Current Events > America: Woman charged almost 6 grand for an ice pack & bandage.

(+) Yeah! (+)

Woman receives $5,751 ER billfor an ice pack and a bandage

A woman seeking treatment from a New Jersey hospital in October 2016 for an ear injury was charged $5,751 for her treatmenteven though that treatment only consisted of an ice pack and a bandage, according to an ongoing investigation by Vox into hospital emergency room billing.

The woman, Jessica Pell, had fainted and hit her head on a table, slicing her ear in the process. She initially went to the emergency department at Hoboken University Medical Center to patch up the injury. But she decided to leave and get treatment elsewhere after she learned that the doctor who would see her there was out of network for her insurance plan and would therefore cost more than an in-network doctor.

I decided to decline treatment because I cant really afford any surprise bills right now, she said. The bill Id probably incur would not be worth saving my ear, which was sad but a choice I had to make.

Still, months later, she received a bill from the hospital for her treatmenta bill for $5,751. Its for the ice pack and the bandage, Pell said. That is the only tangible thing they could bill me for.

Pells insurance provider, Cigna, estimated that the bill was 4,453 percent above what Medicare would have paid for such an ice pack-bandage treatment, which would be roughly $129. But Cigna used a third-party company to estimate a reasonable and appropriate price for the services and agreed to cover $862 of the bill. That left Pell to pay the remainder.

Pell pushed back on the hospital's bill, to no avail. But the hospital ultimately zeroed out her bill and refunded her the $100 co-payment she made at the time of the visit after a Vox reporter began asking questions.

Though everything worked out in the end for Pell, Vox reports that many other patients are receiving steep ER billseven if they dont receive treatment.

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https://arstechnica.com/science/2018/05/woman-recieves-5751-er-bill-for-an-ice-pack-and-a-bandage

Dayum!
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Bump
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fucking thugs.

Should be a crime
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Another capitalism success story!
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Disgusting

Another reason why I'm glad I don't live in the US.
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St0rmFury posted...

The bill Id probably incur would not be worth saving my ear, which was sad but a choice I had to make.

huh
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Completely reasonable price.
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the greatest country on earth
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1337toothbrush posted...

Another capitalism success story!

Almost every other capitalist country has universal healthcare so uhh.
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DarkChozoGhost posted...

Completely reasonable price.

Many seele members died after the first impact.
Woman should be proud that she received the same ice from the heavens.
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Darkrobotisback posted...

DarkChozoGhost posted...

Completely reasonable price.

Many seele members died after the first impact.
Woman should be proud that she received the same ice from the heavens.

r/unexpectedevangelion
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Thats ludicrous. Hope that ED gets audited.
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Wow no one thought to tag @clearaflagrantj ???
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DavidWong posted...

Another reason why I'm glad I don't live in the US.

ASithLord7 posted...

1337toothbrush posted...

Another capitalism success story!

Almost every other capitalist country has universal healthcare so uhh.

Oh, you mean socialized healthcare?
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Can't wait for the inevitable day I have a heart attack, get bypass surgery and then the hospital sends someone to repossess my heart because I can't afford to pay for it.
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SGT_Conti posted...

St0rmFury posted...

The bill Id probably incur would not be worth saving my ear, which was sad but a choice I had to make.

huh

She declined treatment to avoid a high bill but got one anyway.

There should be riots in the streets over this shit

Pretty fucked up that they only changed their tune when reporters got involved. Imagine how many people experience this shit daily.
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clearaflagrantj posted...

There should be riots in the streets over this shit

Everyone is too poor and sick to
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St0rmFury posted...

Pell pushed back on the hospital's bill, to no avail. But the hospital ultimately zeroed out her bill and refunded her the $100 co-payment she made at the time of the visit after a Vox reporter began asking questions.

so the lesson here is shove a microphone in the hospital's face

strange system.

i always go to urgent care unless i am literally dying because i know what urgent care centers charge, and if they can't help me i dont mind paying that fee.

and my insurance covers ER on copay, i just prefer no surprises.
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Doctors are my most least respected profession
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My wife got a $1000 ER bill for hanging out in the room for three hours, being checked on one time, told "we have no idea what's wrong with you" and checked out of the hospital.

