2 hours in the ER for a bad stomach ache

[Sentinel]

Insurance?

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: SandEagle

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: Hacp

Originally posted by: SandEagle
well, after much nagging from the old lady i went to the ER because I had very intense stomach pains. They kept me in an ER space, not even a room, for 2 hours. doctor came by and asked a few questions. got an IV and was told to just take it easy.

got a $1200 bill just for that :| i knew i shouldve just stayed home and drank salt water.........FML

Thats the problem with our nation's health care today. They don't advertise prices before hand, so in essence, you're handing them a blank check.

the problem is someone like the OP going in to an ER for a non emergency thinking they have a right to 24/7 access to a doctor because they have insurance / someone else is paying.

Urgent care is designed for this...so is being a man and seeing your normal doc in the morning.

The comment about not getting a room in the ER, priceless.

regardless of whether its an emergency or not, how can u justify $1200 for that level of care/service?
i agree though that if they gave me upfront pricing, i wouldnt have gone through with it.

Because they are giving you their time when they should be caring for emergencies that would drive that cost or even higher.

You are not just paying for some dude's time, but also the ability of that facility to generate income/care for others.

People pay IT techs $150-300/hr just for house calls. Saying $600/hr for an ER doctor that's supposed to be saving your life is hardly a stretch.

 

[nick1985]

Originally posted by: Baked
Unless an Alien baby popped outta your chest, you should just drink water and take the pain like a man. Pussy.

I tried to do that with my stomache pain earlier this summer. Turns out it was cancer.

 

[Casawi]

Yesh I could have told you not to go to the ER...been there. My bill was only $212 and I thought it was too high still. They basically looked at me with a tool for 45seconds and told me I had an infection. Never again, I must be dying before I go to the ER...

 

[Zee]

you dont have to pay all of it

 

[SunnyD]

Originally posted by: jjsole

Originally posted by: Yzzim

Originally posted by: SunnyD

Originally posted by: jjsole
Sounds like the hospital bill.

Wait until you get the doctors bill.

Yeah, this is the greatest thing about hospitals... the doctors themselves get to bill you separately. And sometimes the labs too!

Nothing like triple-dipping to make you want to strap on some kneepads and lube up for the ride!

Usually not how it works for the ER. ER doctors generally get paid by the hour, not by the number of patients they see.

Not uncommon at all for the ER too. That's how its worked with me, one bill for the hospital usage, and one bill for the doctor's care. Two envelopes.

Here's a better one. My insurance (at the time) covered the hospital my son was born at. Nice. Unfortunately, the lab that was house INSIDE THAT VERY HOSPITAL is not covered by said insurance. :| Figure that one out!

 

[QuantumPion]

Originally posted by: RocksteadyDotNet
LOL at your shitty health care system.

I'm sure you'll take that back when you're 60 with cancer and you come here to get the latest experimental treatment/drugs.

 

[OutHouse]

Originally posted by: Chaotic42

Originally posted by: Insomniator
Maybe you shouldn't go to the ER for a stomach ache. OP said it himself. If everyone with a tummy ache or a sore throat went to the ER we'd have some pretty long lines.

Yep. Of course, we have no way of knowing how bad his stomach ache really was, but stuff like that is usually more suited to regular doctor/quick clinic stuff.

it depends on how severe the pain is.

 

[zebano]

Originally posted by: Chaotic42

Originally posted by: Hacp

Originally posted by: SandEagle
well, after much nagging from the old lady i went to the ER because I had very intense stomach pains. They kept me in an ER space, not even a room, for 2 hours. doctor came by and asked a few questions. got an IV and was told to just take it easy.

got a $1200 bill just for that :| i knew i shouldve just stayed home and drank salt water.........FML

Thats the problem with our nation's health care today. They don't advertise prices before hand, so in essence, you're handing them a blank check.

That and people going to the ER instead of their regular doctor.

My son (2 y.o.) burnt his hand on the stove so we doused it in cold water for about 15 minutes. The next day my wife took the kids to see the grandparents. My son was still complaining about the hand so they went to see a doctor in town who cut off his blisters and then billed us $120 for 5 minutes of chit-chat. WTF?

