I recently had a stent put in an artery near my heart. This stent opened up the artery which was clogged so that blood could once again freely flow through. I was in the hospital for one day, not overnight. A tube was inserted in my wrist, directed through arteries up to my heart where a camera took a look at what was going on and installed the stent.
I was in recovery for a few hours after that. I am in cardiac rehabilitation for three months.
There is no doubt that it was a remarkable procedure. You could even say that it was a miracle of modern medicine. You could argue that it prolonged my life for many years.
Here's a fact that you can't argue with: the cost of having this done was over $74,000.
Here are my thoughts after seeing that figure on my insurance claim:
- I'm lucky I have health insurance through my employer.
- I'm lucky I could swing the nearly $2,000 copayment.
- If I didn't have insurance I would have been financially wiped out by this one, single medical event because in the United States, not everyone has the right to health care.
- If I didn't have insurance, I probably would have opted not to have this procedure done. I would have taken my chances, risking a heart attack or a stroke later on.
- If I didn't have insurance, I would have ended up in an emergency room with a heart attack or a stroke, leading to my own bankruptcy, and/or costing someone (either taxpayers through public subsidies or the hospital resulting in higher health costs for everyone who can pay) much more than if I had been able to receive the less expensive earlier treatment in the first place.
I still don't know what the cardiac rehabilitation is costing. But I think it's worth it because it will help prevent future cardiac events. Fortunately, I'm in a position where I can work my schedule around the three times a week appointments, and I'm fairly certain I'll be able to afford the co-payments.
But I've said it before and I'll say it again: I don't know what poor people are supposed to do. Just get sick and die I guess.
