Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Non-investing personal finance issues including insurance, credit, real estate, taxes, employment and legal issues such as trusts and wills.
Locked
Topic Author
I-Know-Nothing
Posts: 224
Joined: Wed Feb 24, 2021 4:54 pm

Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by I-Know-Nothing »

A month ago my toddler poked me in the eye by accident, and I had a lot of pain and blurry vision. I went to Urgent Care, and they got me in quickly and were very nice and competent. They gave me a vision test, and then put some dye drops in my eye, and looked at it, diagnosed a scratched cornea, and prescribed some antibiotic drops. They told me I would feel a lot better in a few days, and that wound up being true. The whole visit took about 15 minutes. I paid $75 at the time of the visit.

I have a high deductible insurance plan. I just got a bill (not itemized or anything) showing that that cost of the visit was $449, and after insurance adjustments of $220 and my $75 payment, I still owe $154. Does this seem reasonable, or high?

This is the type of thing I would normally just grumble and pay, but I’d like to start paying more attention to fees and bills that seem excessive.
miamivice
Posts: 2973
Joined: Tue Jun 11, 2013 11:46 am

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by miamivice »

Sounds about right.
User avatar
JoeRetire
Posts: 15381
Joined: Tue Jan 16, 2018 1:44 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by JoeRetire »

I-Know-Nothing wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 2:46 pmDoes this seem reasonable, or high?
Seems reasonable to me.

But if you want to try and save a few bucks, go ahead and grumble. Maybe you'll get lucky.
This isn't just my wallet. It's an organizer, a memory and an old friend.
trueblueky
Posts: 2365
Joined: Tue May 27, 2014 3:50 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by trueblueky »

Do you get an explanation of benefits from your insurance? It should be itemized, and it may say provide some markdowns. The urgent care should give you an itemized bill that you can compare.
mtn biker
Posts: 73
Joined: Wed Jul 26, 2017 12:55 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by mtn biker »

Seems about right, you are not just paying for their actual time with you, but also their availability as an urgent care clinic. There are days few people show up, they get paid those days also. I would look at an itemized bill, no way you can judge without that, but doesn't seem crazy to me for an urgent care bill. They might knock to down a bit if you look at the itemized bill and complain about specific items. Hard to know until you try.
User avatar
mhc
Posts: 5260
Joined: Mon Apr 04, 2011 10:18 pm
Location: NoCo

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by mhc »

$229

Sounds like a reasonable cost. Unfortunately, medical costs are high across the board. When you asked if it seems high, I was expecting a multi-thousand dollar bill.
52% TSM, 23% TISM, 24.5% TBM, 0.5% cash
pharmermummles
Posts: 147
Joined: Tue Mar 20, 2018 6:02 am

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by pharmermummles »

Sounds about right to me. From the title. I was expecting something like $5K. It's urgent care. A couple hundred bucks is to be expected. The staff, equipment, etc. is expensive, and you pay overhead when using a service designed to be ready at a moment's notice. Cheaper than an ER, that's for sure!
User avatar
nisiprius
Advisory Board
Posts: 52216
Joined: Thu Jul 26, 2007 9:33 am
Location: The terrestrial, globular, planetary hunk of matter, flattened at the poles, is my abode.--O. Henry

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by nisiprius »

Well, this is the disconnect I have between how people say HDHP's work and what people post about their actual experience.

It's not at all high as a chargemaster rate. This is the weird rate that hospitals bill at. With normal insurance, the bill goes to a private insurer who pays a negotiated rate that is typically on the rough order of 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate, or the bill goes to Medicare who pays the Medicare approved rate, which again is 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate--and the provider accepts it.

If you are uninsured you get a bill for the chargemaster rate.

And in theory people say that on an HDHP plan, you personally pay the insurer's negotiated rate, not the exorbitant chargemaster rate. Yet we seem to get about one posting per year from people from people who seem to have been billed directly at the chargemaster rate, typically by an ER. I'm thinking urgent care might be similar.

