Sentence:  [M]any hospitals have essentially abandoned any serious effort to raise funds from donors. They could, like universities, conduct fund-raising campaigns and establish endowments to cover the shortfall caused by widespread fraud (i.e., the false promise by government and insurance to pay patients' medical expenses), but instead they mercilessly <WSD>gouge</WSD> their uninsured patients. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  To cheat or impose upon; in particular, to charge an unfairly or unreasonably high price.