 

[OutHouse]

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: Hacp

Originally posted by: SandEagle
well, after much nagging from the old lady i went to the ER because I had very intense stomach pains. They kept me in an ER space, not even a room, for 2 hours. doctor came by and asked a few questions. got an IV and was told to just take it easy.

got a $1200 bill just for that :| i knew i shouldve just stayed home and drank salt water.........FML

Thats the problem with our nation's health care today. They don't advertise prices before hand, so in essence, you're handing them a blank check.

the problem is someone like the OP going in to an ER for a non emergency thinking they have a right to 24/7 access to a doctor because they have insurance / someone else is paying.

Urgent care is designed for this...so is being a man and seeing your normal doc in the morning.

The comment about not getting a room in the ER, priceless.

1. your damn right i do. if i have something wrong with me or one of my family members that is not normal you bet its a ER visit.

2. I have united Health care and "urgent care" is not covered.

3. being a man? wtf does that mean? he is less of a man because he had severe pain that had his wife worried? stfu noob

 

[OutHouse]

Originally posted by: TallBill

Originally posted by: zinfamous


true, but some people (the 60 million or so? without healthcare) have little other choice.

I pay for my own out of pocket. It's pretty cheap.

what exactly are you saying is pretty cheap? health insurance?

 

[TruePaige]

Not to mention the 60+ Million people who have insurance but not enough to cover full dose of their meds and have to ration / skip doses and hope for the best...

 

[masterxfob]

took my mom to the ER once after she fell and knocked herself out for a little while. they made us wait for about 3 hours before doing any tests. when they did, they only took her heart rate and ran a blood test. while waiting for the blood test results, she was given a bed in which we waited for two hours. the bill was $12,000

 

[Gooberlx2]

Originally posted by: Chaotic42

Originally posted by: Hacp

Originally posted by: SandEagle
well, after much nagging from the old lady i went to the ER because I had very intense stomach pains. They kept me in an ER space, not even a room, for 2 hours. doctor came by and asked a few questions. got an IV and was told to just take it easy.

got a $1200 bill just for that :| i knew i shouldve just stayed home and drank salt water.........FML

Thats the problem with our nation's health care today. They don't advertise prices before hand, so in essence, you're handing them a blank check.

That and people going to the ER instead of their regular doctor.

Or an urgent care clinic if the doc's appts for the day are full.

 

[waggy]

Originally posted by: zebano

Originally posted by: Chaotic42

Originally posted by: Hacp

Originally posted by: SandEagle
well, after much nagging from the old lady i went to the ER because I had very intense stomach pains. They kept me in an ER space, not even a room, for 2 hours. doctor came by and asked a few questions. got an IV and was told to just take it easy.

got a $1200 bill just for that :| i knew i shouldve just stayed home and drank salt water.........FML

Thats the problem with our nation's health care today. They don't advertise prices before hand, so in essence, you're handing them a blank check.

That and people going to the ER instead of their regular doctor.

My son (2 y.o.) burnt his hand on the stove so we doused it in cold water for about 15 minutes. The next day my wife took the kids to see the grandparents. My son was still complaining about the hand so they went to see a doctor in town who cut off his blisters and then billed us $120 for 5 minutes of chit-chat. WTF?

so why didnt you cut them off then?

 

[moshquerade]

should've tried to take a poo

 

[Gooberlx2]

Originally posted by: SunnyD

Originally posted by: jjsole

Originally posted by: Yzzim

Originally posted by: SunnyD

Originally posted by: jjsole
Sounds like the hospital bill.

Wait until you get the doctors bill.

Yeah, this is the greatest thing about hospitals... the doctors themselves get to bill you separately. And sometimes the labs too!

Nothing like triple-dipping to make you want to strap on some kneepads and lube up for the ride!

Usually not how it works for the ER. ER doctors generally get paid by the hour, not by the number of patients they see.

Not uncommon at all for the ER too. That's how its worked with me, one bill for the hospital usage, and one bill for the doctor's care. Two envelopes.

Here's a better one. My insurance (at the time) covered the hospital my son was born at. Nice. Unfortunately, the lab that was house INSIDE THAT VERY HOSPITAL is not covered by said insurance. :| Figure that one out!