It might be worth a couple of hours on the phone alternatively calling the urgent care office and the insurance customer service number to find out if you got billed the chargemaster rate and if you can get it reduced to the negotiated rate.
Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness; Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery.
Topic Author
I-Know-Nothing
Posts: 224
Joined: Wed Feb 24, 2021 4:54 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by I-Know-Nothing »

Thanks everyone. I will ask for an itemized bill, but it does seem that most of you think this was reasonable. I just wanted to confirm that it was. I don’t know how lower income people can afford bills like this every time they have a minor issue though.
User avatar
midareff
Posts: 7711
Joined: Mon Nov 29, 2010 9:43 am
Location: Biscayne Bay, South Florida

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by midareff »

miamivice wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 2:47 pm Sounds about right.
You got off easy. The person who diagnosed you probably had ten years in their education post college.
jibantik
Posts: 568
Joined: Fri Nov 24, 2017 12:05 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by jibantik »

Welcome to the USofA
Rex66
Posts: 2955
Joined: Tue Aug 04, 2020 5:13 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by Rex66 »

sounds fairly cheap
tibbitts
Posts: 23726
Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 5:50 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by tibbitts »

nisiprius wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:07 pm Well, this is the disconnect I have between how people say HDHP's work and what people post about their actual experience.

It's not at all high as a chargemaster rate. This is the weird rate that hospitals bill at. With normal insurance, the bill goes to a private insurer who pays a negotiated rate that is typically on the rough order of 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate, or the bill goes to Medicare who pays the Medicare approved rate, which again is 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate--and the provider accepts it.

If you are uninsured you get a bill for the chargemaster rate.

And in theory people say that on an HDHP plan, you personally pay the insurer's negotiated rate, not the exorbitant chargemaster rate. Yet we seem to get about one posting per year from people from people who seem to have been billed directly at the chargemaster rate, typically by an ER. I'm thinking urgent care might be similar.

It might be worth a couple of hours on the phone alternatively calling the urgent care office and the insurance customer service number to find out if you got billed the chargemaster rate and if you can get it reduced to the negotiated rate.
I thought the "insurance adjustment" referred to the negotiated discount?
User avatar
TomatoTomahto
Posts: 17158
Joined: Mon Apr 11, 2011 1:48 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by TomatoTomahto »

I-Know-Nothing wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:12 pm I don’t know how lower income people can afford bills like this every time they have a minor issue though.
This might not have been a minor issue, though, but I’m glad it turned out to be.

I think the problem with minor issues is when people go to the ER for symptoms of a cold or flu.
I get the FI part but not the RE part of FIRE.
HomeStretch
Posts: 11419
Joined: Thu Dec 27, 2018 2:06 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by HomeStretch »

Since your bill was discounted by half with an insurance adjustment, seems like you received the discounted contract rate.

Bill seems reasonable for an urgent care visit. You were likely happy to receive same day care which is important with eye injuries in case of a detached retina or something else where time matters. Consider having a sinking fund where you deposit some money to cover your HDHP deductible so you are prepared after a provider visit for the larger out-of-pocket payments under a HDHP in exchange for lower upfront premiums.
Last edited by HomeStretch on Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
ram
Posts: 2281
Joined: Tue Jan 01, 2008 9:47 pm
Location: Midwest

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by ram »

jibantik wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:28 pm Welcome to the USofA
For those $300 you also now have the right to sue for a million dollars if you perceive your care to be less than satisfactory.
Ram
adamthesmythe
Posts: 5774
Joined: Mon Sep 22, 2014 4:47 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by adamthesmythe »

Seems very reasonable to me.
Ptarmigan192
Posts: 1
Joined: Tue Sep 29, 2020 6:52 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by Ptarmigan192 »

Seems about right or slightly less than average.
User avatar
StevieG72
Posts: 2214
Joined: Wed Feb 05, 2014 8:00 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by StevieG72 »

Sounds reasonable to me, whenever I go to urgent care I expect a bill around $200.
Fools think their own way is right, but the wise listen to others.
Trader Joe
Posts: 2697
Joined: Fri Apr 25, 2014 6:38 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by Trader Joe »

I-Know-Nothing wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 2:46 pm A month ago my toddler poked me in the eye by accident, and I had a lot of pain and blurry vision. I went to Urgent Care, and they got me in quickly and were very nice and competent. They gave me a vision test, and then put some dye drops in my eye, and looked at it, diagnosed a scratched cornea, and prescribed some antibiotic drops. They told me I would feel a lot better in a few days, and that wound up being true. The whole visit took about 15 minutes. I paid $75 at the time of the visit.