Anyone who's okay with America's healthcare system is a fucking moron.
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Kajagogo posted...

Doctors are my most least respected profession

That's unfair. Doctors don't usually decide how much patients get charged.

this is why any accident i ever been in my adult life, which have been a few, my first thought during registering the pain and severity of the moment it happens is - "oh fuck how much is this going to cost me. let me drive myself or have a family member take me to the hospital because the ambulance would cost me a fortune."
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Kajagogo posted...

Doctors are my most least respected profession

It's not doctors.

It's the total infestations of fucking cockroaches masquerading as human beings known as hospital administrators that are in charge of pricing that come up with this shit
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Godnorgosh posted...

Ah, the glorious free market

uh no. inflated medical bills are what they are now because its subsidized by government money. that's not free market.
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St0rmFury posted...
The bill Id probably incur would not be worth saving my ear, which was sad but a choice I had to make.

American healthcare.
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wackyteen posted...

total infestations of f***ing c***roaches masquerading as human beings

i laughed
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i meannn... bernie.
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St0rmFury posted...

Pells insurance provider, Cigna, estimated that the bill was 4,453 percent above what Medicare would have paid for such an ice pack-bandage treatment, which would be roughly $129

So if I'm reading this right, even the not-fuck-you price of a band-aid is still over a hundred bucks
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pegusus123456 posted...

St0rmFury posted...

Pells insurance provider, Cigna, estimated that the bill was 4,453 percent above what Medicare would have paid for such an ice pack-bandage treatment, which would be roughly $129

So if I'm reading this right, even the not-fuck-you price of a band-aid is still over a hundred bucks

Hospitals roll the cost of labor into the procedures and supplies. I mean they could send some one a bill with 50 cents for a band-aid, $1.50 for ice, and $127 for labor.
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Who can possibly defend this?
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Why I just treat myself. Literally the only positive to learning.
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quality care cost money, this isn't communism

if it was quality care wouldn't exist
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This is how hospitals pay for the tabs run up by thousands of poor people and illegals that pass through the ER and don't have coverage. This is essentially socialized medicine on an inefficient scale, so I'm surprised you guys are outraged.
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Everyone seems to wonder how hospitals offset the cost of treating so many uninsured patients. Well, now you know.
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JE19426 posted...

Kajagogo posted...

Doctors are my most least respected profession

That's unfair. Doctors don't usually decide how much patients get charged.

they do give you bullshit treatments to keep milking you though.

Got an upper respiratory track infection? Why give you antibiotics? I'll send you back with an allergy or fly medicine! Yes, you won't get better, so you'll come back (bonus visit!), then I will give you some other bullshit symptoms management medicine. By this point the shit will hit the fan and you will get bronchitis or phneumonia, then I will finally give you antibiotics (bonus visit # 2!) , and you will need to come back again for follow up because pheumonia is no joke (bonus visit # 3!!).

^ I hear about this happening all the time

Coffeebeanz posted...

Everyone seems to wonder how hospitals offset the cost of treating so many uninsured patients. Well, now you know.

Yeah, this is an excellent summary. Costs are passed to those who can pay but don't have an insurance company negotiating for them.
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Always go to urgent care unless it is an emergency. It's an emergency when you don't care if it's out of network or in network. Most insurance plans have stipulations for covering legitimate emergencies even if you are treated by a doctor that is out of network.

Urgent care centers are open late (sometimes 24/7) and are much cheaper and less busy.
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FLUFFYGERM posted...

Always go to urgent care unless it is an emergency. It's an emergency when you don't care if it's out of network or in network. Most insurance plans have stipulations for covering legitimate emergencies even if you are treated by a doctor that is out of network.

Urgent care centers are open late (sometimes 24/7) and are much cheaper and less busy.

Also this. People really need to learn when and when not to use the emergency room.
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Blame the insurance companies.

