Rehab1´s accident(s)

[Smoother]

1 hour ago, Rehab1 said:

OMG was I off on my surgery bill! Holy shit! $53,957.44 so far! The surgeon, anesthesiologist and operating room costs have not been billed yet. It may end up being closer to $75k. Thank God for insurance. Wonder what my cadaver bone cost?

 

Holy Shit. they really love S42202A "Unspecified fracture of upper end of left humerus, initial encounter for closed fracture".  Why does every entry say Pharmacy? That all can't be drugs and prosthetics/supplies can it? That was one expensive day!

When your wife finds out about the Tesla you might become a victim of:

S00-T88 

Spoiler

S00-T88: Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes

 

Edited March 17, 2018 by Smoother

[Rehab1]

24 minutes ago, Smoother said:

Holy Shit. they really love S42202A "Unspecified fracture of upper end of left humerus, initial encounter for closed fracture".  Why does every entry say Pharmacy? That all can't be drugs and prosthetics/supplies can it? That was one expensive day!

Yes the coding system is repetitive. I want a complete breakdown of the charges for my own edification. I owe $6000.  I see the surgeon next Thursday. Maybe his office personnel can pull it up. If not I’ll just contact the hospital.

[Shad0z]

2 hours ago, Rehab1 said:

OMG was I off on my surgery bill! Holy shit! $53,957.44 so far! The surgeon, anesthesiologist and operating room costs have not been billed yet. It may end up being closer to $75k. Thank God for insurance. Wonder what my cadaver bone cost?

 

USA really needs to fix their medical care system

Edited March 17, 2018 by Shad0z

[Rehab1]

1 hour ago, Shad0z said:

USA really needs to fix their medical care system

Expensive yes but the quality of care is excellent!

[The Fat Unicyclist]

4 hours ago, Rehab1 said:

Wonder what my cadaver bone cost?

Did you have to buy one?

Surely you could have dug one up from somewhere yourself???  

[dbfrese]

3 hours ago, Shad0z said:

USA really needs to fix their medical care system

We have the best medical care in the world, bar none. Don't let those numbers fool you. They do not take into account the pre-negotiated discount rates between the health care provider and the insurance company. They will likely be half to a third the costs shown on the bill.

[Rehab1]

5 hours ago, The Fat Unicyclist said:

Did you have to buy one?

Surely you could have dug one up from somewhere yourself???  

That was probably the $34K charge. Hopefully I have royalty in my blood now.

So that is why New Zealand’s healthcare is so inexpensive.The surgeon gives you a shopping list of supplies and body parts he needs before performing surgery.  

 

 

[Rehab1]

4 hours ago, dbfrese said:

We have the best medical care in the world, bar none. Don't let those numbers fool you. They do not take into account the pre-negotiated discount rates between the health care provider and the insurance company. They will likely be half to a third the costs shown on the bill.

Yes I agree on both fronts. Best health care and the customary fee is pre-negotiated. You could charge $1000k for a procedure and only collect 1/3rd.  In my business our fees are always discounted.  In fact there are numerous times major insurance companies reimburse us less than Medicaid. 

[Smoother]

9 hours ago, dbfrese said:

We have the best medical care in the world, bar none. Don't let those numbers fool you. They do not take into account the pre-negotiated discount rates between the health care provider and the insurance company. They will likely be half to a third the costs shown on the bill.

1

Actually, the US has the 37th best health care in the world according to the World Health Organization, just below Costa Rica. And even at 1/3rd or 1/2, the bill, it's still 1,000,000% more expensive than free.

http://thepatientfactor.com/canadian-health-care-information/world-health-organizations-ranking-of-the-worlds-health-systems/

16 of the top 20 are in Europe. 17, if you include Iceland, which was a Danish colony and falls into the European sphere economically, and culturally, if not geographically.

You're confusing most expensive with best.  Remember, expensive isn't always better.

And if you're too busy to read the link, the top three are France, Italy, and San Marino ( a tiny landlocked country entirely surrounded by Italy, east of Florence)

Edited March 17, 2018 by Smoother

[Rehab1]

6 minutes ago, Smoother said:

Actually, the US has the 37th best health care in the world according to the World Health Organization, just below Costa Rica. And even at 1/3rd or 1/2, the bill, it's still 1,000,000% more expensive than free.