I have a high deductible insurance plan. I just got a bill (not itemized or anything) showing that that cost of the visit was $449, and after insurance adjustments of $220 and my $75 payment, I still owe $154. Does this seem reasonable, or high?

This is the type of thing I would normally just grumble and pay, but I’d like to start paying more attention to fees and bills that seem excessive.
This sounds reasonable.
Seasonal
Posts: 3045
Joined: Sun May 21, 2017 1:49 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by Seasonal »

ram wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:42 pm
jibantik wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:28 pm Welcome to the USofA
For those $300 you also now have the right to sue for a million dollars if you perceive your care to be less than satisfactory.
Nothing unique about this. In the US, can sue for whatever amount you want under whatever circumstances you want. Whether you'd win, lose, get dismissed or possibly even be sanctioned for a frivolous suit is the real issue.
User avatar
PeaksAndValleys
Posts: 42
Joined: Sun Feb 28, 2021 1:31 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by PeaksAndValleys »

Agreed, seems like a reasonable bill.
Even Urgent Cares have enormous overhead, many with full time CT scan and ultrasound capabilities. While you did not personally use those capabilities, the facility cost for carrying that overhead is passed on.
Your physician charge is going to be based on the acuity of visit, in this case that was likely not very high.

Many people carry HDHPs and are surprised by the costs they are now responsible for that traditional plans would cover. Keep in mind all those with employer / market purchased insurance are effectively subsidizing the care of the uninsured and medicaid supported population which under-reimburses. Regardless of how well your insurer negotiates the rate, your cost is going to feel high. 154 left to pay seems like a steal considering all those factors.
marcopolo
Posts: 8445
Joined: Sat Dec 03, 2016 9:22 am

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by marcopolo »

nisiprius wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:07 pm Well, this is the disconnect I have between how people say HDHP's work and what people post about their actual experience.

It's not at all high as a chargemaster rate. This is the weird rate that hospitals bill at. With normal insurance, the bill goes to a private insurer who pays a negotiated rate that is typically on the rough order of 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate, or the bill goes to Medicare who pays the Medicare approved rate, which again is 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate--and the provider accepts it.

If you are uninsured you get a bill for the chargemaster rate.

And in theory people say that on an HDHP plan, you personally pay the insurer's negotiated rate, not the exorbitant chargemaster rate. Yet we seem to get about one posting per year from people from people who seem to have been billed directly at the chargemaster rate, typically by an ER. I'm thinking urgent care might be similar.

It might be worth a couple of hours on the phone alternatively calling the urgent care office and the insurance customer service number to find out if you got billed the chargemaster rate and if you can get it reduced to the negotiated rate.
The original charge was $449. That is the chargemaster rate.
This was discounted by $220, leaving $229 still due. That is the insurance negotiated rate.
OP paid $75 at time of visit, and since has not met the HDPD deductible yet, owes and additional $154.
That all seems reasonable.

We have a HDPD, and this is pretty much how it always goes.

I am not sure what you are seeing as a disconnect. Can you give some examples?
There is a separate issue of out-of-network "surprise" billing, but that is completely different issue. Perhaps, that is what you are referring to?
Once in a while you get shown the light, in the strangest of places if you look at it right.
MindBogler
Posts: 1446
Joined: Wed Apr 17, 2013 12:05 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by MindBogler »

This doesn't seem too bad. I know people grumble a lot about the cost of health care, but if you really want an eye-raiser, call an emergency service plumber.
getthatmarshmallow
Posts: 1171
Joined: Mon Dec 04, 2017 8:43 am

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by getthatmarshmallow »

I-Know-Nothing wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 2:46 pm A month ago my toddler poked me in the eye by accident, and I had a lot of pain and blurry vision. I went to Urgent Care, and they got me in quickly and were very nice and competent. They gave me a vision test, and then put some dye drops in my eye, and looked at it, diagnosed a scratched cornea, and prescribed some antibiotic drops. They told me I would feel a lot better in a few days, and that wound up being true. The whole visit took about 15 minutes. I paid $75 at the time of the visit.

I have a high deductible insurance plan. I just got a bill (not itemized or anything) showing that that cost of the visit was $449, and after insurance adjustments of $220 and my $75 payment, I still owe $154. Does this seem reasonable, or high?

