A couple were told they faced a $200,000 (£146,500) medical bill when their baby was born prematurely in the US, despite them having travel insurance which covered her pregnancy.
A couple were told they faced a $200,000 (£146,500) medical bill when their baby was born prematurely in the US, despite them having travel insurance which covered her pregnancy.
The problem in this story wasn’t actually the US this time, it was the Swiss insurance company.
I would say the problem also was a very high medical bill of $ 200k.
Yes. You’re right. Our healthcare system is absolutely bonkers bananas insane, and that’s before you calculate in the cruelty. And as US citizen, I strongly advise everyone who isn’t to avoid this country like the plague.
However, if I travel to Switzerland or Canada or Italy or wherever, as a tourist, I am not covered if I go in the hospital. I still need to carry travel insurance, and if I don’t, or if it doesn’t cover something, then those countries with their modern, sensible healthcare systems will charge me out of pocket, just like an American hospital. The difference is that in America, even the citizens aren’t covered by default, and the amounts are astronomical compared to other countries.
It’s a shitty system all around, and frankly, I genuinely believe that if it weren’t for America’s weird fetish for as much money as you can possibly choke on, we would probably have started building an actual universal healthcare system for the global community, so that you’re covered by default even when traveling. But like with most things, the right wing nonsense has held us so far back that that is so unlikely as to seem utterly impossible
NICUs are capital and professional labor intensive. I got to meet the team of doctors and nurses who kept my son alive and thriving for the three months between birth and due date. Idk what the magic number to care for him should have been, but I don’t think six figures is an unfair estimate in any socio-economic system.
The question after that is “Who paid for it?” And, in my case, it was Medicaid, which was a huge relief. These poor bastards clearly didn’t have the option.
Why it’s so capital intensive is another issue, but the matter of six figures being reasonable is to compare that to costs of similar treatments in other countries (usually it’s an order of magnitude more expensive).
Healthcare just can’t be free market bcs the demand side cannot be free by definition.
A big part of that is that other countries view to medical staff as a fixed cost. They’re not reflected in the “bill”, much like how you don’t get billed by the fire department. They’re simply paid to be there, and costs for treatment are more reflective of the cost of the treatment.
Was likely 2 hours a day actual attended care, 1000 a day, 90k for 3 months, plus rent, food, materials, another 500 a day. That’s $135-155k even with conservative care in nicu. In a real nicu that would be 10x
My nephew was also in the nicu for three months, and he cost a million dollars. Also picked up by Medicaid. As much as I hate the US Healthcare system, I will be forever grateful to the united states of America for providing life to my nephew when in any other time or situation he would have just died immediately. He is and continues to be a miracle, a very special, bright boy who just scored a goal for his soccer team this weekend for the first time.
If I’m going to be paying $200,000 for medical procedures then they better be replacing my liver or something. How could a pregnancy possibly cost that much money?
They probably asked 6 grand just for pulling out a splinter.