Overinflated ships doctors visit fees

[CPT Trips]

Logic, capital cost allocation,and costs for labor and supplies have little to do with what stateside hospitals bill for care. They just pile in everything from their chargemaster they can remotely justify.

Then the insurance company pays 10% of the inflated bill and everyone walks away satisfied. OK, the 10% figure might, for some hospitals, be a bit of an exaggeration. But not by much.

[ldubs]

Was $12,000 the bill you actually were asked to pay? IF you have insurance, then no, they know they can't get away with that. Unless you went to some crazy out of network place - they have to charge the contracted rates the insurance company works out. That's why the bill has a line for insurance adjustments - money they are writing off because it's above the contracted price. $12,000 is the bill they send someone without insurance. And yes, that is outrageous.

 

 

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Because the other driver was at fault, our carrier needed my release so they could subrogate. Just to be on the safe side, I would not sign the release until some time had passed. The amount billed by the ER was $12K+. Luckily, my daughter did not have any bodily injury beyond some short term soft tissue damage.

[ldubs]

Plus our source on exactly what was done here is at best, third hand. Not a really solid source of info. Heck, on this thread we have one person in an unrelated case saying a doctor only checked their daughter's pupils, that's it, when their daughter was in the ER after a vehicle accident. That is so absurd it is totally unbelievable. No doctor would only check pupils in that situation.

 

And that is from a household with over 80 years of ER experience between us.

 

I was there the entire time in the hallway with my daughter. The doc checked her pupils then we never saw him again. My daughter did not arrive in an ambulance unconscious. She walked in with me because I wanted her checked. You can call it absurd if you like, and I appreciate that you have first hand ER experience, but it is factual. I have a lot of respect for medical professionals. I also know, as do you, that some bad ones have been caught cheating the system.

[sanger727]

I was there the entire time in the hallway with my daughter. The doc checked her pupils then we never saw him again. My daughter did not arrive in an ambulance unconscious. She walked in with me because I wanted her checked. You can call it absurd if you like, and I appreciate that you have first hand ER experience, but it is factual. I have a lot of respect for medical professionals. I also know, as do you, that some bad ones have been caught cheating the system.

 

 

 

Based on everything you said about this it sounds like she was involved in a relatively minor crash with no apparently injuries and you just took her to the hospital because the other guy was at fault. Not trying to be mean but I see people do this all the time and it's a waste of the hospitals resources. An urgent care or primary care physician is a better choice for a doctor's visit in that kind of a situation.

 

Can't really blame them for leaving you in a hallway and charging an excessive amount when people walk in for no reason other than 'I wanted to get her checked out'. If you call the police on an accident a fire unit can be called to the scene to do this, usually for free.

 

Urgent cares are great in non-life threatening situations. Fell down a flight of stairs a few months back and was in excruciating pain. Went to the urgent care, got an X-ray and examined by doctor, no fracture; got some meds for the pain and a sling. Bill I received (had already paid my deductible for the year) was around $20.

 

While I have no doubt that running an ER is expensive; ERs are where people without insurance go because they can't turn you away. I think their prices are partially due to people who do pay their bills supplementing people who don't; and I think partially to discourage people from going there for non-emergency situations.

 

Now, fair enough, poisonous snake bite - I'll be going to the ER and realize that the bill is going to be crazy. But fender bender car accident, I'd rather save my money and go somewhere else.

 

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Edited October 3, 2017 by sanger727

[calliopecruiser]

. An urgent care or primary care physician is a better choice for a doctor's visit in that kind of a situation.

Presuming, of course, that those were even available options. In some situations/locations, the hospital ER is all there is.

[CPT Trips]

Fortunately, I have not been involved in many vehicle collisions. But in each that was more than a fender bender, the cops suggested that they call an ambulance and that I go to an ER. Do some of the pps blame the police for abetting over utilization?

[ldubs]

Based on everything you said about this it sounds like she was involved in a relatively minor crash with no apparently injuries and you just took her to the hospital because the other guy was at fault. Not trying to be mean but I see people do this all the time and it's a waste of the hospitals resources. An urgent care or primary care physician is a better choice for a doctor's visit in that kind of a situation.

 

Can't really blame them for leaving you in a hallway and charging an excessive amount when people walk in for no reason other than 'I wanted to get her checked out'. If you call the police on an accident a fire unit can be called to the scene to do this, usually for free.

 

Urgent cares are great in non-life threatening situations. Fell down a flight of stairs a few months back and was in excruciating pain. Went to the urgent care, got an X-ray and examined by doctor, no fracture; got some meds for the pain and a sling. Bill I received (had already paid my deductible for the year) was around $20.

 

While I have no doubt that running an ER is expensive; ERs are where people without insurance go because they can't turn you away. I think their prices are partially due to people who do pay their bills supplementing people who don't; and I think partially to discourage people from going there for non-emergency situations.

 

Now, fair enough, poisonous snake bite - I'll be going to the ER and realize that the bill is going to be crazy. But fender bender car accident, I'd rather save my money and go somewhere else.

 

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Well shoot. Accident was anything but minor. My daughter's car was rear-ended at a high rate of speed. Multiple California Hwy Patrol responded. They did not call for an ambulance. I feel my daughter was very lucky. When I got to her place, our daughter complained of a headache. Yes, I wanted to make sure she was OK. I took her to the ER because this happened on a weekend and her primary doctor's office was closed. Last thing on my mind was collecting from a 3rd party. Ultimately, my insurers dealt with the other driver's insurers for the med and property damage costs.

 

As it turns out my daughter was OK and I suppose someone could say we wasted the ER's time. That actually would be the best possible news to me. That does not make it OK to overcharge. I tend to agree with your comment about some institutions using insurance to supplement other ER patients.

Edited October 3, 2017 by ldubs

[GUT2407]

Too paraphrase the tipping threads...

 

If you can’t afford insurance you can’t afford the cruise.