This is the type of thing I would normally just grumble and pay, but I’d like to start paying more attention to fees and bills that seem excessive.

It doesn't sound out of the ballpark. You can wait for the EOB from the insurance company which will have it broken down by code.
GG1273
Posts: 463
Joined: Sat Sep 29, 2018 3:21 pm
Location: NJ

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by GG1273 »

Might be able to get the itemized bill on the Urgent Care's website but def ask for one.

My wife is a RN and said that it would be best to make sure it is what you had done - there are a lot of errors on med bills, good to ask. Glad it worked out, eye issues can be tricky.
User avatar
White Coat Investor
Posts: 17413
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2007 8:11 pm
Location: Greatest Snow On Earth

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by White Coat Investor »

I-Know-Nothing wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 2:46 pm A month ago my toddler poked me in the eye by accident, and I had a lot of pain and blurry vision. I went to Urgent Care, and they got me in quickly and were very nice and competent. They gave me a vision test, and then put some dye drops in my eye, and looked at it, diagnosed a scratched cornea, and prescribed some antibiotic drops. They told me I would feel a lot better in a few days, and that wound up being true. The whole visit took about 15 minutes. I paid $75 at the time of the visit.

I have a high deductible insurance plan. I just got a bill (not itemized or anything) showing that that cost of the visit was $449, and after insurance adjustments of $220 and my $75 payment, I still owe $154. Does this seem reasonable, or high?

This is the type of thing I would normally just grumble and pay, but I’d like to start paying more attention to fees and bills that seem excessive.
Ha ha. Good thing you didn't come see me in the ED. That visit would have cost you at least $1,000 for the same care. And you probably would have waited longer.

That price is totally fair. Pay your bill.
1) Invest you must 2) Time is your friend 3) Impulse is your enemy | 4) Basic arithmetic works 5) Stick to simplicity 6) Stay the course
helloeveryone
Posts: 1285
Joined: Sun Sep 04, 2016 5:16 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by helloeveryone »

I-Know-Nothing wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 2:46 pm A month ago my toddler poked me in the eye by accident, and I had a lot of pain and blurry vision. I went to Urgent Care, and they got me in quickly and were very nice and competent. They gave me a vision test, and then put some dye drops in my eye, and looked at it, diagnosed a scratched cornea, and prescribed some antibiotic drops. They told me I would feel a lot better in a few days, and that wound up being true. The whole visit took about 15 minutes. I paid $75 at the time of the visit.

I have a high deductible insurance plan. I just got a bill (not itemized or anything) showing that that cost of the visit was $449, and after insurance adjustments of $220 and my $75 payment, I still owe $154. Does this seem reasonable, or high?

This is the type of thing I would normally just grumble and pay, but I’d like to start paying more attention to fees and bills that seem excessive.
Very reasonable
As White Coat Investor indicates - had you gone to an ER affiliated with a hospital OR to a stand alone ER - that would be VERY different price to pay. Nice move choosing an urgent care clinic for that type of injury.
User avatar
ResearchMed
Posts: 16795
Joined: Fri Dec 26, 2008 10:25 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by ResearchMed »

Less than I would have expected, out of pocket, but we live in a VHCOL area.

Don't forget that they saw you quickly, when time may have mattered (turned out it probably didn't, but...), and seem to have taken care of it appropriately.

Eyes?

A bargain, in my opinion!

VERY glad it turned out okay.

RM
This signature is a placebo. You are in the control group.
ModifiedDuration
Posts: 1408
Joined: Sat Dec 05, 2015 3:33 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by ModifiedDuration »

nisiprius wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:07 pm It's not at all high as a chargemaster rate. This is the weird rate that hospitals bill at. With normal insurance, the bill goes to a private insurer who pays a negotiated rate that is typically on the rough order of 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate, or the bill goes to Medicare who pays the Medicare approved rate, which again is 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate--and the provider accepts it.
This is incorrect. If covered by Medicare, this bill would fall under Medicare Part B and, therefore, Medicare would pay 80% of the Medicare-approved rate and the patient would pay the other 20% (assuming that the provider does not also bill an Excess Charge).
retired recently
Posts: 582
Joined: Sun Oct 04, 2009 6:09 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by retired recently »

