Horrible, disgusting, yet not at all surprising. I don't know what medical billing accountability looks like in this dizzyingly complex system, but as a US citizen and patient of the US healthcare system, it looks barely existent. My family has fought our fair share of bogus healthcare charges. One instance: after my daughter was born at a birthing center (independent of a hospital), my wife experienced postpartum complications and was transferred to a nearby hospital for care. As if that experience wasn't stressful and traumatic enough, many months later we were hit with a surprise charge from the hospital for treatment and care of our newborn baby - the baby that was delivered hours earlier, in a separate location, that never left my arms in the hospital!
All that to say - it's alarmingly easy for a charge to get processed in a batch of other charges, and either insurance pays it without question, or the patient pays it unknowingly. During our experience, we learned that this kind of thing is exceedingly common. The power dynamic between patients and healthcare administration severely misaligned, the information imbalance is huge, and the patient is always in a compromised position.
The article doesn't include details on how they tracked down these criminals (I'm curious to know!), but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if this is just the tip of the iceberg.
My son got his first official letter when we was about two weeks old. It was a bill from the hospital for his birth: $8,000. He was directly charged on that bill, not us parents.
And that was on top of the $24,000 bill that we had received from hospital. So $32,000 for a no-frills (from a medical viewpoint) birth and that was many years ago.
The health insurance paid 100% of both bills, so we ended up not following up.
When our first child was born (a long, traumatic story in itself), after the ordeal was over and we were resting in the hospital, a nice fellow came by and asked whether we wanted to test our baby's hearing. Sure? No mention was made of a price. He put a device in the baby's ears. Hearing was fine. Then we got the bill. Hundreds of dollars, maybe $500, for a moment's effort and no expenditure of resources. We had almost no money at the time and certainly no insurance. This was in Nashville. He was an independent contractor they let wander the halls of the laying in ward accosting unsuspecting new parents. He bought the machine. Now he's got a steady income from this grift.
Another event in Nashville, my wife cut her hand making dinner. We walked to the emergency room. Eventually someone saw us. He asked whether we wanted to try some experimental tree sap glue to close the wound. Sure? It actually wasn't much of a cut and it had stopped bleeding. No mention of a price. While he was squeezing a droplet of liquid out of a tube the attending physician looked over his shoulder. Yep, checks out. It was basically a glance, less than a minute's interaction and no interaction with out. The whole experience, again, when we had essentially no means to pay, cost hundreds of dollars. They guy who glanced over glue man's shoulder tacked on a couple hundred for himself. Coming through the door and signing some papers then waiting hours to be attended to cost us maybe $400.
I've got similar stories from Washington, DC. My son (not the baby with the hearing test) had to deal with the medical system in Vermont. He's dead now but we're still paying the bills. And now we have insurance.
Regular healthcare in the US looks a hell of a lot like a scam. If you have insurance, the scam is less visible, but it's the same system.
> This was in Nashville. He was an independent contractor they let wander the halls of the laying in ward accosting unsuspecting new parents. He bought the machine. Now he's got a steady income from this grift.
Newborn hearing screening is standard, or even mandated, in most states. This wasn't just a grifter they allowed to roam the halls. They were contracted with the person to administer the tests. It's likely it was even required by your state lawmakers:
Well, it wasn't presented to us like that. He asked, "Do you want it?" Implying we could say no. We looked at each other, shrugged, and said, "Okay." It was very sweet until we got the bill.
We had two kids more after the first one. No one offered to test their hearing or required that it be done. The second one is the one who died, but not from hearing-related complications.
>and some medical practitioners are solely in for the money
So is everyone else that works any kind of job. 'Solely in it for the money' is such a weird complaint, as if you'd do your job for free if you were independently wealthy.
Actually, most people have multiple motivations for working in their field. Nursery school teachers like kids. They also like getting paid. Most doctors like the status their job confers and helping people in need. They also like getting paid. People who have jobs that suck -- septic tank pumper, say -- may well be in it solely for the money.
All that to say - it's alarmingly easy for a charge to get processed in a batch of other charges, and either insurance pays it without question, or the patient pays it unknowingly. During our experience, we learned that this kind of thing is exceedingly common. The power dynamic between patients and healthcare administration severely misaligned, the information imbalance is huge, and the patient is always in a compromised position.
The article doesn't include details on how they tracked down these criminals (I'm curious to know!), but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if this is just the tip of the iceberg.