You might have 2 different cost structures for what's considered "preventative" care and other medical care. This would not fall under the preventative section I wouldn't think, so make sure you're looking at the right set of numbers. You might have a different copay (and then again, you may not), and you might have to pay a percentage of what you're having done (typically 10-20%, depending on what type of policy you have). No matter how high the costs of what you need done, you should only have to pay up to the limit of your deductible for any covered procedures.

In general, procedures are either covered or they're not...if your doctor decides they are medically necessary AND they are typically covered by your insurance, then insurance will pay their portion regardless of what the tests show. The one area that's greyer is in seeking emergency care for non-emergency situations. Don't do that Try to make sure your doctor/his staff is familiar enough with your insurance to have a sense of what is and is not coverable. BUT don't take their word for it. Find out what tests are going to be recommended for you and then look in your insurance booklet/online information to see if you need pre-approval or anything like that, or speak to someone in customer service at the insurance company if you're not sure. If they are telling you something's covered and you don't see it in your booklet/online explanation, try to get it in writing before doing the procedures. So for example, for someone of my age, preventative mammograms are not covered, but if my doctor had a medical reason to request one, my insurance pays for it.

Don't go to a hospital. Your best bet is to find a good GP that can refer you out to specialists as needed. Do you know anyone locally that you trust enough to ask them if they have a doctor they recommend? You could also ask your counselor/therapist for a referral.

Good luck. I'm coming at this from the perspective of someone with control-freak tendencies who has been in a similarly-financially-strapped situation, so the things I'm recommending may very well be overkill. But it helped me to know in advance what the limit of my financial liability was going to be, and to have that in writing in case there was a denial or the story changed after I had the stuff done That never happened to me BTW but I had heard too many horror stories to take that chance.