There is a reason that health care costs get people so upset. A trip to the emergency room for something as minor as cut that needs a Band-Aid can cost you $800. Or more.

Fish and wildlife biologist Jeannette Parker got quite the shock after visiting the E.R. for a cat bite. She stopped to help a stray, gaunt-looking kitten on the side of the road and when she tried to feed it, it bit her finger. Concerned about the possibility of rabies, she decided she should seek medical care.

Since the health department was closed, Parker went to a local hospital where she was treated with an antibiotic for her wound and two shots: one was a rabies vaccine and the other was rabies immune globulin, a sort of a boost that works until the vaccine is activated.

Sounds simple, right? When her hospital bill arrived two weeks later, it was for $48,512 with $46,422 of it just for the immune globulin. Parker is insured through her husband’s job, but the coverage did not fully cover the cost. She was left to pay $4,191 out of pocket. Oh, and she didn’t even see a doctor.

Here’s where it gets interesting. Each month NPR and Kaiser Health Network partner up to highlight a hospital bill with their “Bill of The Month” program. After doing some research, they learned that the average cost to hospitals for the rabies immune globulin is roughly $360 per milliliter.

Parker got 12 milliliters of it during her visit, so do the math and it comes out to a little over $4,300. When KHN contacted the hospital to inquire about the charges, a spokesperson explained that when Parker came to visit last September, the globulin was priced at $7,737 per 2 milliliters.

A scientist who formerly advised on rabies for the World Health Organization stated he’d never heard of the injection being so high. This, in spite of the fact that hospitals are free to charge whatever they want for such items.

A few months later, the hospital adjusted the price of the immune globulin to the lower amount of $1,650 for the same amount of it. Huge difference! But Parker could not negotiate to pay the lower cost and was still on the hook for her part of the bill.

KHN and NPR advise that people check two things: hospital chargemaster lists and in-network E.R. providers. Chargemasters are now publicly posted so that you can see what “hidden” charges are, such as rabies immune globulin or Band-Aids. Although it’s not always possible, you may also check to see which hospitals are in-network for emergency care. It could lower your total bill.

Outside of that, the other option is to go to a local health department or federally funded clinic where services like rabies treatments cost way less. For something like rabies, you have to get treatment somewhere.

Parker was able to resubmit her bill to her own health insurance as she later found out that the treatments would have been covered. No word on if it was approved or how much they covered.

What do you think of this hospital bill? Have you been stuck in a similar E.R. situation? Do you have concerns about the costs of health care treatments?

Source:

KHN