6 ms·

Can anyone make a good guess on how much this would have cost here in the US and if it had happened in Canada ?

by udkl 7y ago

waterside81 7y ago
If it had happened in Canada the cost is zero. We don’t have deductibles or anything like that for these sorts of surgeries. Drugs yes, operations no.
Ididntdothis 7y ago
In the US the cost must have been in the millions. I know people who ran up several million dollar bills during cancer treatment.
- arisAlexis 7y ago
  do they deny you treatment if you don't have that kind of money?
  - Ididntdothis 7y ago
    I really don’t know. They usually say everybody gets treated but I would guess quality will suffer. Or you will get relaxed as quickly as possible.
    - Ididntdothis 7y ago
      “Released” not “relaxed”. You won’t be relaxed after getting the bill.
  - hanniabu 7y ago
    Sometimes they do. A person at my mom's work need an organ transplant, but they denied them the surgery because their finances didn't show they could afford it, let alone the medicine you need to take for life after that to fight off rejection.
  - Balgair 7y ago
    No, they cannot deny essential treatment in the US due to financial issues. The type of treatment can be argued about and fiddled with (elective surgueries and whatnot, prisioners needing co-pay money they do not have, etc). But in a life-saving case like the one in the article, they cannot not deny treatment. As another example, if you need a C-section, you are getting a C-section. That said, fiscally, it's a total gamble in the US these days. You may be saddled with a $20/mo debt that will likely never end ever, or you may be facing a bill for $1M that is due in 30 days. The range is essentially unbounded and unknowable in any real way. US healthcare is shockingly cruel, financially speaking.
  - saalweachter 7y ago
    I don't know the current (post-ACA) situation, but the short answer about the US's emergency care laws is "sometimes". For instance, suppose you trip and fall, and in catching yourself, shatter your shoulder joint. The emergency room would be obligated to keep that from killing you -- making sure the bone fragments weren't going to sever an artery or anything, stitching up open wounds and the like. The emergency room would not be obligated to restore you to (as much as possible) functioning. If you need an expensive 20-hour surgery with a team of specialists to put all the pieces of your shoulder back together, well, that's too bad. Sure, your shoulder will heal into an immobile lump without treatment, but it won't kill you, so not actually an emergency.
- novaRom 7y ago
  But most will be covered by the insurance company, or not?
  - Ididntdothis 7y ago
    Be ready to spend months or years on the phone fighting with the insurance though. It’s not uncommon to receive a $300k bill that you then have to clear up with many many phone calls.

Can anyone make a good guess on how much this would have cost here in the US and if it had happened in Canada ?

by udkl 7y ago

Can anyone make a good guess on how much this would have cost here in the US and if it had happened in Canada ?

If it had happened in Canada the cost is zero. We don’t have deductibles or anything like that for these sorts of surgeries. Drugs yes, operations no.

Ididntdothis 7y ago

In the US the cost must have been in the millions. I know people who ran up several million dollar bills during cancer treatment.

arisAlexis 7y ago
do they deny you treatment if you don't have that kind of money?
- Ididntdothis 7y ago
  I really don’t know. They usually say everybody gets treated but I would guess quality will suffer. Or you will get relaxed as quickly as possible.
  - Ididntdothis 7y ago
    “Released” not “relaxed”. You won’t be relaxed after getting the bill.
- hanniabu 7y ago
  Sometimes they do. A person at my mom's work need an organ transplant, but they denied them the surgery because their finances didn't show they could afford it, let alone the medicine you need to take for life after that to fight off rejection.
- Balgair 7y ago
  No, they cannot deny essential treatment in the US due to financial issues. The type of treatment can be argued about and fiddled with (elective surgueries and whatnot, prisioners needing co-pay money they do not have, etc). But in a life-saving case like the one in the article, they cannot not deny treatment. As another example, if you need a C-section, you are getting a C-section. That said, fiscally, it's a total gamble in the US these days. You may be saddled with a $20/mo debt that will likely never end ever, or you may be facing a bill for $1M that is due in 30 days. The range is essentially unbounded and unknowable in any real way. US healthcare is shockingly cruel, financially speaking.
- saalweachter 7y ago
  I don't know the current (post-ACA) situation, but the short answer about the US's emergency care laws is "sometimes". For instance, suppose you trip and fall, and in catching yourself, shatter your shoulder joint. The emergency room would be obligated to keep that from killing you -- making sure the bone fragments weren't going to sever an artery or anything, stitching up open wounds and the like. The emergency room would not be obligated to restore you to (as much as possible) functioning. If you need an expensive 20-hour surgery with a team of specialists to put all the pieces of your shoulder back together, well, that's too bad. Sure, your shoulder will heal into an immobile lump without treatment, but it won't kill you, so not actually an emergency.
novaRom 7y ago
But most will be covered by the insurance company, or not?
- Ididntdothis 7y ago
  Be ready to spend months or years on the phone fighting with the insurance though. It’s not uncommon to receive a $300k bill that you then have to clear up with many many phone calls.