I found that out during a trauma rotation. I sutured up some guy's head with nylon suture, which is black. That's fine and dandy when you've just shaved the head in the ER around the laceration site. Fast forward 2-4 weeks when the guy finally returns for follow-up in the clinic. Hair's growing back out, and sutures are lost in the forest. From then on I made it a point to use Prolene suture (which is blue)--and to teach my junior residents to do so--when suturing above the hairline.

I'll spot the OP a suture removal tool (it's a single-use disposable item) if he wants one.

You forgot the bill if it gets done on Personal Injury lien: $14,325.

If it's under $5k, I'll be surprised.


KT

That would be free if you live in Canada.

or England



i am guessing: $880?

$1000 for the bed
$ 850 for the DR ($1500 if a plastic surgeon)
$ 450 ER supplies
$ 350 general ER charges
$ 250 consulting physician charge = $2900 total

Problem with this thread is that the OP will not fully realize who's billing what for about 4-6 months. He'll get a bill from the hospital. That'll be for the ER, nursing, supplies, meds, etc. Then it may be revised. The bill for the ER doc will be separate. Fortunately no radiology or labwork, it sounds like. Those bills often come separately.

Err, I don't think I would like to put a cyanoacrylate monomer in an open wound if I were you. Just sayin ;).

Or Australia.

"It would be free in X country..."
Free for who? You pay the bill with higher taxes (whether you need the care or not). Its like saying an electric car is free because it doesn't burn any gasoline? There is still a cost (carbon and higher electric bill). This is not a pitch for whether its better or worse (save it for PARF) but just saying "there ain't no free lunch..."

I guess 959

Darn, we're a day late, I would have taken you up on that, it would have been fun and made a good story to pull 'em out myself.

Luckily, he had a pre-scheduled yearly checkup today (which is free under our insurance). It's a doc we've been going to for years. She pulled the staples out in 2 minutes and said there'd be no charge.

Would have been free in Canada, England or Australia? Could have been free here, too, if I really wanted. Given our laws, payment is apparently completely voluntary. There is no ID check, no questions about ability to pay, willingness to pay, or anything else before they do the work.

Finally, as to the estimates here, to quote Mr. Hand from Fast Time, I think some of you are on dope! $3,000, $5,000, etc., there's just no way! (I hope!) I really don't believe our system is that screwed up, where a hospital could charge $3,000 or more for 50 minutes of time total, 10 minutes of doc time, and a few staples.

My guess, and it's a total guess since I've never had anything done like this in my life, is it will be $1K or less (which I think is still totally outrageous).

But then again, maybe I'm on dope!

Does anyone think I needed to contact the insurance company, or should I contact them now, to let them know? Or just wait? We gave all the insurance information to the hospital.

The hospital will generally bill insurance, as will the ER doc, who is often an independant contractor, or an employee of an outfit that contracts to provide that service to the hospital, anesthesia and radiology works like that a lot of the time too. With a big deductible, like you have, you could probably work some sort of cash discount, call the business office at the hospital about it. You may already get some sort of discount by virtue of having insurance at all, depending on the contract the hospital has with your insurance.

I like prolene, pretty blue color so it is easy to spot, and when you get swelling, it stretches and goes back to its original size when the swelling goes down. Nylon is okay to spot on the blondes or redheads. Staples are the shiznit for kids though, quick. Click, click, click and you are done, easy to spot for removal too.

No, you'd be amortizing the payment with each paycheck whether you use the service or not. There is no such thing as free money, or funds for the program.

Knowing that by paying the bill, you are also paying for procedures on uninsured and medicare patients...PRICELESS!

But you will never go in debt for medical costs, never be denied service, your HMO can not cherry pick, you don't have to second guess if you need to go to the hospital, no endless bills, no padding the bill.... Most of all you would never see a thread like this or see someone seeking free medical advice from a car BBS.

From what one peep posted as his yearly insurance bill if you have coverage we pay less "tax" in total. Between my kidney stones and my kids broken bones, wife's issues, et al we would never have owned a house or at least we would be perpetually in debt.

From what I see our standard of living is no less than yours.

The problem is, from everything I've read about it anyway is that a national health system becomes a pit that consumes all funds made available to it while continuing to want for more. All of what you listed BTW is covered by the health insurance made available by my employer. A coworker two desks over had a mid-air collision while parachuting and all of the broken bones, screw and plate installation and removal has been covered. She'll probably undergo nerve surgery next week, covered as well.

This is not about socialized medicine, you limeys and canucks need to take it to PARF.

You forgot Medical Waste Disposal Fee.

i was healthy and young. i opted for a PPO. i cut my hand bad, while shucking oysters. while the doc was sewing me up, i heard a cash register in my head..ringing.

it saw the total bill, i seem to remember $2700. i prompty switched to an HMO with kaiser. while healthy, i was a accident prone idiot. my share was staggering. cant remember the exact $$.