The Anatomy of a Ripoff. (Or why "health care" costs are so high) [View all]

[TalkingDog]

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/anatomy-a-ripoff-article-1.1002077

To shed light on the real value of the medical services my son received, I consulted with billing experts and with administrators at Aetna — though not with representatives of Good Samaritan, who refused to return repeated phone calls. It also happened that my son had a second choking episode two weeks after the first, and the charges for his treatment at Somerset Hospital in Pennsylvania were included on the same Aetna statement. So I was able to compare bills for similar procedures at two emergency rooms.

What I learned was that the numbers printed on hospital bills often bear no relation to reality.

That hospitals grossly inflate their charges, expecting insurance companies to radically cut the bills while hoping to wring bigger fees out of the uninsured.
That the bill inflation can include double-charging for procedures.

As but one example of what I discovered, consider Ondansetron HCl, an anti-nausea medication that both hospitals administered to my son. Good Samaritan charged $439.90 for the drug; Aetna allowed $77.63. Somerset charged $6.52; Aetna paid $3.26.