Squirrelhat_small
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Should a simple broken arm cost so much?

My daughter broke her arm recently. She slipped on the playground and the result was a fairly simple "green stick" fracture. At Swedish emergency room they x-rayed it, adjusted it and put a splint on. We went to an orthopedic specialist later who re-xrayed it and put on a cast. Before insurance kicked in we were at $6500 and counting (still have to get it removed - but I'm thinking about doing that in the back yard with a circular saw).

We're still in for a sizable chunk of the money due to deductibles. Most of the cost has actually come from Swedish, who didn't really do that much other than diagnose the problem and temporarily stabilize her arm. WTF? Is this a normal cost? Can I argue any of it? I mean, I'm grateful that she doesn't have to walk around for the rest of her life with a poorly healed arm, but I feel like I (and my insurance co.) are being gouged. They sent around 7 different people in to see us, which I thought was unnecessary and honestly a bit odd at the time, but now I realize that they were just racking up the billing on a slow night.

Squirrel Girl asked in Insurance 6 months ago | Report

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  • Finn3goof_small
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    Swedish is the worst when it comes to that shit. I've stopped going to their emergency room (not that I'm a terribly regular visitor). I have a few particuarly worrisome and painful chronic conditions that I know how to treat. But they won't listen and kept testing me and giving me ultrasounds.

    I now go to Virginia Mason or, rarely, Carolyn Downes (sp?). Wam bam thank you ma'm and I'm outta there. It's really that different.

    I understand (having nothing but anecdotes to back it up with) that the larger insurance companies really don't dig Swedish at all, but I'm not sure that's a dig on Swedish.

    and don't use a fucking circ saw on your daughter for christ's sake. My last cast I took off my sliding a piece of steel down the cast to protect my leg and then running the dremel over that it until I could crack it open. I probably didn't need the steel but had never done it before.

    Tom answered in Insurance 6 months ago | Report
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  • Spaceship_small
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    PLEASE don't take a circular saw to your arm cast.

    At least consider using a dremel or a tile-cutting rotary cutter instead. The size of the laserations up your arm are likely to be much less with a smaller blade.

    O my captain answered in Insurance 6 months ago | Report
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  • 0prr6_small
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    This is the nature of emergency rooms. Quick-care or your doctors office are much less expensive for non-life-threatening issues.

    I have some heart issues and have waited it out rather than going to the ER at Swedish. This isn't especially smart but previous experiences there have been pretty bad and unbelievably expensive for what services were provided. It shouldn't cost over $5000 to hook someone up to a heart monitor and ignore them for several hours.

    Kip Waddle answered in Insurance 6 months ago | Report
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  • Tomato_small
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    Is that $6500 your out-of-pocket? Most hospitals will negotiate your bills when you can show financial hardship. A friend of mine was able to cut her co-pay cost for a month-long hospital stay in half, and was encouraged to appeal and request a further reduction.

    Luckier answered in Insurance 6 months ago | Report
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