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If restaurant bills were like hospital bills

DavidApp

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Had a pace maker implanted back in June. Not seen any change because it was not for a low heart rate.

Then the bills start coming in.

First unlike a restaurant you have no idea how much the bill will be for the procedure. Menu with no prices anyone? Imagine being given a bill by the waiter not for the meal but for his/her service then the chef, the dish washer, etc

The Hospital bills keep coming in dribs and drabs. One from the hospital, one from the surgeon, one from the x-ray department etc. It would be nice to see an invoice with everything on it not the drip drip drip approach.

David
 

TR3driver

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Yup, something seriously broken with healthcare in this country. We spend more and get less than almost every other first-world country.

Oh, BTW, the reason there are no prices on that menu is that they charge different rates depending on who pays the bill. The difference can sometimes be as much as 10:1 !

There for awhile it looked like I would be getting a pacemaker too. But the cardiologist said I don't actually have afib yet, and to wait until I do before doing the implant. Cheerful thought!
 

JPSmit

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When we lived in the USofA I had surgery and it took a very long time to get the bills sorted - I recall just having a binder with everything in one place - and having repeatedly to ask for adjustments - either because of insurance coverage not reflected or (more than once) the same bill coming from more than one source. It requires real diligence!

As to the larger question of the medical system - I like cheese!

grommit.jpg
 

NutmegCT

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J-P - I've experienced the same thing with just about every medical exam or procedure I've enjoyed (!). Duplicate bills, wrong coding, questionable items on the bill, etc. Some of us can handle those things with a lot of patience. But many of the people I work with are in their 70s, 80s, and 90s; they're overwhelmed by the duplicates and details, and just give up trying to sort them out.

TM
 

pdplot

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I got a pacemaker in December. Astounding hospital bill for an overnight stay, dribs and drabs from doctors for several months but so far, cost me Zero thanks to Medicare. Ditto with my wife's cancer operation and radiation. If it weren't for Medicare, I'd be wiped out. Same with Social Security.
 

Popeye

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My wife and I just listened to the book, "An American Sickness". Interesting and depressing read, describing nuances of the health system, how prices are set, and how profits are made.

(The author has a clear political slant. To her credit she clearly states so. As such, some statements need to be taken with a grain of salt. A fascinating read, nonetheless.)

Health care is an industry which needs some control; Doctors and providers should be qualified, for example. But the best-of-intention regulation causes financial pain as individuals and corporations skew the system to their advantage.
 
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DavidApp

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As mine was done as outpatient Medicare did not pick up any of the bill. Fortunately my better half still works and we are covered by the teachers health benefits. One area that pays off. The pay does not make up for the round of daily meetings etc. How often do you need to meet to teach kindergarten?
 

Gliderman8

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About ten years ago my wife went through breast cancer (she is fine now). The bills for surgery, doctors, hospitals, chemo and radiation treatments were horrible. Thank goodness we were each covered by insurance from two different employers. What her insurance company did not cover mine picked up... we were lucky.
I remember getting a call one day from the pharmacist telling me that "we were approved" for a ten day round of medicine that cost $2,000. He went on to say that unfortunately he had to call another family to tell them that their insurance company had denied the very same medicine for them.
 

JPSmit

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A doctor tried this in Canada a few years and was not permitted to do it. That said, as someone who until relatively recently was a smoker and who is difinitely overweight, I'm actually OK with it. One of the tradeoffs of national health care is that (to my mind) the gubbmint gets some say - so for instance, I think the gubbmint does get to say yes to motorcycle helmets if they are footing the bill.

He who pays the piper calls the tunes.
 

JPSmit

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J-P - I've experienced the same thing with just about every medical exam or procedure I've enjoyed (!). Duplicate bills, wrong coding, questionable items on the bill, etc. Some of us can handle those things with a lot of patience. But many of the people I work with are in their 70s, 80s, and 90s; they're overwhelmed by the duplicates and details, and just give up trying to sort them out.

TM

I couldn't agree more. Last year my mother - who is a very bright, active 86 year old - had quadruple bypass. Not so much the bills (which were minimal - walker rental and the like) but the medications. I remember at one point sitting with my sister trying to sort out all the meds and the dosages - and looking at her and saying "we are both doctors (not medical) and this is hard." How is it for seniors?

Likewise many moons ago when my father was still alive - reviewing his taxes and realizing that he had mossed some significant deductions just because of the complexity of the tax code - he was a civil and mechanical engineer and one of the smartest men I knew.

Made me realize that there is a real opportunity to advocate for seniors.
 

John Turney

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But of course, it's the taxpayers who are actually paying for their own health insurance.

So ... who's really the piper?
It doesn't matter if it's government health insurance or private health insurance. It's either the taxpayers or policyholders who pay.
 
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DavidApp

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Talking about hospital costs. My wife had surgery on January 4 2016 and an overnight stay. During the stay she saw the Physiotherapist twice for a total of maybe 60 minutes. At a cost of $1500.00. All they did was make sure she could get from the bed to the chair and one lap of the hallway.

David
 

NutmegCT

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P/T - my experience -

Insurance required six weeks of p/t before they'd consider cortisone or surgery. So I endured six weeks of three sessions p/t per week: I'd drive to the center, sign in, sit at my assigned "station", then stretch the large rubber bands and squeeze the small foam balls during each one hour session. The p/t would walk by me twice each session, saying "looks good" or "keep at it"; p/t was assigned 10 to 15 people per hour, and each person was paying $160/hr for "personal therapy".

Then after the six weeks the insurance ok'd surgery. Surgeon did the wrong operation (yep ...) and problem got worse.

yeesh
 
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DavidApp

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Maybe the Surgeon had a similar work load and forgot who they were working on?

The P/t my wife got in hospital was only intended to ensure she was safe to get from the bed to a chair and could manage crutches down the hall. She got excellent P/T with the company that did the home visits.

David
 

pdplot

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I just got a Medicare bill/report covering a visit to the Florida urologist of......January 26, 2016....bill was apparently adjusted and maybe resubmitted. Who knows?
 
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