Comments on: The Astounding Cost of Medical Treatment: $27,000

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:27:35 +0000

@Abigail - I'm sorry to hear about your health issues. I hope you have fully recovered since then. It's amazing how quickly the medical bills can add up. It's even more amazing that you hit the $1 million cap so quickly!

@Jesse Irene - The scanner is the best thing my husband ever bought. We scan all of our mail and important documents with it too!

@Mrs Money - You and me both! Here's to hoping for a happy, healthy 2010 for everyone!

@Megan - I can't even imagine what NICU costs run. I bet 5 days cost a fortune!

By: Megan

Megan — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 16:01:00 +0000

This was a fascinating post. It's amazing how fast it adds up, too. I shudder to think of how much we spent after Maureen was born – five days of her in NICU was a LOT of money.

Abigail – wow, I didn't know that about the $1 million maximum. That sounds like a lot, but I can see where one can deplete it quickly due to a much-needed operation, therapy, cancer treatment, etc.

By: Mrs. Money

Mrs. Money — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 00:13:17 +0000

You had to PAY all that?? Wow. I hope this new year is better for you!

By: Jessa Irene (Holiday-Haven)

Jessa Irene (Holiday-Haven) — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 06:43:05 +0000

We pay tons in medical too. Plus dental. We have no insurance for the dental and one kiddo is in braces. At one point this year we had 9 different medical bills we were paying on. Too crazy. It was nice to read this post and know we are not alone! And scanning them in to log them is a GREAT idea I will have to try that too!

By: Abigail

Abigail — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 06:06:22 +0000

Twelve years ago, I go very, very ill. As in: 3 weeks in the ICU, 2 months in a long-term care facility (on life support for both of those) and 2 weeks in physical therapy rehabilitation.

At the long-term care facility, I had 2 or 3 doctors, depending on the time of day, day of the week, etc. I also had physical therapy, occupational therapy, respiratory therapy, the room and the meds.

Later, my parents were reviewing the insurance statements. We were lucky that they had incredible coverage and I was a 19 year old college student still covered by then. And we found out:

ONE of those doctors at the long-term care facility (not the ICU or rehab) had submitted a $70,000 bill.

I had spent my whole life on my dad's insurance, but had never been very sick. It was mainly the basic doctor visits. After I got out of the hospital and finished 2 months' of physical therapy, I had to switch to my mom's coverage. I had used up the lifetime maximum. Most policies have a $1,000,000 maximum.

Food for thought when people decide they can afford to go without insurance.