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Could you imagine having chest pain for the first time, going to the hospital, them running the whole suite of tests like an EKGs, X-Ray, full blood panel and t

Could you imagine having chest pain for the first time, going to the hospital, them running the whole suite of tests like an EKGs, X-Ray, full blood panel and the like, then determining it wasn't a heart attack but instead something much less severe like pneumonia? I use that example because that is something I went through, I was able to breathe alright, and didn't have any other illness symptoms, but woke up intense chest pain. Thankfully in Canada there was no issue of coverage, but would Anthem determine pneumonia to be non-emergency care? What if you went in with chest pain, found out it was pneumonia, then got billed $10,000 for all the tests. Would you think twice about going back to the ER the next time you got chest pain? I think this policy will absolutely kill people. But clearly it's fine because it's only a minority of cases (sarcasm).

lostlogin 9y ago
I agree this policy is terrible but the specific situation you describe appears to be covered according to the article. > A list of codes from Missouri is significantly longer, with more than 1,900 diagnostic codes that could indicate non-emergency visits. The list includes multiple types of “unspecified injuries” and “chest pain on breathing.” When asked about the Missouri list, an Anthem spokesperson said the latter diagnostic code regarding chest pain has since been removed from the list, which has been updated and revised.
- WkndTriathlete 9y ago
  That quote makes me skeptical that any medical professional looked over Anthem's list, because every health care professional I've ever heard of has indicated that chest pain justifies an immediate ER visit.