Carrie12345 Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 So I just logged in to check my hospital bill for ds's delivery (hospital only, not mw bill) and GET THIS - My 2007 birth was billed at $17,000, while my 2010 birth (exactly the same in every way except for getting stitches in 2007) was billed at $28,500. My ins. co. payed $2300 in 2007 and $3300 in 2010. At least my copay was the same both times ($200). How insane is that 3 year leap?!?!?!?! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 I was shocked when there was a $3500 price difference between my M.D. attended, epidural Nov. '05 delivery and my CNM-attended med-free Jan. '09 delivery. Granted, the former was in metro Boston and the latter was in the S.F. Bay Area. But I would have thought that forgoing the epidural should make up for the regional price differential. No wonder that everyone's insurance premiums are skyrocketing... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Meriwether Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 They both sound high to me. I don't know what our insurance paid, but I think we paid approx. 3,000 ourselves, so maybe our original bill was high, also. I "get" paying for facilities and expertise, I really do, but I was at the hospital for about 11 1/2 hours (on the same day) and after my 35 min. of labor and the initial cleanup of the baby, a bath for the baby later in the day, one meal for me, and the clean up of the room after I left, I made no demands on the hospital. I kept the baby with me, used no medication, and Dh kept my water filled. Oh, the nurse did bring me an extra blanket when I was shivering. But still, if the bill was anywhere close to 28,000, it was way overpriced. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lulubelle Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 I'm a bit clueless about this. But, who payed the remainder of the hospital bill? If your co-pay was $200 and your insurance payed part of it who payed the rest? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fairytalemama Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 That seems crazy! I think both the increase and the price itself. It has to be a regional thing. My two were in 2005 and 2007 and the bill was about the same both times --- between $9000 and $10,000. Both were vaginal births with epidural. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VA6336 Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 OP, please ask for an itemized bill. I had a 2005 nonemergency csection that billed at around $8,000. My 2008 nonemergency csection (same doctor, same hospital, same insurance, etc) billed at over $30,000. After seeing the itemized bill, we discovered that they billed me for a csection, appropriate medication, the two nights in the hospital and oh, let's throw a pacemaker in there for good measure, shall we? Needless to say it was a coding error and the hospital fixed it. I brought a copy of the bill to my obgyn checkup and asked him if he had anything he wanted to tell me about my surgery. :D He thought it was hysterical and walked around the office showing everyone the bill for his newfound specialty! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted January 25, 2011 Author Share Posted January 25, 2011 OP, please ask for an itemized bill. I had a 2005 nonemergency csection that billed at around $8,000. My 2008 nonemergency csection (same doctor, same hospital, same insurance, etc) billed at over $30,000. After seeing the itemized bill, we discovered that they billed me for a csection, appropriate medication, the two nights in the hospital and oh, let's throw a pacemaker in there for good measure, shall we? Needless to say it was a coding error and the hospital fixed it. I brought a copy of the bill to my obgyn checkup and asked him if he had anything he wanted to tell me about my surgery. :D He thought it was hysterical and walked around the office showing everyone the bill for his newfound specialty! It's all itemized online. The only difference was the added anesthetic for my stitches on the *less expensive bill! Both births were induced, but no pain drugs. Lauren - the rest of the balance "goes away" in the name of "contracted price". And get THIS - Logging in to my account triggered a customer service call, inquiring as to whether I was having difficulties paying online. (I didn't log in to pay, only to peek. :tongue_smilie:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in OK Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 Well, considering LD brings in the majority (I think it's around 66%?) of income for hospitals, that doesn't surprise me. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forget-Me-Not Posted January 25, 2011 Share Posted January 25, 2011 I'm a bit clueless about this. But, who payed the remainder of the hospital bill? If your co-pay was $200 and your insurance payed part of it who payed the rest? Nobody. The hospital contracts with the insurance company to accept what the insurance will pay. Same at your doc's office. It's the only profession in the world where you bill at one rate and get *told* that you'll be reimbursed at another and that you'll be happy with it (that is, if you want to keep your agreement with the insurance company and thus keep your patients who have that insurance). And we wonder why health care is in crisis. This is just one of the many, many factors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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