Well, we have the preliminary "what our insurance will be billed" bill for our daughter's ER visit - (not including the Dr Fee) before insurance kicks in...
That cost is just under $64,000. This is just the ER and drug Anascorp for the 6 hour visit to the ER for when our 4-year-old daughter after she was stung by an Arizona Bark Scorpion.
Remember, this was probably around $12,000 per vial of medicine... the same medicine that is around $100 per vial in Mexico.
Here's the thing, our insurance will hopefully pick up most of this tab, but we are ALL paying for it. When the insurance company has to pay absurd prices for saving our kid's life, yes we are happy BUT, we all pay for it in increased costs for insurance. Even the doctor who helped bring this Mexican drug into the US is surprised by the costs and how it will limit the use of the drug, especially since not everyone can afford to pay this hefty price, many will likely not pay the bill. When we were in the ER, the nurse did say that she said only a few people have actually paid, so the cost will increase to help make margins and fewer hospitals will carry the drug.
With only one drug company bringing this stuff into the US, there's no competition! So, when oxygen levels drop like our daughter's did, risking brain damage / death or having a huge bill isn't exactly a real question on anyone's mind!
What's a family to do?
5 comments:
That's so wrong! It just goes to show how greedy we are. Forget that it will help people, we'll do anything for more money :(.
Makes you want to sneak across the border to buy it. It is ridiculous when the same drug cost so much more in one country compared to another.
I agree hospital bills are exorbitant and we all pay when the insurance companies pay these fees. Most of the time the bills are reduced when an HMO is used but when one company provides a drug they ultimately can charge whatever they want especially when it is life threatening.
Thankful your little one is alright. I have a feeling insurance is just going to get worse with the whole obama care anyhow
I think that the cost of medicine should be regulated so that there would be no need for this things to happen.
nasonex prices
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