Would it have been cheaper...

bflynn

bflynn

Final Approach
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Brian Flynn
My mother was recently in the hospital and now the bills are coming in. One thing struck me about this -

There is a line item for $2,300 for prescription drugs. That is two thousand three hundred dollars for drugs for a week.

Would it have been cheaper just to have bought her a bunch of cocaine for the week and kept her happy?
 
a gram or two a day keeps the doctors away? I dunno, but hope your mom heals up quick!
 
You silly middle American. Don't you know that you wernt just paying for her drugs?


You were paying for all the others who have taken advantage of our current insurance, or lack thereof, system and because you are responsible, you must supplement the have nots.
 
Yeah our system is messed up if your responsible or have a bit of money you pay out the ass if your poor you get massively subsidized. Brothers kid was born 2-3 week early and had to stay in the hospital for 9 days final bill was over 6 figures. Wifes a nurse and some of the bills people get I think to myself you could literally build a medical room onto your house hire a doc to stay with you 24 7 and have a private line to the pharmacy. While still being able to afford a healthy cocaine or hobby of choice habit.
 
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bflynn said:
My mother was recently in the hospital and now the bills are coming in. One thing struck me about this -

There is a line item for $2,300 for prescription drugs. That is two thousand three hundred dollars for drugs for a week.

Would it have been cheaper just to have bought her a bunch of cocaine for the week and kept her happy?
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If she has insurance submit that bill to them.
 
If you are paying cash, negotiate to at least a 50% reduction.

Insurance may not pay as much as the hospital submits, causing many, many delays. Half the money next week is better than 60% of the bill being paid 2 years from now.
 
The total after insurance is less than the drugs. But it just struck me that she's getting 10 pills a day, twice a day x 6 day was 120 pills. $2300 for this was like $23/pill. When we get them from the pharmacy, it's like $1/pill.
 
Somebody had to pay for all of us to save $3500/year on healthcare! ;)

Stepdad just had heart surgery. Everyone told every doc in sight that he's really sensitive to pain meds and to take it easy on those.

They still shoved him full of opiates and made him so nauseous that he's been held in the hospital an extra two days so far and counting, as they keep lowering his pain meds. Dropped the opiates on the first day. Heart is doing great, they just drugged him so much that he can't hold food down.

The bill he will probably receive for the meds aside, it'd be great if even one of the docs had bothered to listen. I know we aren't all docs, but when the entire family says an aspirin sends the guy for a loop for 24 hours and always has... And it doesn't matter if it's an NSAID or anything else he's ever been prescribed and he's been that way longer than I've been alive... Sigh.

Then there's my other friend who is resistant to pain killers... And his family tells docs that too. They usually wait until he's screaming and bothering the other patients before they up the morphine on him. Same **** every hospitalization for him, too. He's injury prone (outdoorsy type, and always moving fast, so he busts himself up a lot) and they never listen when he says pain meds don't affect him much. I'm sure they figure he's just another ass wanting more drugs.
 
bflynn said:
The total after insurance is less than the drugs. But it just struck me that she's getting 10 pills a day, twice a day x 6 day was 120 pills. $2300 for this was like $23/pill. When we get them from the pharmacy, it's like $1/pill.
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My last hospital,stay they gave me 800 mg ibuprofen, big horse chokers. The charge for each pill would have bought a bottle of the regular ones I had been taking the day I was admitted, but wasn't allowed to take while there. When released, they told me to buy some and take them (NOT the big ones they had).
 
Don't you have medical insurance for your mom?
I will prey for your mom. God bless!
 
Thank the insurance industry and all your neighbors who NEED to have insurance for everything

Before the insurance craze, folks still got care and you didn't see bills like this.
 
James331 said:
Thank the insurance industry and all your neighbors who NEED to have insurance for everything

Before the insurance craze, folks still got care and you didn't see bills like this.
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Gotta agree with that. Using dentists as an example, when people began getting dental insurance many dentists simply doubled their prices. Charge the patient the same he had been charging and bill the insurance company a like amount.

Not saying all did that but it was prevalent in our area.
 
Kim Smith said:
Don't you have medical insurance for your mom?
I will prey for your mom. God bless!
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I'm sure you meant pray and thank you. Of course we have insurance and I'm not directly paying for the $2300 of drugs, but the charge is outrageous.
 
Having insurance and getting the SOBs to honor their end of things are two completely different subjects.

From what I've seen and heard in the medical world, I don't really view insurance as a mandatory thing, I've seen folks with it get the same level of care and nearly the same bills as un insured, MANY folks DIE everyday because of what the billing departments and insurance companies say/want.

Yet somehow folks always blame everyone BUT the insurance folks. I'm in the wrong industry.
 
When I was hospitalized for a week years ago, I made sure that the wife brought my regular prescription or over-the-counter drugs to me and I locked them in my nightstand at the hospital. When the doctor asked "what drugs do you take on a regular basis so that we can dispense them?", I said "NONE!" :)
Saved myself several thousand dollars by not paying $30/pill for Advil, Benadryl or whatever else.
And then I bought an airplane. :D
 
BigBadLou said:
When I was hospitalized for a week years ago, I made sure that the wife brought my regular prescription or over-the-counter drugs to me and I locked them in my nightstand at the hospital. When the doctor asked "what drugs do you take on a regular basis so that we can dispense them?", I said "NONE!" :)
Saved myself several thousand dollars by not paying $30/pill for Advil, Benadryl or whatever else.
And then I bought an airplane. :D
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Plenty of ignorant people do this still, and when they have a drug interaction with something prescribed to them during their visit, they sue the hospital. Damn it, though, they really put it to the man! Saved hundreds on aspirin, became permanently disabled, and won the court case! Woo hoo!
 