Probably a chain that rents space. Like Quest Diagnostics vs Labcorp.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: Citrix

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: Hacp

Originally posted by: SandEagle
well, after much nagging from the old lady i went to the ER because I had very intense stomach pains. They kept me in an ER space, not even a room, for 2 hours. doctor came by and asked a few questions. got an IV and was told to just take it easy.

got a $1200 bill just for that :| i knew i shouldve just stayed home and drank salt water.........FML

Thats the problem with our nation's health care today. They don't advertise prices before hand, so in essence, you're handing them a blank check.

the problem is someone like the OP going in to an ER for a non emergency thinking they have a right to 24/7 access to a doctor because they have insurance / someone else is paying.

Urgent care is designed for this...so is being a man and seeing your normal doc in the morning.

The comment about not getting a room in the ER, priceless.

1. your damn right i do. if i have something wrong with me or one of my family members that is not normal you bet its a ER visit.

2. I have united Health care and "urgent care" is not covered.

3. being a man? wtf does that mean? he is less of a man because he had severe pain that had his wife worried? stfu noob

you are part of the reason our cost of health care is out of control then. You do realize many things can wait until the morning or even DAYS prior to a REAL emergency right? You may be taking a doc's time from a cardiac arrest or trauma case because you got some ingrown toenail you want a pill for NOW.

give yourself a big pat on the back (if you can reach around)

 

[SunnyD]

Originally posted by: Gooberlx2

Originally posted by: SunnyD

Originally posted by: jjsole

Originally posted by: Yzzim

Originally posted by: SunnyD

Originally posted by: jjsole
Sounds like the hospital bill.

Wait until you get the doctors bill.

Yeah, this is the greatest thing about hospitals... the doctors themselves get to bill you separately. And sometimes the labs too!

Nothing like triple-dipping to make you want to strap on some kneepads and lube up for the ride!

Usually not how it works for the ER. ER doctors generally get paid by the hour, not by the number of patients they see.

Not uncommon at all for the ER too. That's how its worked with me, one bill for the hospital usage, and one bill for the doctor's care. Two envelopes.

Here's a better one. My insurance (at the time) covered the hospital my son was born at. Nice. Unfortunately, the lab that was house INSIDE THAT VERY HOSPITAL is not covered by said insurance. :| Figure that one out!

Probably a chain that rents space. Like Quest Diagnostics vs Labcorp.

That may be so, but the lab's name indicated that it was affiliated with the hospital directly rather than some third party corporation.

 

[zCypher]

It's pretty ignorant for Canadians to say "haha look at your health care system" ... Our health care system sucks too. People freaking die in the waiting room ... and yes we have the same problem, people go to the emergency for RETARDED REASONS! That said, you might wait for 10, 12 or 14 hours but at least you don't leave with a $1200.

I think as a general rule of thumb people need to take better care of themselves. It's not all "the (health) system" that is to blame, that's only half the problem.

 

[OutHouse]

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: Citrix

Originally posted by: alkemyst

Originally posted by: Hacp

Originally posted by: SandEagle
well, after much nagging from the old lady i went to the ER because I had very intense stomach pains. They kept me in an ER space, not even a room, for 2 hours. doctor came by and asked a few questions. got an IV and was told to just take it easy.

got a $1200 bill just for that :| i knew i shouldve just stayed home and drank salt water.........FML

Thats the problem with our nation's health care today. They don't advertise prices before hand, so in essence, you're handing them a blank check.

the problem is someone like the OP going in to an ER for a non emergency thinking they have a right to 24/7 access to a doctor because they have insurance / someone else is paying.

Urgent care is designed for this...so is being a man and seeing your normal doc in the morning.

The comment about not getting a room in the ER, priceless.

1. your damn right i do. if i have something wrong with me or one of my family members that is not normal you bet its a ER visit.

