Rip-Off German Hospital

We added to our plan the son of my girlfriend who lives with us.
He was on the plan of his father but it was a mess to take children to different hospitals.
 
Thanks Citygirl, he's doing great. I think I made a mistake about the OR, that word is quirofano and it says quirurgico. This is what the bill says -
Derecho Quirurgico - $ 3830.86
Cirujano - Honorarios - $2386.12
Plus various other minor charges.

I realise the honorarios is for the surgeon, but what is the derecho quirurgico for??? I could call them tomorrow. I do feel they took advantage of the situation, they didn't have a set amount on the computer but made phone calls to find out what to charge.
Humble and local opinion. In case of my children, no matter my private coverage (UP), I ´d or will never hesitate to go to Hospital de Niños (Paraguay & Gallo, close to Aleman´s), or being downtown, to Garrahan. I will always be more sure in these ERs than Bazterrica. They are fully intended in childhood, professionals are the best, and for free.
 
Public hospitals can be good, but for facial surgery I wouldn't take the risk. A friend of mine had a cyst removed from his back a year ago and the scar it left behind was monstrous.
 
Citygirl is right on: fight the bill. Tell them simply that you cannot pay it, but you could pay $2500 which is what they would charge for a family plan. You simply do not have the money. If they don´t lower the charges, you should go to the defensa del consumidor and make a formal complaint, in other cases this has worked well and medicine in Argentina is very regulated. Don´t pay, no matter what--you will not get that money back. In Argentina they can´t really do much if you don´t pay your bills, so don´t worry, maybe send some nasty letters, but that´s it.
 
I have the feeling that if you go to their admin during the week and talk about this issue, they will refund the Derecho Quirurgico. If there was no surgery room, anesthesiologist, etc, it is out of place. If they refuse to refund, which I doubt, file a complaint with Consumer´s Defense. You can also report it to Superintendencia de Servicios de Salud. Ask them for a copy of the protocol followed in the surgery room, names of anesthesists, cardiologists, etc - they will not have it of course cos it never happened -. Also let them know that you will share this experience on expat forums, etc.
The most important thing though, is that your kid is safe and you gave him the best possible treatment.
 
Back
Top