What I met to say is the US is better than Myanmar. It is hard to dispute the facts but in my case the care I received was superb! 

I will always wonder if I had decided to walk across the street to the hospital that evening if my care would have been any different. Within hours after the first batch of X-rays were taken at an outpatient facility they were in the hands of an orthopedist friend of mine who kindly pulled them up on his computer at home. This revered physician took the time to review my xrays and then point me in the right direction to see the top trauma surgeon in the area. He even sat with my wife during surgery. 

[NECway]

31 minutes ago, Rehab1 said:

What I met to say is the US is better than Myanmar. It is hard to dispute the facts but in my case the care I received was superb! 

I will always wonder if I had decided to walk across the street to the hospital that evening if my care would have been any different. Within hours after the first batch of X-rays were taken at an outpatient facility they were in the hands of an orthopedist friend of mine who kindly pulled them up on his computer at home. This revered physician took the time to review my xrays and then point me in the right direction to see the top trauma surgeon in the area. He even sat with my wife during surgery. 

So you are saying that US has the best medical service as long as you know the right people  and have the right insurance company.

Don't take me wrong, I'm very happy that you are getting a very best of care, I'm just worried what happens to you when your wife finds out what you are planning to do 

And to add to this, I'm very grateful for your description of what happened to you. You have scared me shitless to ride my Tesla this spring. I will do it, but I will be so much more careful. 

Edited March 17, 2018 by NECway

[fryman]

1 minute ago, NECway said:

Don't take me wrong, I'm very happy that you are getting a very best of care, I'm just worried what happens to you when your wife finds out what you are planning to do 

Dudes on his own!

[steve454]

9 hours ago, dbfrese said:

We have the best medical care in the world, bar none. Don't let those numbers fool you. They do not take into account the pre-negotiated discount rates between the health care provider and the insurance company. They will likely be half to a third the costs shown on the bill.

If a person had no insurance, I bet they would have to pay the entire amount.  Might be some small discount given.  I no longer have dental insurance and had to pay the full amount for a filling, minus a 10% discount they kindly gave me for being a long time client.

Edited March 17, 2018 by steve454

[dbfrese]

59 minutes ago, Smoother said:

Actually, the US has the 37th best health care in the world according to the World Health Organization

And the words "according to the World Health Organization" are key here. I don't care a whit what WHO thinks about anything. That link doesn't include ranking criteria or weightings, and socialistic philosophy is likely to get a country high marks in their eyes. It doesn't get them anywhere in mine.

[dbfrese]

12 minutes ago, steve454 said:

9 hours ago, dbfrese said:

We have the best medical care in the world, bar none. Don't let those numbers fool you. They do not take into account the pre-negotiated discount rates between the health care provider and the insurance company. They will likely be half to a third the costs shown on the bill.

If a person had no insurance, I bet they would have to pay the entire amount. 

Prepay and self-pay rates are also highly discounted. One of the recent steps that sticks has taken to bring back competition to healthcare is to require hospitals to publish price lists for procedures. This let's information back into the marketplace. 

I will not argue that the US system is perfect. It could be even better and cheaper with less regulation of insurance companies and allowing the self employed (or anyone for that matter) to buy insurance with pre tax dollars. Insurance companies should also be allowed to sell across state lines, and offer packages without mandated benefits like certain drugs and procedures. Let the marketplace decide which packages are best, not through government central planning.

 

[Smoother]

25 minutes ago, dbfrese said:

And the words "according to the World Health Organization" are key here. I don't care a whit what WHO thinks about anything. That link doesn't include ranking criteria or weightings, and socialistic philosophy is likely to get a country high marks in their eyes. It doesn't get them anywhere in mine.

Those are some pretty vitriolic words based on nothing than opinion and supposition.  I think the World Health Organization has some idea about what is important in a healthcare environment. 

Here' their methodology:

http://www.who.int/healthinfo/paper30.pdf

But what they failed to mention is that Medical error is the 3rd. leading cause of death in the US, and that equates to nearly 440,000 lives per year are lost to medical errors in the American healthcare system.  Not passed away, lost. 

http://blogs.harvard.edu/billofhealth/2016/10/14/medical-errors-the-third-leading-cause-of-death-in-the-us/

To put that in perspective in about 15 years of Vietnam war with an enemy actively trying to kill Americans, there were only 58,220 Americans killed, in total, not each year. I'm now starting to wonder what percentage of that was a result of medical errors once under US hospital care.

