurance paid for it but it was not free. I had a lot of stuff I needed to do, 6 month diet, including copays and coinsurance. You should shop around. Call up St. Alexius and DePaul and Branes. If you are paying out of pocket and want to stay in St. Louis there are choices out there. Negotiate. They want your business. Offer to pay less. What can they do say no. I would see who offers the best price. Honestly the money I have saved on food in the last eight months is amazing. So there are some upsides when it comes to money.