The ER charged him $6,589.77 for 6 stitches, cost that led his wife to avoid ER

Re:The ER charged him $6,589.77 for 6 stitches, cost that le... by chongli on Saturday November 20, 2021 @07:29AM (#29287504)

The US's non-paying contingent doesn't need to be any different from any other countries in order to cause the problem. The issue is that the uninsured subsidize the non-payers alone. This is radically different from countries with universal health care where the costs are spread among the entire tax-paying population.

As for why the US spends more than any other country: it's due to an overabundance of caution among the comfortably insured. It's much easier to get a variety of expensive (and often unnecessary) tests and scans (such as MRI scans) in the US. In countries with universal health care these tests and scans are restricted only to those with demonstrable need and they may be subject to long waiting lists.

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Re:The ER charged him $6,589.77 for 6 stitches, cost that le... by notahacker on Saturday November 20, 2021 @07:51AM (#29287641)

> As for why the US spends more than any other country: it's due to an overabundance of caution among the comfortably insured. It's much easier to get a variety of expensive (and often unnecessary) tests and scans (such as MRI scans) in the US.

Countries with universal healthcare also tend to have private health companies which can provide tests and scans at a higher speed, either on an insured or a pay-as-you use basis, typically at much lower costs than the US. Yet there doesn't seem to be the same "overabundance of caution" elsewhere. To the extent that precautionary procedures are responsible for high US spend, I don't think that can be decoupled from a system designed to ensure that primary healthcare providers are sales outlets for those procedures.

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Re:The ER charged him $6,589.77 for 6 stitches, cost that le... by causi on Saturday November 20, 2021 @07:42AM (#29287580)

Do you have numbers for that? Even the comfortably insured in the US have to pay a fee when they visit a doctor, typically around $35 for GP and $100 or more for a specialist.

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Re:The ER charged him $6,589.77 for 6 stitches, cost that le... by throwaway09223 on Saturday November 20, 2021 @09:16PM (#29293593)

My last 5 insurers had copays between $0 and $20. Same price whether it's a specialist or primary care.

If it's an HMO, often it's just free entirely. PPO plans tend to have a small fee -- it's never been enough that I've given it a second thought -- and have wide coverage with few limits.

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Re:The ER charged him $6,589.77 for 6 stitches, cost that le... by wil421 on Saturday November 20, 2021 @08:13AM (#29287780)

My wife and I never pay a fee to see our doctors. I pay $30 for sick visits for my kids. $100 seems really high. I’ve only had something like that for a test.

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Re:The ER charged him $6,589.77 for 6 stitches, cost that le... by maxerickson on Saturday November 20, 2021 @07:42AM (#29287583)

Imaging is used as a revenue center. Many states restrict CT and MRI machines based on the broken thought process that restricting capital spending will lead to lower overall prices. Of course in reality you also restrict investment and competition.

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