Having been born in the US but spending much of my career abroad, I can say that the cost of medicine in the US is much higher and despite what many like to believe, not better. That being said, the amount is not too bad considering how much things often cost here.
OnTrack2020
Posts: 1423
Joined: Mon Mar 20, 2017 10:24 am

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by OnTrack2020 »

Sounds very reasonable for Urgent Care. I would pay the bill and move on.
Topic Author
I-Know-Nothing
Posts: 224
Joined: Wed Feb 24, 2021 4:54 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by I-Know-Nothing »

Thanks again everyone. I will pay my bill. The reason I asked is because I have been to Urgent Care many times in the past for issues like bronchitis, sinus infection, a twisted ankle, etc., and I don’t recall the full bill for a visit being as high as $449. It is possible that I didn’t pay as much attention to the full bill when I was on a lower deductible insurance plan though.
Grasshopper
Posts: 1209
Joined: Sat Oct 09, 2010 3:52 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by Grasshopper »

I just had a $174 bill for 20-29 minute visit. The $100 dipstick urinalysis I thought was a bit high.
theplayer11
Posts: 2282
Joined: Tue Jul 22, 2014 8:55 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by theplayer11 »

Rex66 wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:32 pm sounds fairly cheap
+1
theplayer11
Posts: 2282
Joined: Tue Jul 22, 2014 8:55 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by theplayer11 »

ModifiedDuration wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 5:01 pm
nisiprius wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:07 pm It's not at all high as a chargemaster rate. This is the weird rate that hospitals bill at. With normal insurance, the bill goes to a private insurer who pays a negotiated rate that is typically on the rough order of 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate, or the bill goes to Medicare who pays the Medicare approved rate, which again is 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate--and the provider accepts it.
This is incorrect. If covered by Medicare, this bill would fall under Medicare Part B and, therefore, Medicare would pay 80% of the Medicare-approved rate and the patient would pay the other 20% (assuming that the provider does not also bill an Excess Charge).
plus a $208 deductible I believe
ModifiedDuration
Posts: 1408
Joined: Sat Dec 05, 2015 3:33 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by ModifiedDuration »

theplayer11 wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 5:57 pm
ModifiedDuration wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 5:01 pm
nisiprius wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:07 pm It's not at all high as a chargemaster rate. This is the weird rate that hospitals bill at. With normal insurance, the bill goes to a private insurer who pays a negotiated rate that is typically on the rough order of 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate, or the bill goes to Medicare who pays the Medicare approved rate, which again is 1/4 to 1/2 of the chargemaster rate--and the provider accepts it.
This is incorrect. If covered by Medicare, this bill would fall under Medicare Part B and, therefore, Medicare would pay 80% of the Medicare-approved rate and the patient would pay the other 20% (assuming that the provider does not also bill an Excess Charge).
plus a $208 deductible I believe
The deductible is $203 for 2021, but that is a very good point!
User avatar
celia
Posts: 16774
Joined: Sun Mar 09, 2008 6:32 am
Location: SoCal

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by celia »

Since this was an accident caused by someone else, you can send the bill to them :beer

Seems reasonable and a typical part of life to me. It’s for things like this, that people are encouraged to have an emergency fund.

The good news is that if you need more medical care this year, you are part way done with your deductible. But I wouldn’t pay until I see the Explanation Of Benefits from the insurance company.
Topic Author
I-Know-Nothing
Posts: 224
Joined: Wed Feb 24, 2021 4:54 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by I-Know-Nothing »

celia wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 6:18 pm Since this was an accident caused by someone else, you can send the bill to them :beer
Haha. I’ll just add it to her tab :D .
SimonJester
Posts: 2500
Joined: Tue Aug 16, 2011 12:39 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by SimonJester »

You got off cheap, my youngest son had a $1,300 glass of water in the ER a few years ago. Most expensive glass of water I ever paid for!

So funny longer story, we sat down to eat dinner which was pulled port sandwiches. He takes a bite and swallows only it doesn't go down. It doesn't come out either. He tried to drink water and it immediately comes back out, his esophagus is blocked! We wait about 30 minutes while he tried everything imaginable to get the food to either go down or come out to no avail. We call his pediatrician after hours hot line and they said NO go straight to the ER.