Still, you're right, there are big discounts available.  I asked for a discount on my medical bills here in the "Communist" UK, but I was informed that any percentage of zero is still zero.  Math was never my strong suit.

EDIT I'm not saying the British system is perfect, it isn't. But when I'm loaded into the back of an ambulance, the last thing on my mind, is "how will I pay for this?"

Edited March 17, 2018 by Smoother

[dbfrese]

46 minutes ago, Smoother said:

Those are some pretty vitriolic words based on nothing than opinion and supposition.

Not accepting an appeal to authority, a classic fallacy in logic, is vitriolic? Not accepting socialistic philosophy is vitriolic, too? Freedom truly is dead in Europe. I grieve for the American men who so bravely died in WW II to free Europe from the threat of socialism, when Europe decided to submit to its slavery voluntarily only one generation later. Pity.

Edited March 17, 2018 by dbfrese

[Master Blaster]

15 minutes ago, dbfrese said:

Not accepting an appeal to authority, a classic fallacy in logic, is vitriolic? Not accepting socialistic philosophy is vitriolic, too? Freedom truly is dead in Europe. I grieve for the American men who so bravely died in WW II to free Europe from the threat of socialism, when Europe decided to submit to its slavery voluntarily only one generation later. Pity.

I like to stick to EUC topics on this forum, but I have to break with my rule here to say to @dbfrese THAT WAS WELL SAID, - I take my hat off to you sir.

 

[novazeus]

 

Edited March 17, 2018 by novazeus

[Marty Backe]

On 3/17/2018 at 6:40 AM, Smoother said:

Actually, the US has the 37th best health care in the world according to the World Health Organization, just below Costa Rica. And even at 1/3rd or 1/2, the bill, it's still 1,000,000% more expensive than free.

http://thepatientfactor.com/canadian-health-care-information/world-health-organizations-ranking-of-the-worlds-health-systems/

16 of the top 20 are in Europe. 17, if you include Iceland, which was a Danish colony and falls into the European sphere economically, and culturally, if not geographically.

You're confusing most expensive with best.  Remember, expensive isn't always better.

And if you're too busy to read the link, the top three are France, Italy, and San Marino ( a tiny landlocked country entirely surrounded by Italy, east of Florence)

According the the various "World fill-in-the-blank" Organizations, the US is a crappy place, bottom 20% of the world in "fill-in-the-blank". Yet for some unknown reason people from all over the world would love to live here.

It is true, I continually read about stories where people who need the best medical care in the world will travel to Costa Rica to get it. United States, no so much.

Edited March 18, 2018 by Marty Backe

[Rehab1]

3 hours ago, NECway said:

So you are saying that US has the best medical service as long as you know the right people  and have the right insurance company.

 

I have followed orthopedists around for over 30 years and there some I would not let treat a stranger’s dog. Aside from knowing the right physicians anyone requiring specific medical care must to do their own research. After my initial diagnosis by an outpatient physician I had a few days to research who I wanted to perform the surgery.

Too many people treat physican’s as Gods and refuse to question their level of expertise or simply don’t ask them for references. There are specialists in most fields of medicine including orthopedics. If you fracture a scaphoid bone in your hand you don’t want to see an orthopedist that has performed his fellowship on feet. In my case I wanted someone adroit in shoulder trauma. If I had went to the ER that night I probably would have been scheduled for surgery the following day and treated by the orthopedist that was on call that evening.

It is prudent to do your research if you need any type of surgery! 

[Smoother]

"Still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest" Simon and Garfunkel.

 

[Rehab1]

4 hours ago, Smoother said:

"Still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest"

Rehab1 referring to his wife.

 

 

[Smoother]

2 minutes ago, Rehab1 said:

"Still a man hears what he wants to hear
And disregards the rest"

Rehab1 referring to his wife.

 

Edited March 18, 2018 by Smoother

[Hunka Hunka Burning Love]

I hacked into the medical billing database and managed to get a breakdown of the fee codes, one of which might reveal a bit more about where the money goes... 

02/06/18 PHARMACY GENERAL CLASSIFICATION (S42202A)....  SURGEON'S MERCEDES BENZ / SUMMER COTTAGE DOWNPAYMENT.  $34, 733.00

Edited March 18, 2018 by Hunka Hunka Burning Love