American people have come to expect to become independently wealthy through law suits. Ask the lawyers why health care became so expensive. ( I mean besides the Affordable? health Care Act.)
 
You guys and gals pay what you need to, and thank GOD you don't have to take the veterans health care package. And this Nov. remember that the VA is the government health care.
 
Tom-D said:
You guys and gals pay what you need to, and thank GOD you don't have to take the veterans health care package. And this Nov. remember that the VA is the government health care.
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There's a law mandating that vets MUST use the VA? I'll have to tell my father. He's a renegade, because since he left the Navy back in 1962 hrs never used any military health services. Not once. Buy health insurance from the company of your choice and be done with it. You get what you pay for in this case.
 
Lachlan said:
There's a law mandating that vets MUST use the VA? I'll have to tell my father. He's a renegade, because since he left the Navy back in 1962 hrs never used any military health services. Not once. Buy health insurance from the company of your choice and be done with it. You get what you pay for in this case.
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No there is no law, but most vets don't have the money to go else where.
OBTW all military go to medicare when they turn 65.
 
Lachlan said:
He's a renegade, because since he left the Navy back in 1962 hrs never used any military health services.
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Was he retired from the service? 20 years or more? or a total of 30 active?
 
Tom-D said:
No there is no law, but most vets don't have the money to go else where.
OBTW all military go to medicare when they turn 65.
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It's shameful how we take care of our vets. I'd like to think we're better than that.
 
I'm retired AF, 20+ yrs of service. I pay my annual fee for TriCare Prime and use the local Military Base Hospital since retirement. I am not required to use the local VA facility.

Lucky for me I'm a healthy old horse and only in for an annual checkup to keep my cholesterol meds in check. My wife not so healthy, but she is well taken care of. We get all of our scripts from the base pharmacy.
Zero copay. Her last three hospitalzations were 100% covered.

The military hospital is about 50/50, active duty nurses, techs and doctors, and civilian.

Yes, at age 65 my coverage converts to Medicare and my cost will be about 5x what it is now. My TriCare becomes my Medicare supplemental coverage. If I stay here and do not move to some "retirement haven", I can still use the military hospital. Or move close to another military facility. They bill Medicare.

Hopefully they don't change the rules to much.
 
BillTIZ said:
I'm retired AF, 20+ yrs of service. I pay my annual fee for TriCare Prime and use the local Military Base Hospital since retirement. I am not required to use the local VA facility.

Lucky for me I'm a healthy old horse and only in for an annual checkup to keep my cholesterol meds in check. My wife not so healthy, but she is well taken care of. We get all of our scripts from the base pharmacy.
Zero copay. Her last three hospitalzations were 100% covered.

The military hospital is about 50/50, active duty nurses, techs and doctors, and civilian.

Yes, at age 65 my coverage converts to Medicare and my cost will be about 5x what it is now. My TriCare becomes my Medicare supplemental coverage. If I stay here and do not move to some "retirement haven", I can still use the military hospital. Or move close to another military facility. They bill Medicare.

Hopefully they don't change the rules to much.
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even when you are on medicare you can use the base pharmacy for meds, I don't so I don't know the billing thing.
you are on your own for dental.
 
Lachlan said:
Plenty of ignorant people do this still, and when they have a drug interaction with something prescribed to them during their visit, they sue the hospital. Damn it, though, they really put it to the man! Saved hundreds on aspirin, became permanently disabled, and won the court case! Woo hoo!
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If it wasn't for the hospitals lack of flexibility with home prescribed meds, there would be no need for patients to do this. Some hospitals allow the patient to bring in his own meds and just have the pharmacist check that they match the paper record. That way the patient doesn't have to buy the $20 aspirins yet the medication reconciliation is correct.
 
weilke said:
If it wasn't for the hospitals lack of flexibility with home prescribed meds, there would be no need for patients to do this. Some hospitals allow the patient to bring in his own meds and just have the pharmacist check that they match the paper record. That way the patient doesn't have to buy the $20 aspirins yet the medication reconciliation is correct.
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And that is a whole lot different than hiding drugs in your nightstand and taking them without telling your doc, isn't it? ;)
 
Lachlan said:
And that is a whole lot different than hiding drugs in your nightstand and taking them without telling your doc, isn't it? ;)
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If the alternative is to get ripped off, what else are you going to do?

Few hospitals allow home meds. Mostly for fear of liability.
 
bflynn said:
I'm sure you meant pray and thank you. Of course we have insurance and I'm not directly paying for the $2300 of drugs, but the charge is outrageous.
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The insurance company will negotiate that price down. Be happy that they do it for you instead of having to do it yourself.
 
weilke said:
If the alternative is to get ripped off, what else are you going to do?

Few hospitals allow home meds. Mostly for fear of liability.
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We're in 100% agreement in this thread. Possibly elsewhere, but certainly this thread. :D
 
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