Wow - Just Added Up The Cost Of My Surgery - $81865.22

[mufasas-mom 170]

unbelievable.......

Surgeon $29,279.00

Asst Surgeon - which is NOT covered - $16,061.22 - which I will fight against since I was NOT told there was an assistant surgeon

Hospital (1 night) - $42,227.20

Anes - $2,562.00

Pic line - $551.00

Lab work - $185.00

thank goodness for insurance.....just to think that we charge here in the US over 80K for a surgery and you can go to Mexico and pay under 10K....something is really wrong with this picture and Obama Care is NOT the solution, trust me.

[IsB 209]

Uncovered assistant surgeon? I'd be fighting that too.

[Kelly123 13]

I thought mine was lot at $64,000!!

[Carly4HandinSD 313]

Mine was a total of $110,000 and I had just one night in the hospital and no complications what so ever in the hospital. THank goodness for my insurance I only had to pay a total of $506 out of pocket.. no matter what the price this is worth it because it is going to get all of us into the best health we can be in and really enjoy all that life has to offer. It is insane how much it can add up to!

[Rootman 1,101]

Outrageous! An I only paid $5000 in MX two years ago. I read that in 1990 only about 6 percent of people declaring bankruptcy cited medical expenses as their main debt. Now, 20 years later over 65% of bankruptcy is DIRECTLY attributed to medical expenses. SOMETHING needs to be done.

[ProudGrammy 8,322]

thank goodness for insurance..

wow, prices are unbelievable!!! :ph34r:

to all others on the board without insurance - i feel so bad for you having to pay for WLS - must be so difficult.

as far as you having to pay for an assistant surgeon?? i would have thought that all surgeons would have "an assistant" to help them?

can't get over that additional dr is not covered

you go for it girl, fight as hard as you can

put on your boxing gloves, and get on with the fight

as far as claiming bankruptsy, all those medical expenses that people can't pay for in so many different medical situations??? - at absurd prices, who wouldn't go bankrupt sometimes?

lose/lose situation - dr/hospital gets no money

i am grateful/lucky to have had insurance paying for my whole WLS experience

continued good luck with your weight loss, your doing great

btw mufasas

haven't seen you around the board lately, good to see you again

[TheNEWME! 121]

Holy COW!!!! My insurance doesn't cover this at all... so I am going to Mexico on Oct. 30th for my surgery. With Dr. Garcia it's costing me $4700. That includes 1 night pre-op in hotel, 2 nights in hospital, 2 nights post-op in hotel with doctor and nurse visits. Plus they pick us up at the airport and drive us to and from hotel and hospital. CRAZY compared to what the states charge!

[Ms skinniness 3,003]

What's wrong with this picture! It makes me so frustrated with the medical billing practices of these hospitals. How ridiculous is it to expect you to pay for an assistant surgeon that is most likely an intern that has o experience...... These are fighting words....My surgery was $49,000 for the hospital fees and I believe $8,000 for the surgeon. Thankful that I only paid about $20.00 my co pay. I an socked.....

[SpaceyCasey 97]

That's insane I paid 8,000 with dr aceves in Mexico and couldn't be happier with that decision.

[kdippy 36]

Mine was around $100,000. I had a few extras, but it all related to the VSG. It was worth it all.

[mufasas-mom 170]

it's insane - i had already met my deductible and out of pocket max prior to this surgery - so i was under the assumption that all would be covered at 100% - then I see 16K for an assistant and that's only 4K less than the actual surgeon....something here is NOT right.

Plus at the hospital in the recovery room I asked the nurse to get me the names of all those who were in the OR with my surgeon so i could send them a thank you card - there was NO assistant surgeon on that list - just the OR nurses, surgeon and anesthesiologist. something doesn't sound quite right to me....but it's ok - I'll fight it all the way.

[Ready4success 380]

unbelievable.......

Surgeon 29' date='279.00

Asst Surgeon - which is NOT covered - 16,061.22 - which I will fight against since I was NOT told there was an assistant surgeon

Hospital (1 night) - 42,227.20

Anes - 2,562.00

Pic line - 551.00

Lab work - 185.00

thank goodness for insurance.....just to think that we charge here in the US over 80K for a surgery and you can go to Mexico and pay under 10K....something is really wrong with this picture and Obama Care is NOT the solution, trust me.[/quote']

That's the total amount of charges, but what was the contracted amount between your insurance company and the hospital? There's usually a difference of at least 30-50K. If all insurance companies had to pay the full amount, no insurance company would cover elective surgery.

[iggychic 1,405]

42,000 for one night? Dang girl you could have just rented disneyland and called it a day

I expect my care to exceed $250,000 but I was only guessing ten grand a night for hospital. Thats been about average for any hospital we have been in with our son. Geeze I hope our estimate is closer to our number than your bill!

[abetterme4.2 268]

They charge so much because the negotiated rates and what they will actually be paid will equal to about 15k-20k. Ridiculous. Its a vicious cycle. Bleh

[cmasseng 2]

Prior to Surgery were you informed that there would be surgical techs, registered nurses sometimes nursing assistants in the operating room. There are also housekeeping staff anesthesia techs that are included in your care. These are not people that you hear about prior to your procedure, however for a good outcome they are necessary. Surgical Assistants are professionals that are sometime paid by the hospital or surgeon directly, but occasionally some facility's contract these assistants who in turn bill the patients insurance or patient directly. Having a highly trained assistant in the OR for a High risk procedure is the standard of care in most hospitals across the nation. Be glad that your surgeon choose to give you the best care possible by having someone trained to help him. Kudos to your surgeon!!