Actually it wasn't a critically urgent problem but needed doctors attention. If someone wants an idea for an app or website - a way to lookup local ERs by price would be great.
>lookup local ERs by price
Incredible. It's absurd that an idea like this is a reasonable suggestion.
Last year my system cut her finger quite deeply while dealing with a can opener, at ~9.30pm. It wasn't an ambulance-worthy emergency but still, it didn't look good. So we called our emergency number and they sent out an "ambulance lite", basically a paramedic and a doctor who's just finished university.
The cut wasn't serious despite the great loss of blood, but it was in a tricky spot and the young doctor didn't want to deal with it without a second opinion. So they took her to the ER, and we followed by car.
At the ER, within 45 minutes, she had seen the doctor on call that night and got the stitches put on from the cosmetic surgeon on duty that night.
Not only it didn't cost us 1 cent but we even got a free cup of coffee out of it, offered by one the ambulance drivers who was on call that night.
I envy a lot of things about the US, but not their medical care.
There's nothing I can do for you if you think that access to health care should be contingent on your bank account.
Why? Because hospitals have no incentive to compete on price. The majority of people get ambulance'd to the nearest hospital, not necessarily the cheapest one.
So any hospital that notices it's charging less than its competitors will raise its price, because, why not? It's a very inelastic demand.
But is ambulanced-in patients the majority of hospital business?
you do know that most people who get into ambulance are not unconscious, right?
Opinion based on a. Being alive and b. Paying accident claims for 5+ years.
Even with accidents, most claims did not involve an ambulance bill. In one memorable claim, a gunshot victim drove himself to the ER with multiple bullet wounds while bleeding profusely.
Predicting current local ER wait times for a given set of symptoms would probably be more useful.
why should be hospitals be the only ones allowed to do this highly anticompetitive practice?
My plan is 5k deductible, 5k OOP Max, so I'm acutely aware of how much everything costs.
[1] https://healthcarequality.mhcc.maryland.gov/Article/View/f84...