US coronavirus survivor billed over $1m by hospital

[Judi Lynn]

The bill will be covered by the Medicare programme, but shows the extent of healthcare costs for Americans

AFP
June 14, 2020

A 70-year-old American man who nearly died of Covid-19 has been billed $1.1 million (Dh4.04m) for his hospital expenses, the Seattle Times reported Saturday.

Michael Flor was admitted to a hospital in the northwestern city on March 4, and stayed for 62 days. At one point he came so close to death that nurses held up the phone so his wife and children could say goodbye.

But he recovered and was discharged on May 5 to the cheers of nursing staff, only to receive a 181-page bill totalling $1,122,501.04, he told the newspaper.

That includes: $9,736 per day for the intensive care room, nearly $409,000 for its transformation into a sterile room for 42 days, $82,000 for the use of a ventilator for 29 days, and nearly $100,000 for two days when his prognosis was life-threatening.

More:
https://www.thenational.ae/world/the-americas/us-coronavirus-survivor-billed-over-1m-by-hospital-1.1033229

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

1. Hooray for the best health care system in the world!

What? Best isn't the same as cheapest? Oh, dear.