Biggest scam ever.
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Darkman124 posted...

Coffeebeanz posted...

Everyone seems to wonder how hospitals offset the cost of treating so many uninsured patients. Well, now you know.

Yeah, this is an excellent summary. Costs are passed to those who can pay but don't have an insurance company negotiating for them.

Isn't it fucked up?

It's basically extortion money. "That is a pretty good health you have there, pal, it would be a terrible thing if something bad happened to it, pay me up so I can negotiate prices for you in a hospital if you do get sick"

Insurance companies are thugs themselves too. "It's ok that you paid $200 for a tooth extraction. But we believe that $30 should have covered it". Yeah, because they are extracting the tooth with no painkillers and a fucking rock?

FLUFFYGERM posted...

Always go to urgent care unless it is an emergency. It's an emergency when you don't care if it's out of network or in network. Most insurance plans have stipulations for covering legitimate emergencies even if you are treated by a doctor that is out of network.

Urgent care centers are open late (sometimes 24/7) and are much cheaper and less busy.

urgent care is bullshit.

I'd rather go to those CVS minute clinic or walgreens express care things. I have been misdiagnosed in urgent care every single time

The Admiral posted...

FLUFFYGERM posted...

Always go to urgent care unless it is an emergency. It's an emergency when you don't care if it's out of network or in network. Most insurance plans have stipulations for covering legitimate emergencies even if you are treated by a doctor that is out of network.

Urgent care centers are open late (sometimes 24/7) and are much cheaper and less busy.

Also this. People really need to learn when and when not to use the emergency room.

Agreed; also urgent care centers tend to make their pricing model clear when you arrive (if not copay covered by insurance...but most decent insurance does copay cover it anyway).

I will note that some insurance has significant issues with in/out network UC centers if you're traveling though; my wife was in DE and some chick stepped on her foot with a sharp heel, punctured it. She went to UC to make sure no infections occurred and we wound up with a bill several times higher than her copay because it was out of network

still way cheaper than an ER though.

as a note, the process of navigating the ins and outs of our healthcare system is another thing that should be taught in a basic civics/financial management class. people keep asking "What would even be taught?!" but there's a lot of fundamental day-to-day stuff that is not readily understood or widely communicated to adults
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BJ-blazkowics posted...

JE19426 posted...

Kajagogo posted...

Doctors are my most least respected profession

That's unfair. Doctors don't usually decide how much patients get charged.

they do give you bullshit treatments to keep milking you though.

Got an upper respiratory track infection? Why give you antibiotics? I'll send you back with an allergy or fly medicine! Yes, you won't get better, so you'll come back (bonus visit!), then I will give you some other bullshit symptoms management medicine. By this point the shit will hit the fan and you will get bronchitis or phneumonia, then I will finally give you antibiotics (bonus visit # 2!) , and you will need to come back again for follow up because pheumonia is no joke (bonus visit # 3!!).

^ I hear about this happening all the time

ROD, you have no idea what you're talking about. Please stop posting.
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Darkman124 posted...

The Admiral posted...

FLUFFYGERM posted...

Always go to urgent care unless it is an emergency. It's an emergency when you don't care if it's out of network or in network. Most insurance plans have stipulations for covering legitimate emergencies even if you are treated by a doctor that is out of network.

Urgent care centers are open late (sometimes 24/7) and are much cheaper and less busy.

Also this. People really need to learn when and when not to use the emergency room.

Agreed; also urgent care centers tend to make their pricing model clear when you arrive (if not copay covered by insurance...but most decent insurance does copay cover it anyway).

I will note that some insurance has significant issues with in/out network UC centers if you're traveling though; my wife was in DE and some chick stepped on her foot with a sharp heel, punctured it. She went to UC to make sure no infections occurred and we wound up with a bill several times higher than her copay because it was out of network

still way cheaper than an ER though.

If it isn't life threatening, search for a UC that accepts your plan. If it is life threatening, go to emergency room because your plan will cover it. I'm not aware of any decent plans that will give you an issue over going to an emergency room for a legitimate emergency.
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