Comic Strips

Had a relative in a car accident. They climbed out the vehicle, walked to the ambulance, and took their suggestion to get looked over at the ED.

Nothing needed but an X-ray then a CT to make sure the spine was fine. Doc saw them for all of 10min. Most of the time was spent doing nothing, alone, waiting for a ride in a mostly empty rural ED.

Bill comes. $15k.

I did charges in the 2000s as part of my ED tech duties. Back then the stroke/heart attack go to ICU or get prepped for life flight charge, the most acute of 5 tiers of service was ~$2.5k. The lowest, say getting a ring cut off, was less than $200.

I know costs have risen in the last 20 yrs but how the fuck do you go from what is at a very generous at most a tier 3 for ~$1k to $15k. AND that CT scan, 90% of what happened there, was billed separate.

AFTER Medicare, the ED bill is $1.8k. Imaging is $800, and the ambulance ride, that didn’t even put in an IV, is $1.9k.

So an elderly person on a fixed social security income is getting billed almost $5k for a ride, a glorified wait for my ride room, and a CT.

One non displaced broken rib btw, that’s it.

$15k. Is ring removal in ED now $15k a pop? I just don’t know. Or is a remote, empty ED soaking anyone who goes because they don’t have lines out the door and around the block like city EDs do?

Either way, that’s several months of social security to pay for it while not buying groceries or driving.