Biggest Medical Rip Off?

[Dancind]

I nominate Cryotherapy, when you go to a nurse practitioner and they use the spray to freeze a small mole etc off your skin. Used to be part of the visit, now it's considered "surgery" for health insurance. We have BCBS. I had one done on my back, and got a copay bill for $155. Husband had to pay $150 for one last year.

Tempted to try this at home.

 

[barkley]

cpap supplies rank up there-over $1500 billed to our insurance company for a few small paper filters and a flimsy thin rubber mask.

 

[Dancind]

Probably everything could be included. Husband had a MOHS and the bill to insurance for that was crazy.

 

[pearlieq]

My husband once spent 22 hours in a hospital in CA. He uses a CPAP, but they refused to let him use his own and insisted on putting one of their BIPAP machines on him. They literally just stuck it on his face--no evaluations, no setting modifications. We were charged $6000 for this.

For reference, a brand-new CPAP that you can use for years costs about $900.

 

[DisneyHardin]

Room and Board at the hospital. I just spent 7 days in the hospital because of a pulmonary embolism. They diagnosed it the first night in the ER. I then had to just hang out at the hospital having my blood checked once a day until my INR was 2. I got the EOB the other day and it was $35,000 for very little "Medical care", more or less just a bed and 3 TERRIBLE meals per day.

 

[gwynne]

Room and Board at the hospital. I just spent 7 days in the hospital because of a pulmonary embolism. They diagnosed it the first night in the ER. I then had to just hang out at the hospital having my blood checked once a day until my INR was 2. I got the EOB the other day and it was $35,000 for very little "Medical care", more or less just a bed and 3 TERRIBLE meals per day.

Crazy billing aside, that must have been a scary experience. I hope you are feeling much better.

 

[Pooh2]

cpap supplies rank up there-over $1500 billed to our insurance company for a few small paper filters and a flimsy thin rubber mask

If I go through insurance, my machine will cost me $100/month rental fee with no end in site (Have $5,000 deductible so not likely they would end up ever paying for it). It was $400 to just outright buy it myself. Now I just buy everything through cpap. com without dealing with insurance.

 

[amcnj]

There are a lot of them, but I always love when a prescription co-pay is higher than the full cost of a prescription.

 

[kymom99]

There are a lot of them, but I always love when a prescription co-pay is higher than the full cost of a prescription.

In that case you don't pay the copay, you pay the cost of the prescription.

 

[LJSquishy]

Anything to do with a hospital. I think they charge $30 for a dose of ibuprofen or aspirin. I had to pay $1,500 just to get 2 bags of fluids via IV for dehydration and I was there for 1 1/2hrs...that was after insurance.

 

[kydisneyfans]

My kidney stone at Disney came in at over $21,000 for a 2 1/2 hour ER visit. My portion was $1250, which I negotiated down another 20%. We're currently fighting a $1900 lab bill to determine our son had ecoli from a local restaurant. Insurance states the test our son was given isn't covered and that particular test should not have been used. I believe the doctor is going to write that off completely. Our insurance cost is a flat $250 for an OP visit, whether it is basic labs or OP surgery-makes no sense. My $277 x rays and $262 lab bills were each billed out to me at $250, my wife's $18000 achilles tear repair surgery was also billed out at $250.

Don't get me going on prescriptions. Humira alone has gone up over $1500 a month this year. Stated cost is over 65K a year now. I'm paying $5 a month.

 

[GZanta77]

My son managed to dislocate his fingertip a few years ago. He got an x-ray, then the orthopedic surgeon assessed him for 5 mins, gave him an local injection to numb the pain, and then pulled the joint back into place. Total time in dr's office ~ 40 mins. Imagine my surprise when I saw the bill that went to insurance was almost $6,000 for 'Finger Surgery'. Fortunately my co-pay was only $40.

What a scam!

 

[amcnj]

In that case you don't pay the copay, you pay the cost of the prescription.

Yes, I realize that, but it still seems silly that it is not the lesser of the co-pay or the actual cost, and that you even need to take notice of such a possibility.

 

[amcnj]

Another thing that annoys me is when you are at a hospital who is in a plan, yet they use say an anesthesiologist who is not covered by the plan, and you are the one who has to try and rectify the matter.

 

[Dakota731]

Even worse than people doctors is pet care! I spent $1500 while they tried to figure out skin lesions on my dog (which they never did). Finally said must be allergies!

 

[Tiki_Sara]

I'm from a country with socialised medicine so everything medical seems scary and a rip-off in the US when you first get here, though I am getting used to it now. We can discuss the pros and cons of both systems, of which there are many for each, but mostly its just a case of getting used to a different way of doing things.

HOWEVER I've just found out that even with good insurance, it's going to cost me 2.5k to have a crown put on a tooth and I am in shock. Think how many days at Disney I could have for that Say what you like about Brits and their teeth (and people do, frequently) but a crown will set you back about $60 with an NHS dentist.

 

[mjkacmom]

Room and Board at the hospital. I just spent 7 days in the hospital because of a pulmonary embolism. They diagnosed it the first night in the ER. I then had to just hang out at the hospital having my blood checked once a day until my INR was 2. I got the EOB the other day and it was $35,000 for very little "Medical care", more or less just a bed and 3 TERRIBLE meals per day.

My son spent 3 nights in the hospital for a ruptured appendix. He had an CT scan in the ER showing it was ruptured, 3 blood draws, 1 X-ray, no surgery (the plan was wait and see), IV drip with pain meds and antibiotics. He had s surgery team he never met. It was about $15000.

 

[starry_solo]

I'm from a country with socialised medicine so everything medical seems scary and a rip-off in the US when you first get here, though I am getting used to it now. We can discuss the pros and cons of both systems, of which there are many for each, but mostly its just a case of getting used to a different way of doing things.

HOWEVER I've just found out that even with good insurance, it's going to cost me 2.5k to have a crown put on a tooth and I am in shock. Think how many days at Disney I could have for that Say what you like about Brits and their teeth (and people do, frequently) but a crown will set you back about $60 with an NHS dentist.

A basic crown shouldn't set you back that much money, even without insurance.

 

[Tiki_Sara]

A basic crown shouldn't set you back that much money, even without insurance.

Thanks, I'm going to get a second opinion on this, for sure. Am hoping I just picked the 'wrong' dentist and somewhere else will be much cheaper.

 

[jaybirdsmommy]

Getting charged a $100 copay for a doctor examination in the ER when my son cut his head and needed super gluing. Thing is, the doctor on duty never even came in the room, the nurse practitioner did the exam and the gluing. The dr said hello as we were walking in.

$152.00 charge for same son for a single nutritionist visit - not covered by our insurance. Kid is 15, he could possibly be on my insurance for 10 more years, they'd rather him develop diabetes and pay for that treatment until he ages out of my insurance. I don't mind paying, it's just nuts to me that they won't cover it. Seems cheaper than 10 years of diabetes treatment. They've balked at paying for a lot of his diagnostic tests trying to figure out what was wrong, as well.