Shocking cost of ER care - update

[sergio]

Some readers will recall that last February I wrote about an ER visit at a leading East Coast US hospital. I'm back in the US now for a short trip and have received a collection agency bill for $200 USD for fees related to the ER visit. Seems the hospital mistakenly sent the bill to my mother's address and not to the Argentine insurer's representative in Canada. All other fees were paid by the insurer in Argentina. In speaking to the insurance company representative in Canada I discovered that the fee for the ER visit (over 6 hour wait to be seen) which included an ultrasound was over $2,900 USD! Need I say that I find that disgusting?

 

[kikedeolivos]

Some readers will recall that last February I wrote about an ER visit at a leading East Coast US hospital. I'm back in the US now for a short trip and have received a collection agency bill for $200 USD for fees related to the ER visit. Seems the hospital mistakenly sent the bill to my mother's address and not to the Argentine insurer's representative in Canada. All other fees were paid by the insurer in Argentina. In speaking to the insurance company representative in Canada I discovered that the fee for the ER visit (over 6 hour wait to be seen) which included an ultrasound was over $2,900 USD! Need I say that I find that disgusting?

Hospital de Vicente Lopez=free, even though you are not from the County.

 

[Napoleon]

Hospital de Vicente Lopez=free, even though you are not from the County.

I might be visiting that hospital for one thing or another in the future. Good to know... but where is it?

I thought Juan Fernandez was the main public hospital.

 

[kikedeolivos]

I might be visiting that hospital for one thing or another in the future. Good to know... but where is it?

I thought Juan Fernandez was the main public hospital.

The only way they would take care of your health needs-being from out of the Vicente Lopez County- would be in an emergency.(surgeries included)

If it's just for consultation (any specialist) you will be asked for your DNI with a County (Vicente Lopez) address and they'll give you a week / 10 day appointment.

If you are not from the County, consultations appointments are given for December.

http://www.mvl.gov.ar/sec_salud/hospital_houssay.php

Good luck!

 

[Recoleta Carolina]

Some readers will recall that last February I wrote about an ER visit at a leading East Coast US hospital. I'm back in the US now for a short trip and have received a collection agency bill for $200 USD for fees related to the ER visit. Seems the hospital mistakenly sent the bill to my mother's address and not to the Argentine insurer's representative in Canada. All other fees were paid by the insurer in Argentina. In speaking to the insurance company representative in Canada I discovered that the fee for the ER visit (over 6 hour wait to be seen) which included an ultrasound was over $2,900 USD! Need I say that I find that disgusting?

As we all know the medical situation in the States leaves much to be desired. However, I am suprised that your 6 hour visit was only US$2,900. I actually would have thought that it would have been more. Particularly, at a leading East Coast hospital.

My husband had a minor shoulder surgery not too long ago, which lasted around one hour and the bill totaled approximately US$60,000 for everything. It is disgusting.

 

[sergio]

I waited 6 hours to see a doctor. He gave me about 2 minutes. I then waited about 2 hours for a technician to show up. She did an ultrasound which took about 15 minutes. The total cost was over $2,900. That seems wild to me. I asked a doctor here who told me that at a hospital like Mater Dei the cost would be no more than USD $100.

 

[Cheney]

The total cost was over $2,900. That seems wild to me. I asked a doctor here who told me that at a hospital like Mater Dei the cost would be no more than USD $100.

Doctors here get paid a lot less than doctors do in the USA, maybe 20k a year. Maybe that is one reason that medical costs are higher in the USA.

Also it is not a valid to compare a state funded hospital to a privately run hospital as the state hospital is subsidized by the government.

 

[sergio]

cheney, i was comparing a private hospital in the US with a private hospital in Argentina. NO subsidies for the private hospital here but infinitely cheaper and, from my experience, the service has been better for me here at the private hospital (IADT)

 

[ezequiel]

Medicine in Argentina is extremely cheap compared to almost any other country, especially when comparing private hospitals. And it is much cheaper than the rest of Latin America.

The problem this generates is that new equipment isnt being bought as often as it should, which means that the latest technological advances and machines aren't always available.

One of the main reasons for private medicine to be cheap is how the entire system has been reformed to Prepagas profit. Did you know that prepagas get to pay AR$ 10 per consultation to a doctor? And even though we complain about prepagas being expensive, have you ever paid for a full coverage medical insurance in the US or Europe, being a non citizen? Prepagas, for what they offer are also very cheap compared worldwide.

The most expensive private consultation I have heard off in Argentina was AR$ 400, and it was with a world re-known specialist. How much does a consultation cost in the US or Europe?

Also, consider that anyone can get free medical attention in the country.

And to finish my comment, just as another point to compare, last time I checked, a friend of mine in the US, who's a doctor, was paying over U$S 250,000 in insurance per year. Just in case he got sued by a patient. So, to "whatever he wants to earn for a living", he has to add that.