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Sally's avatar

Just to recap:

1) “Statements” are not bills.

2) “Charges” are not payment due. They usually contain a huge amount of markup and gobbledygook.

3) Payment is based on negotiated rates. No one pays the “price” of a car.

4) Nonprofit hospitals often greatly reduce or write off large amounts due — especially for children. They consider it charity care.

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Anne Johnson's avatar

Enjoyable read--and a couple of points:

Pharma companies typically do not price drugs to recoup sunk costs. They price drugs to fund the next new drug. BTG Pharmaceuticals develops drugs that treat rare, emergent problems such as poisoning from other drugs (eg, digoxin) and exposure to high doses of radiation. As you say, thank God a company has developed such treatments.

I wonder if the hospital had antivenin sitting around. Perhaps--copperheads are not rare in Indiana. But perhaps not--many rarely used drugs can be obtained very quickly from wholesalers.

Air ambulances: I run in the Sierra Nevadas and other mountain areas. Air ambulance insurance is both cheap and essential. Rescue costs are $45-60,000. This isn't a hop from one hospital to another.

Drug price controls: Tom Sowell says always ask "and then what?" When no one can make a profit on a drug, the drug doesn't get made. Some vital meds --such as chemo drugs-- are in short supply, in part because the reimbursement for them is not profitable. Imagine that. 2nd and 3rd order consequences.

Thanks for the article.

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