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Living in the United States has a lot of perks, from the incredibly friendly people and astounding nature to the universities and the great job opportunities. However, one of the biggest drawbacks that Americans have to deal with is the healthcare system. More specifically, just how expensive going to the hospital can get, whether you have health insurance or not. Things can get so ridiculous the entire system starts to look very dystopian.
To show you what we mean, the Bored Panda team has collected this list of the most mind-blowingly expensive hospital bills that Americans have shared online. The prices are, well, they’re ridiculous, to say the least! If these photos won’t get your jaw to drop, then practically nothing will.
Time and again we’ve analyzed why the system is so cumbersome, inefficient, and actually forces a lot of people to consider not going to the hospital whatsoever because of the huge medical debts they’re likely to accrue.
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#1
Avoid Paying Costly Medical Bills By Dying Instead
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Hannah Edwards Hannah Edwards Community Member Follow
How awful, when you feel relieved that someone just died instead of running up a huge bill.
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#2
So This Is Crazy
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Hannah Edwards Hannah Edwards Community Member Follow
Wtf? People must be wishing that they hadn’t survived. Cost in UK £0 , nothing, zilch. We don’t pay so much in tax that it makes this look like a more attractive alternative.
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#3
Hospital Billing To Hold Your Own Child After Birth
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HardTruths HardTruths Community Member
Just waiting for the day US hospitals start charging for the air that the patients breathe... 😳
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The simple fact of the matter is that the healthcare system in the United States is incredibly wasteful. As reported by The New York Times in 2019, at least 760 billion dollars are wasted each and every year due to the poor management of funds.
#4
My Cousins Child Birth Bill From The Hospital In The USA. Never Seen Anything This High
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Danish Dynomummy Danish Dynomummy Community Member Follow
What the actual h**l is wrong with the States?!? You could buy a House for the cost of Room and Care!
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#5
I Went To The Hospital (Us). They Did One Blood Test, Decided I Had A Virus That They Could Not Identify And That They Could Not Help Me, And Then They Sent Me Home. This Is The Bill From My Insurance. For One. Single. Blood Test
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Elcodigodebarras Elcodigodebarras Community Member Follow
When in the American tv shows, I hear the doctor quickly order things like: The patient needs a CT scan, X-rays, blood tests and an operation for this or that., I just hear the cash register ring over and over again and I think, My God, they just ruined his life with the bill, he's going to wish he hadn't woken up from the accident/illness or whatever!
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#6
Insurance, You're The Greatest!
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cybermerlin2000 cybermerlin2000 Community Member Follow
And yet the Americans can't see what a rip off health insurance is.
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That amounts to around 20 to 25 percent of all American healthcare spending not being used as it should. Instead of reaching patients and making their healthcare better and cheaper, that money is used for administrative purposes and keeping the system afloat. In short inefficiencies in the system lead to larger costs. And the American people suffer for it. With the Covid-19 pandemic, things have gotten worse. ADVERTIsem*nT
#7
I’m A Registered Nurse That Contracted Covid. This Is My Bill For My Visit To The Emergency Department
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Diana Eriksson Diana Eriksson Community Member Follow
That's disgusting. You literally risk your life every day to help patients for (I assume) rather mediocre pay, and when you become a patient yourself they send you this. Disgusting...
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#8
My Bill For A 2 Night Hospital Stay
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Danish Dynomummy Danish Dynomummy Community Member Follow
Oh my gawd, that is crazy! My Dad is currently fighting cancer in the hospital. He's been there for 11 days - total cost= 0,-!
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#9
My Mother’s Hospital Bill Of When She Went To The Er Cause Of Her Gallbladder And Had To Have Emergency Surgery. She Was In The Hospital For One Day
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Trillian Trillian Community Member Follow
The lab charges alone are ridiculous.
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However, Investopedia provides slightly different numbers than the NYT. According to them, the US spends around 8 percent of its healthcare costs on administration. “Providers face a huge array of usage and billing requirements from multiple payers, which makes it necessary to hire costly administrative help for billing and reimbursem*nts,” they explain why the waste in the system occurs in the first place.
#10
Hospital Bill For A 21yo Admitted For A Suicide Attempt - This Is The State Of Our Modern American "Healthcare"
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Tamra Stiffler Tamra Stiffler Community Member Follow
Well, if you didn't want to die before...
