Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
nytimes.com
Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
1–10 of 98 posts
Re: Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
#2What if every clinic had to make a price list of procedures publicly available, and could not legally charge people different amounts for the same procedure (regardless of insurance status and so on)? That would solve at least some of the problems.
But I think it's obvious that almost no one actually wants to fix the broken system, because too many people are making too much money from it. (Doesn't that apply to almost everything in the United States nowadays? It's pathetic.) I'm happy to see the author pointing the finger at hospitals and doctors. It doesn't seem like that happens often enough. (When I say "doctors" I really mean specialists. I don't think that GPs are as much to blame.)
Re: Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
#3This rings so true. When I had graduated college I was in a 3 week lull between graduation and a job around January when I was struck with a kidney stone. No health insurance.
I took a trip to the ER around 10pm one evening in agonizing pain and was treated like a drug addict. I wasn't even triaged for over 2 hours (peak flu season) and everyone acted like I was just trying to score pain meds. Finally, after 3.5 hours, I was sent for a CT and only after the CT confirmed a stone was I given non-narcotic pain meds (Ketorolac) and send home to wait it out. Total time in the actual ER was ~1.5 hours (of a >5 hour trip) for a hospital administered dose of an NSAID only after a CT scan.
$4800.
Took me over 2 years to pay all of it off. It pretty much wrecked my personal finances (threats from collection agencies finally forced me to put it all on my credit card). I've been jaded about hospitals ever since.
I've also had another stone in the years since and was diagnosed with a ~$100 sonogram. And I used acetaminophen and ibuprofen to manage the pain for a couple weeks.
I'm still shocked that I had to wait so long and go through such a costly imaging procedure to justify a short prescription of a non-narcotic pain reliever.
I could go on another rant on an intelligent adult not being allowed to order a simple blood panel for self quantification.
Re: Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
#4This rings so true. When I had graduated college I was in a 3 week lull between graduation and a job around January when I was struck with a kidney stone. No health insurance. I took a trip to the ER around 10pm one evening in agonizing pain and was treated like a drug addict. I wasn't even triaged for over 2 hours (peak flu season) and everyone acted like I was just trying to score pain meds. Finally, after 3.5 hour…
Oh, but you can order your own blood tests. I've done it before. Google "order own blood tests." I've used Health One before to run a test that I wanted done. I had insurance, but I didn't want to go through the awkwardness of convincing my doctor that it was worth doing, and I think it was only $40.
Re: Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
#5What if every clinic had to make a price list of procedures publicly available, and could not legally charge people different amounts for the same procedure (regardless of insurance status and so on)? That would solve at least some of the problems. But I think it's obvious that almost no one actually wants to fix the broken system, because too many people are making too much money from it. (Doesn't that apply to almo…
By "almost no one" you mean "probably most people, but some people who make lots of money from the current system are using part of that money to bribe politicians not to fix it, and we live under a government where that is tolerated."
Re: Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
#6What if every clinic had to make a price list of procedures publicly available, and could not legally charge people different amounts for the same procedure (regardless of insurance status and so on)? That would solve at least some of the problems. But I think it's obvious that almost no one actually wants to fix the broken system, because too many people are making too much money from it. (Doesn't that apply to almo…
Most of the West has free healthcare - and it works pretty darn well, considering. I would imagine many people are still shocked that healthcare is not free in the US. This is yet another reminder of how lucky we are ... those of us who are covered by free health (eg. in Commonwealth countries).
Re: Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
#7I have seen all of my doctors office swallowed up by hospitals in the last year. In Southwestern Ohio Mercy Health Systems and TriHealth are buying them up. They are following the lead of Christ Hospital who started this years ago at an alarming rate.
As far as my rates go, I did notice almost everything, even items done at the local office, was an outpatient procedure billed by the mother hospital, at least in part. Also something I have noticed in the increase in lab work.
I am a chronic patient, I have a heart implant, feeding tube and an infusion pump that puts baclofen directly in the spinal area.
With co-pays going out of this world under this new system, we have elected to do many things at home that used to be done at the office. Changing out my feeding tube used to cost a few hundred dollars and jumped to over $6000 last fall. My wife now changes it at home. I have my Baclofen pump refilled at home instead of the office by a third party. I elected to send my heart readings over the phone instead of going into the office, except twice a year. Finally, when I make all my appointments within days of each other when possible and make them share lab results. They don't like this but I can't afford all the extra charges out of pocket. Even the monthly b-12 shot had a significant rate increase. Once again, I choose a cheaper route. The local non-affiliated walk-in clinic for the b-12 shot.
It is nice to see this article. It explains alot. At 41 with a form of Parkinson's Plus, the nickle and diming has to stop. I don't know where the $$$ is going to come from.
Re: Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
#8I don't get how a cardiac stress test can cost 2000USD. You put someone on a home trainer, let them pedal for 20 minutes, and look at their EKG. It's usually performed by a nurse, and the doctor spends 30 seconds looking at the EKG (the analysis of the EKG is even partially automated).
If there was actual competition on the market, I'm sure a health service provider would find a way to perform the test for 75USD.
Re: Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
#9This rings so true. When I had graduated college I was in a 3 week lull between graduation and a job around January when I was struck with a kidney stone. No health insurance. I took a trip to the ER around 10pm one evening in agonizing pain and was treated like a drug addict. I wasn't even triaged for over 2 hours (peak flu season) and everyone acted like I was just trying to score pain meds. Finally, after 3.5 hour…
Oh, but you can order your own blood tests. I've done it before. Google "order own blood tests." I've used Health One before to run a test that I wanted done. I had insurance, but I didn't want to go through the awkwardness of convincing my doctor that it was worth doing, and I think it was only $40.
Thanks very much for dropping that name. I had looked once before but somehow missed Health One.
I was specifically looking for testosterone and thyroid previously (before starting a new training plan) and they seemed to be off limits with the providers I had located. Awesome to see those listed and a participating lab within 10 miles of my home.
Re: Diagnosis: Insufficient Outrage
#10What if every clinic had to make a price list of procedures publicly available, and could not legally charge people different amounts for the same procedure (regardless of insurance status and so on)? That would solve at least some of the problems. But I think it's obvious that almost no one actually wants to fix the broken system, because too many people are making too much money from it. (Doesn't that apply to almo…
Most of the West has free healthcare - and it works pretty darn well, considering. I would imagine many people are still shocked that healthcare is not free in the US. This is yet another reminder of how lucky we are ... those of us who are covered by free health (eg. in Commonwealth countries).
Actually Indonesia, a country clawing its way out of third world status, is in the process of introducing universal health care, [1] so it's not only commonwealth countries. Hopefully, this 'socialised' system can be implemented in such a way as to flourish within the rapidly growing economy to come.
In the UK, after we've charged you nothing in the NHS, we'll give you the bus fare home.
1. http://www.marketplace.org/topics/world/health-care/indonesi...