2. I have united Health care and "urgent care" is not covered.

3. being a man? wtf does that mean? he is less of a man because he had severe pain that had his wife worried? stfu noob

you are part of the reason our cost of health care is out of control then. You do realize many things can wait until the morning or even DAYS prior to a REAL emergency right? You may be taking a doc's time from a cardiac arrest or trauma case because you got some ingrown toenail you want a pill for NOW.

give yourself a big pat on the back (if you can reach around)

oh please, The only time i have been to a ER is when i broke my arm when i was 11 and when i hurt my back here at work, my boss drove me to the ER because i literally could not walk. I took my wife in for the very first time to the ER last month because she had a really bad headache, the worst one she has ever had in her life and it came on fast i was really concerned it was a aneurysm thank god i wasn't. who the fuck are you to decide if the OP or anybody else for the matter can or can not go to the ER? The OP went due to severe stomach pain which could be the beginning of something life threatening. you are such a moron, a doctor will not be treating me for either of those conditions when a life threatening trauma case rolls in. god you are dumb.

 

[kami333]

meh, I figure I'm doing my part to balance out the equation by not going to the doctor even when I should.

I stepped on a shingle with two nails, they went into my foot about 1/2inch. Washed them out with saline, slapped some OTC antibiotic cream on them and bandaged them up.

Got bronchitis a few times (seems to happen whenever I go to Vegas) and coughed up blood. Just stayed home for a few days and recovered. Cough up any amount of old blood = bad, cough up lots of fresh blood = bad, cough up small amounts of fresh blood = you'll probably live.

 

[xboxist]

Labor Day weekend, 2008. Went out to eat with some friends late Friday night (11pm). A few hours later around 2-3am, I had developed a very unpleasant stomach ache. I tossed and turned and could not ignore the pain enough to fall asleep at all. Saturday morning, the pain was still in full force and still no sleep.

Around 3pm, I finally decided to go to an urgent care center. They gave me a "GI cocktail" and chalked it up to a general, upset stomach. They told me that exhaustion would eventually kick in and I'd sleep through the pain. I'm like oh great, that's lovely. That was a wonderful use of $100. I go home, and manage to get just comfortable enough to sleep for 1 hour. When I awake around 6pm, the pain is still there, no less strong.

I suffered through the next few hours and around midnight (Saturday PM/Sunday AM) when I was feeling no relief whatsoever, I said fuck it and asked my sister to drive me to the ER. They admitted me, and started administering drugs through an I/V. After a couple of hours, they decided to give me morphine because I told them that whatever they were pumping into my body wasn't making the pain ANY less. The morphine didn't phase me. It was over 48 hours without more than an hour's worth of sleep at this point, and I was frustrated to the core with this persistent stomach ache. They finally ordered a dose of dilaudid for me, and I kid you not I was out cold about 30 seconds after it started to drip. Best shit ever.

Official diagnosis: "gastrointestinal disruption -- generic"
cost: $2200 ($800 out of pocket)

So basically to this day I have no clue what caused it.

 

[zebano]

Originally posted by: waggy

Originally posted by: zebano

Originally posted by: Chaotic42

Originally posted by: Hacp

Originally posted by: SandEagle
well, after much nagging from the old lady i went to the ER because I had very intense stomach pains. They kept me in an ER space, not even a room, for 2 hours. doctor came by and asked a few questions. got an IV and was told to just take it easy.

got a $1200 bill just for that :| i knew i shouldve just stayed home and drank salt water.........FML

Thats the problem with our nation's health care today. They don't advertise prices before hand, so in essence, you're handing them a blank check.

That and people going to the ER instead of their regular doctor.

My son (2 y.o.) burnt his hand on the stove so we doused it in cold water for about 15 minutes. The next day my wife took the kids to see the grandparents. My son was still complaining about the hand so they went to see a doctor in town who cut off his blisters and then billed us $120 for 5 minutes of chit-chat. WTF?

so why didnt you cut them off then?

I wasn't there.... Why didn't my wife? I have no idea.

 

[alkemyst]

Originally posted by: Citrix
you are such a moron, a doctor will not be treating me for either of those conditions when a life threatening trauma case rolls in. god you are dumb.

oh but he will be since it was an 'aneurysm'

I wasn't one to decide...I am one to call it out when it's raping the system that was put in place.

Back pain again is Urgent Care and if during the day, walk in to your primary care.

You are confusing your belief that you are entitled to immediate response because someone else is paying the bill to what the system is intended to cover.