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#11
Having A Baby Is Not Cheap
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Colin Matthews Colin Matthews Community Member Follow
In New Zealand our daughter was in NICU for 3-4 days. Our bill? $0... Didn't even pay for parking. Got given a pass to the carparks. Single room overlooking the park.
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#12
Insurance Just Paid $57,605.79 For Medication That Costs Under $100 Anywhere Else
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Colin Matthews Colin Matthews Community Member Follow
OK So I REALLY don't understand why the FBI haven't charged these firms with fraud and racketeering-plainly this is fraudulent.
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Investopedia notes that the Covid-19 pandemic has further increased the pressure on the already highly complex and expensive American healthcare system. “There’s an urgent need to expand testing and treatment for COVID-19 to all residents who need it, regardless of health insurance status. Massive federal cash influxes have sought to shore up hospitals sagging under the weight of the coronavirus burden and the related cessation of elective surgery and regular medical care,” they write. ADVERTIsem*nT
#13
My Buddies Medical Bill For A Month-Long Stay In The Hospital After Being Hit By A Driver High On Heroin
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cybermerlin2000 cybermerlin2000 Community Member Follow
Welcome to USPAY where we victimize the victims!
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#14
The Hospital "Helping"
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Jess-a-men Jess-a-men Community Member Follow
And I'm sure this will have a great effect on this person's mental well-being, too. Great business model. Take people's money, their mental health goes down because they have money trouble, they have to get help, you can take more of their money, repeat. It's like something a supervillain would cook up.
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#15
I Bought Dental Insurance Specifically So I Could Afford To Get My Wisdom Teeth Removed. Humana Deducted Less Than What I Pay Them Monthly From My Medical Bill
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cybermerlin2000 cybermerlin2000 Community Member Follow
Go on America, tell me how medical insurance is better than socialized healthcare
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However, the American healthcare system has had issues long before Covid. Life expectancy in the US stands at 78.8 years while it ranges from 80.7 to 83.9 in other high-income countries that the Journal of the American Medical Association looked at.
#16
My Father In Law's Hospital Bill After 2 1/2 Days In The Hospital For Observation
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Hannah Edwards Hannah Edwards Community Member Follow
Don’t these suspiciously high bills often decrease a lot once a detailed itemised bill is requested? I really hope that the do.
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#17
Went To The Er For What Turned Out To Be A Panic Attack. These Were The Consequences
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Jon Steensen Jon Steensen Community Member Follow
and the irony is that bill like that is likely to cause another panic attack as most should rightfully be worried about how to come up with that sort of money on a short notice.
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#18
Got The Hospital Bill For Delivery Of My C-Section Baby. I Don’t Think I Need To Say Which Country I Live In
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WilvanderHeijden WilvanderHeijden Community Member
For that money she could have travelled to Europe, give birth, enjoy 6 months of rest and relaxation and still have saved $40.000.
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Unfortunately, only 90 percent of Americans have health insurance which is 9 to 10 percent lower than in these other industrialized countries. Many Americans feel like they simply cannot afford insurance.
#19
The Worst Part About Healthcare! This Is A Real Bill For A Motorized Wheelchair, Something A Person Needs To Live!
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timothy green timothy green Community Member Follow
That is almost 4 times what i paid for my brand new car
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#20
Just Got My $39k Hospital Bill For Having A Stroke At 34
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Stephen Branley Stephen Branley Community Member
I'd have had a second one after seeing the bill. Why do Americans put up with this??
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#21
My Buddy's Son Ate A Penny, This Is How Much The Hospital Charged For A 5 Minute Procedure To Get It Out
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Mark Dennler Mark Dennler Community Member Follow
In for a penny, in for 18 k i guess then
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National Nurses United points out that a whopping 78 percent of adult Americans avoided visiting the hospital while 44 percent skipped medical care due to the large cost, in 2018. In a very sad commentary on the reality that Americans face, nearly a third, 30 percent, said that they were forced to choose between paying for their medical bills and necessities such as buying food or paying for their housing.
#22
Got Our Hospital Bill On The Same Day That A Handwritten Thank You Card From My Wife's Nurses Arrived
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fire bug fire bug Community Member Follow
There is probably a line item on the bill to cover the cost of the card.
