My Medical Rant From My 3-Year-Olds Surgery

[jonboyb]

Not starting a debate on insurance, Obamacare, etc......just thought this was a little rediculous.

 

My 3 year old son had to have a minor surgery to remove a kink in the tube between his left kidney and bladder. A no brainer type deal. However, they used the robot to minimize incisions. He was in surgery for 3 hours total (most of which was setting up the robot) and they basically snipped out a small piece and connected the tube back. I have great insurance so no big deal ($192 total out the door) but we got the total from the hospital today . $29,000+!!!!!! Come on now. He never even got admitted to the hospital. A short time in extended recovery and back home like nothing ever happened (thank God....scary to put your kids under the knife....errr......robot).

[AutoBodyGod]

I can explain in one word...."Sue".

[dmyers151]

I don't know about suing anyone, but I'd def. make a few phone calls to the insurance company and the hospital.

 

A hospital is a business, and like any other business, prices are flexible. Call them up and explain the situation just as you have here.

[Killtodie]

did you get an estimate before having the procedure done? was that estimate submitted to your insurance company? did they approve upto a max amount? are you maybe paying a set percentage of the total price?

 

is $30k the entire total or just what you have to pay, so like the entire procedure was $120k for example.

 

Maybe they sent you the bill by accident, so obviously look up the paper work, call insurance first, then call the hospital.

[jonboyb]

Read again.....my total with insurance was only $192. I love my insurance Just that the hospital is charging so much......seems unrealistic.

[starquestG54B]

dang dude last year i had to have emergency surgery to remove my appendix and that was $20,000 for 1 hour in and 2 hours out

[jonboyb]

The $29000 is just for use of the hospital facilities too. Not the doctor and crew. Guess they have to pay that robot off

[Killtodie]

Read again.....my total with insurance was only $192. I love my insurance Just that the hospital is charging so much......seems unrealistic.

 

Right, $192 you paid as a down payment/deductible? so upto what does your insurance cover? Sounds like the surgery was more than what the insurance covered and you got stuck with the bill.

[dmyers151]

Ohhh, the wording made it seem as though you were billed for $29k.

 

My thinking is that the hospital charges more when you have insurance as opposed to when you don't.

 

My friend needed some dental work done last year and had no insurance, they charged her 1/3 what they charged me (insured) last month for the same procedure. Same Dr., same office.

[Killtodie]

oh, are you saying the entire procedure was $29k and that was the bill of which you only paid $200? or you now owe 29 grand?

 

if the first, then I think that's normal. a boob job that takes place in a freakin dentist office costs $7k+ and braces run about $2.

 

heck, anything with general anesthesia is at least $10k that isnt cosmetic.

 

How many people made contact with your sun? nurse, doctor, anesthesiologist, xray tech and then afterwards? each of those people cost a lot of money. welcome to the American healthcare system.

Edited July 28, 2010 by Killtodie

[jonboyb]

Yep, insurance covered everything but my $192 deductible. The bill is just a formality from the hospital that outlines total charges, my co-pay, and most importantly my $0 balance....LOL.

 

I just can't imagine the amounts some of the seriously ill people get charged (or their insurance gets charged anyways). Jeez....what would a heart transplant cost. I've always felt like my insurance gets ripped off since they pay so willingly. I know they "negotiate" costs during precertification, but it looks like their negotiators aren't to good. My insurance for my family is roughly $220/month out of my check and a wad from my employer, but I don't see any way a family with a couple kids would ever actually "cover" what's spent through their lifetimes. I'm sure subsidies are involved (or they bank on having a bunch of really healthy clients than never need doctors).

[Killtodie]

I work for an insurance company Per se. It win and loose. Sometimes you get paid max amount for doing very little work, other times you get your flat rate but spend 8 times the amount to fix something.

 

Unlike an uninsured person, insurance companies wont weep and cry to get their costs cut.

[jonboyb]

I work for an insurance company Per se. It win and loose. Sometimes you get paid max amount for doing very little work, other times you get your flat rate but spend 8 times the amount to fix something.

 

Unlike an uninsured person, insurance companies wont weep and cry to get their costs cut.

 

Don't take any of my comments negatively KTD, it was a jab at the system in general. Like I said, I LOVE my insurance. They did make a chunk on me though before the kids. My wife and I never went to the doctor beforehand.

[jahjah]

dude, thats nucking futs.

 

when my wife had our kid and she had to stay in the luxury high risk sweet for 3 days afterwards, her total bill was like 31k

[tim si]

the problem with all this is that in the next few years your ins.will go up because of these practices.if you wanted you could request an itemized bill and they have to send it to you.then you could check it and mark off all the things they didnt give your son while he was there.get with your ins.company and id bet theyd appreciate it.ive seen them charge for meds they didnt give and 11 bucks for a tylenol.

[boostdquest89]

Glad you have GOOD insurance.........not sure how somebody didnt understand "192 total, out the door", but that is awesome! Also, the most important thing is your son is O.K.

Cheers!

Chad-

[Shelby]

now you are seeing why the hospital , doctors, and insurance companys will never get arround to makeing medical treatment affordable for all,

 

my pace maker cost $102k , took maybe 45 minutes to do , and it's a rental you do not own it ,,,they cut it out the minute you die , and resale it to the next guy in lline

[Fanta]

Holy...

[Dad]

Enjoy that great insurance now, 192.00 is awful cheap. Our insurance rates for Blue shaft/Blue shield just jumped to 1209.00 per month for my wife and I. So now we are shopping around .

 

Dad

Edited July 28, 2010 by Dad

[FlattopMike]

The reason it cost so much is that it has to cover all of the people that come in and don't have insurance.

Typically, if you don't have insurance, you can't afford to pay.

[Fanta]

note to self: marry myself a french woman. when she is preggers, drop her off in France.

[notfried]

That's silly man.

 

 

 

Here's my thought, since the human body hasn't changed, although some diseases/viruses do, and vehicles change everything every couple years, how come skilled mechanics do get paid like doctors? I know it's unrealistic, just something that I've always pondered.

[mark0695]

i had a ct scan done to check for kidney stones. No stones found and was at the hospital for an hour and a half and they charged 13k. Luckily my insurance picked up most of the tab and i only paid about 200 as well.

[Shelby]

The reason it cost so much is that it has to cover all of the people that come in and don't have insurance.

Typically, if you don't have insurance, you can't afford to pay.

 

 

depends on the minority group they belong to,, you don't hear about all the the turn aways cause many times the dead can't talk and the poor can't aford a lawyer

[1989Quest]

Lol, I just got a bill for more than $147,000 on Friday. I was in rough shape at the start of the year. I spent almost a month in the hospital and had to have a major abdominal surgery. My insurance covered $10,000...go life!