Monday, November 10, 2008

What's Wrong with our Health Care System


What do you think the price tag was for this work of art? The doctor charged $300 to look at the cut, which was separate from the $400 to stitch the cut. Plus a few other miscellaneous charges for a total of over $700. Meanwhile, the doctor was sitting on the sidelines eating a sandwich, while it was actually a PA that stitched me up. Outrageous, right?


But wait, that was only the doctor's bill. I also received a bill from the hospital for over $1,500! This included $1,044 to occupy the bed for 20 minutes, $280 for the needle and thread, plus a few other charges for antiseptic, tetanus shot, etc.


Maybe the new guy can fix this mess.


P.S. If your cabinet doors are not shutting properly, don't try jamming them closed, and then when they don't shut, open them up. That's when all the plates fall out on your tile floor, smash, and slice open your bare feet (duh)!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm amazed. Did you have to pay for this, or did health insurance (or HMO, or whatever it's called over there) pay? Here in Toronto, it's not much better. We never even know what the actual charges are, because we don't have to pay (the government does that, through our taxes, of course). But for something like a cut foot, which is clearly not a life-or-death emergency, you might wait up to 8 hours in the emergency waiting room. (And then your taxes would also have to pay to clean up the blood from the floor!). Yikes. Both systems could use an overhaul, seems to me.

Hope your foot is better!!

Anonymous said...

That is crazy. No wonder people want to live in the UK where u=insurance and healthcare are better.

River (Wing-It Vegan) said...

OUCH!! For the cut AND the bill! Something is wrong when the bill hurts more than the actual injury or illness.