Labor and Delivery Proce$$
M and D always thought that having a baby would be expensive, but who knew?!? This past week marked the arrival of the beginning of the paperwork train that is the American medical system. The best statement we’ve gotten so far is shown here:
That’s right–the hospital billed $29,000 in fees, but our insurance company has a contracted rate with the hospital that qualifies them for a $19,000 discount! It’s no wonder that the uninsured get screwed. Our hospital also has a fantastic system whereby they only send you summary billing unless you ask for a detailed bill that actually itemizes charges. (All $29,000 of the charges are obviously going to be correct, right?) Keep in mind that this is just one of the six claims that we have received so far.
Here is a fun trivia question: what does the removal of earwax have in common with a standard vaginal delivery? They both apparently get billed under “Surgery”!
Tags: detailed billing, hospital bills, labor and delivery charges, stupid insurance companies, surgery