Mastodawn

Alright, this is absolutely first world problems, but holy mother of healthcare, am I furious.

So, I saw a doctor in the #Baylor system (who have purchased most medical practices in the area), a few weeks ago. I paid the doctor at the time of the visit. ($165 after insurance). I knew there was a facility fee, but refused to pay it, because it's egregious.

I got an email this morning from Baylor saying I owed another $300 for facility fees. (I was waiting for the bill, so I could talk to someone about it.)

So I called and said "Hey, this charge is unreasonable, and well outside usual and customary fees."

And their response, as Bob is my witless was, "Our fees are defensible." Which means they had lawyers sitting up figuring out to the last penny what they think they can get away with.

Those lawyers never met me.

#medicalDebt #USHeathcare #profiteering

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Dr. Daniel Hernandez-Velazquez 6d ago

@MissConstrue Pardon my ignorance, but apart from paying the physician there is a payment for using a space at a clinic?

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MissConstrue 6d ago

@redravenspirit Yes. Apparently the $300 to see the physician, (my share was $165) no longer covers going into the building to see the doctor.

The direct quote from the chat transcript is: "It is not unjustified. We bill for the facility charges that include the location the provider is working out of, the equipment, nursing and administration staff, supplies and everything else other than the actual care the physician provides."

So, to see a doctor in the Dallas area, you either have to avoid all the medical practices they now own, which is 85% of them in my little town, the other 15% are owned by another hospital chain, you will pay:

$300 to see a doctor and $300 to see the building. If you're uninsured, it's at least double that.

Meanwhile, the executive board of this "non-profit" organization are paid between 5 and 30 million dollars a year.

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Dr. Daniel Hernandez-Velazquez 6d ago

@MissConstrue Bloody hell.
I'm guessing there is a limit to how much an insurance is allowed to extract (read pilfer) from a physician's appointment, so they get creative and charge for whatever else you can come across when going to said physician's appointment
.
(tongue in cheek) The only thing they are missing is starting to charge for the manner of transport to get to the appointment, ie car vs. bus vs. taxi

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MissConstrue 6d ago

@redravenspirit Oh, they charge for parking. They also have a valet in case you're terrified of the parking garage which is not at all designed for mobility impaired people. When I was on crutches, I paid for valet because I knew the inclines were too steep. I think they may also offer a taxi type service if you live within X miles and are elderly, but I'm not positive that's still true. Before the venture capitalists bought it, it was a free service they offered.

One of the reasons my doctor retired, and retired from the board, was because he couldn't get them to change their mind about facility fees, and scheduled his last visit for the last day they didn't charge them.

Every Dr I've talked to has said they've filed complaints with the ethics board, and yet...capitalists gonna plunder. Only guillotines can stop them, I guess.

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Dr. Daniel Hernandez-Velazquez

@MissConstrue wowsers. They can mostly get away with it because of how economics/politics protect each other's backs.
If more physicians could set out on their own and avoid being eaten up by venture capitalists they could be a counter balance. But, newer generations cannot afford such desires as they are saddled with way too much student debt, which basically makes them slaves to the highest bidder.

Of course not all are as such, but the tide is against them.