I was charged $50 for 2 tylenol when I had my appendix taken out. The CVS down the street would sell you a 24-pack for $5.
Of course, that was just a minor component of the final $50,000 bill ($4k for me after insurance), but it still sticks out in my mind many years later because it was an easily comparable baseline.
Health insurance companies get alot of the blame for the broken healthcare system in America but I place most of it on the providers - doctors, hospitals, and drug companies. They bill an order of magnitude too much. Sometimes more. Attacking doctors seems to be a much less politically palatable option than attacking big insurance corporations, even though those doctors are essentially gouging their loyal patients with no qualms about it.
Of course, that was just a minor component of the final $50,000 bill ($4k for me after insurance), but it still sticks out in my mind many years later because it was an easily comparable baseline.
Health insurance companies get alot of the blame for the broken healthcare system in America but I place most of it on the providers - doctors, hospitals, and drug companies. They bill an order of magnitude too much. Sometimes more. Attacking doctors seems to be a much less politically palatable option than attacking big insurance corporations, even though those doctors are essentially gouging their loyal patients with no qualms about it.