Way too low of an estimate. Ever gotten a bill from an an anesthesiologist before? You'd be shocked and stunned. And then shocked again.
Looks like the invisible hand of the unrestrained free market is a tad malignant. "Oh, but people will just take their business elsewhere and the market will automatically correct itself." Yeah, that'll happen. All by itself. It's really quite magical.
$73,000 vs $100? One man's DIY experience: http://phoenix.about.com/cs/desert/a/snakebite_4.htm High dose ascorbate and systemic proteases have a technical basis for ameliorating most snake bites. Vitamin C doesn't address neurotoxins like the coral snake but apparently does neutralize most other US species' toxin. Klenner recommended high dose C (IV) and B treatment. http://www.advancedhealthplan.com/Klenner_High_Daily_Intake_Ascorbic_Acid.html A more recent review by Thomas Levy MD (former Tulane cardiology faculty) is in "Vitamin C, Electrons, Toxins, and Disease Curing the Incurable," 2001. Review: http://www.internetwks.com/owen/levy.htm
A friend of mine went to duke medical center because he spit up blood. He had medicare insurance and so they gave him 5 separate chest mri's. Then they decided the blood came out of his sinus. I had the same problem years ago and the doctor diagnosed it right away. Those fuckers out to be jailed.
The reason this doesn't work for healthcare is because most of the time you don't have the option as to which hospital to go to. You get bit by a venomous snake, you rush to the nearest hospital ASAP, not the one with the best cost/benefit.
Oh, it's going to be the same in the U.S. soon enough ... trust me on that one (minus the healthcare benefits)! :eek:
I am fairly fiscally conservative and most definitely think the system needs to be revamped. But broken is to strong, IMHO. The actual health care is top notch to say the least. The problems is quit obvious, the costs. One of the largest problems with the system however is the governments medicare program. Say a doctor wants a blood test that costs the hospital $10. Medicare will only pay $5. The next guys has to pay $15. This is just a hidden tax that amounts to billions.
Interesting...so if I am out in the desert and I meet a man that is dying of thirst, I could theoretically give him a bottle of water, then bill him later for 100,000 dollars and he would HAVE to pay it because i saved his life. Right? I mean i could sue the guy later on after he is out of the desert and force him to pay me 100k for that bottle of water because at the time, it was "fair market value" for the water (I was the only supply so i get to demand however much I wanted) On top of that, I dont tell him the price of the water until AFTER he has drank it. Sounds completely fair and just like the healthcare system.