So off to the ER we go... We are rushed in under the 2nd highest urgency level. They explain if he does get that food loose it could choke him and cause a real emergency. So they page an endo doc telling us they are going to sedate him and either push or pull the food out.
While waiting for the endo doc they goto start an IV. I guess the fear of that IV needle cause must have caused him to relaxed his esophagus and the food went down. They gave him a glass of water and sent us on our way. I believe they billed insurance close to 6K negotiated down to $1,300 which I had to pay on my HDHP.

We never let him live that one down, he was a teen at the time so it was lots of fun to razz him about it. I guess this is also common with older folks eating steak dinners.
"They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin
cshell2
Posts: 1204
Joined: Thu May 09, 2019 10:29 am

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by cshell2 »

My son had the rubber tip of his ear bud come off and get lodged in his ear canal. School would not deal with it and said he had to go to urgent care which was a block away. I left work ran him over there, they literally took a tweezers, pulled the ear bud out and sent us on our way. The PA even said that was her easiest patient in a long time.

$450. Negotiated down to $220 by insurance. Normal urgent care visits are $120-$140 and I fully expected to have to pay that and was ok with it, but I did grumble quite a bit when I saw it was coded as "surgery". :oops:

Had I known ahead of time that would be the case we would have drove to Target instead and bought a tweezers.
User avatar
White Coat Investor
Posts: 17413
Joined: Fri Mar 02, 2007 8:11 pm
Location: Greatest Snow On Earth

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by White Coat Investor »

SimonJester wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 7:47 pm You got off cheap, my youngest son had a $1,300 glass of water in the ER a few years ago. Most expensive glass of water I ever paid for!

So funny longer story, we sat down to eat dinner which was pulled port sandwiches. He takes a bite and swallows only it doesn't go down. It doesn't come out either. He tried to drink water and it immediately comes back out, his esophagus is blocked! We wait about 30 minutes while he tried everything imaginable to get the food to either go down or come out to no avail. We call his pediatrician after hours hot line and they said NO go straight to the ER.

So off to the ER we go... We are rushed in under the 2nd highest urgency level. They explain if he does get that food loose it could choke him and cause a real emergency. So they page an endo doc telling us they are going to sedate him and either push or pull the food out.
While waiting for the endo doc they goto start an IV. I guess the fear of that IV needle cause must have caused him to relaxed his esophagus and the food went down. They gave him a glass of water and sent us on our way. I believe they billed insurance close to 6K negotiated down to $1,300 which I had to pay on my HDHP.

We never let him live that one down, he was a teen at the time so it was lots of fun to razz him about it. I guess this is also common with older folks eating steak dinners.
"For a glass of water"

Or, from another perspective, "for the opportunity to eat again and actually live the rest of his life"
1) Invest you must 2) Time is your friend 3) Impulse is your enemy | 4) Basic arithmetic works 5) Stick to simplicity 6) Stay the course
knightrider
Posts: 1225
Joined: Fri Jun 06, 2014 11:20 am

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by knightrider »

I-Know-Nothing wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 2:46 pm

I have a high deductible insurance plan. I just got a bill (not itemized or anything) showing that that cost of the visit was $449, and after insurance adjustments of $220 and my $75 payment, I still owe $154. Does this seem reasonable, or high?
I get annoyed too when I see gimicky pricing like $449. Why such a random and precise number? Why not add in the cents also to make it even more like ridiculous , like $449.98 .. This is the kind of pricing done to fool customers at Walmart. Not the pricing I would expect from a place where a high level of trust is expected.. End of rant.
Kookaburra
Posts: 2045
Joined: Thu Apr 02, 2020 11:14 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by Kookaburra »

I-Know-Nothing wrote: Wed Mar 03, 2021 3:12 pm I don’t know how lower income people can afford bills like this every time they have a minor issue though.
They don’t. Haven’t you heard the sad-but-true line: “If you go to the ER or UC and pay, you’re actually paying for the 6 people in line ahead of you too.”
User avatar
prudent
Moderator
Posts: 9085
Joined: Fri May 20, 2011 2:50 pm

Re: Urgent Care bill - does this seem high?

Post by prudent »

Topic is locked (question was answered, topic exhausted).
Locked