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#23
Just Got The First Bill For My Back Surgery. The Surgery Itself Is Not Included On This Statement
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im.bored.person im.bored.person Community Member Follow
i cant imagine how much the surgery was-
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#24
This Is The Cost Of A Rattlesnake Bite In America
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smugdruggler smugdruggler Community Member Follow
How can the pharmacy charges be higher than the intensive care bed?! This is just ridiculous. I'm so grateful for the NHS.
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Meanwhile, NNU also reports that back in 2019, 137.1 million people living in the US said that they were struggling with medical debt. The complexity of the system and the high hospital charges also drove up the cost of treating those ill with Covid-19. The cost of treating a Covid-19 patient who stays at the hospital can reach over 42.4k dollars if there are no or few complications. Whereas those with major complications can end up paying over 74.3k dollars for their stay. ADVERTIsem*nT
#25
My Hospital Bill After A Single Mri Brain Scan In The Us
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Nugua Nugua Nugua Nugua Community Member Follow
For comparison: In Germany a head MRT is billed with 400 to 500€ if you pay yourself (because it was not medically necessary and thus the insurance doesn't cover it.)
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#26
My Hospital Bill For An Uncomplicated Birth
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Art Tani Art Tani Community Member Follow
the fact that room and board are most expensive, even more than labor and delivery, just shows what America is like now...
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#27
170k
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Kainaath Khan Kainaath Khan Community Member Follow
What was to happen if one refuses to pay the bill? ( not from America and any form of health care is borne by the insurance company in my country).
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What do you think about the healthcare and health insurance systems in the United States, dear Pandas? What do you think it would take for the situation to fundamentally change? Have you ever had to pay off a huge hospital bill like in this list? Share your thoughts and feelings about the topic in the comment section at the bottom of the article.
#28
An Uninsured Covid-19 Patient Just Got Her Medical Bill: $34,927.43
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Valisbourne Spiritforge Valisbourne Spiritforge Community Member Follow
Wth does single payer and covid have to do with each other? They are literally separate issues.
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#29
Welcome To The USA. Just The Hospital Bill From A Car Accident. Note Charges Denied
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Lauren Lauren Community Member Follow
The medical insurance will want the car insurance to pay first. If there is no car insurance, they will go after whoever caused the wreck. If that was the patient, they are s**t out of luck.
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#30
Healthcare As God Would Have Wanted It
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Wilf Wilf Community Member Follow
Matthew 21:14 "And the blind and the lame came to Him in the temple, and He healed them." And lo, he charged them 135,000 dollars each...
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renee brack renee brack Community Member Follow
I feel sorry for the USA, then wearily frustrated when Americans poo-poo taxes paying for education, housing and healthcare - calling it communism / socialism without understanding what socialism actually is. It's like the circus elephant that's learned to love the chain around its leg. Get private shareholder-based insurance companies out of healthcare. It's as evil as a pedophile running a daycare.
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Steph Harrison Steph Harrison Community Member Follow
Especially as I imagine the amount lost in taxes would be less than the amount they pay in insurance, but one supports just them and the other supports those less well off.
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Wilf Wilf Community Member Follow
Speaking as someone from Europe, I wonder how many Americans realise just how utterly bewildering this is to other countries. It just doesn't seem possible outside of a dystopian novel. I just genuinely don't understand it.
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Jyri Hakola Jyri Hakola Community Member Follow
And even more, I wonder how many Americans realise that on top of the free covernmental healthcare we can whenever needed also services from the private sector with way more lower prices and our reasonable priced voluntary medical insurances also really handles most of those costs :D
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Hannah Edwards Hannah Edwards Community Member Follow
I had to stop reading, these are so depressing. Do they effect your credit score? Do you have to sell your homes to pay for them? How is this bullsh*t even legal?
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renee brack renee brack Community Member Follow
Yeah, I found it increasingly depressing to read. It's hard enough dealing with a medical emergency without the stress of extortion.
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renee brack renee brack Community Member Follow
I feel sorry for the USA, then wearily frustrated when Americans poo-poo taxes paying for education, housing and healthcare - calling it communism / socialism without understanding what socialism actually is. It's like the circus elephant that's learned to love the chain around its leg. Get private shareholder-based insurance companies out of healthcare. It's as evil as a pedophile running a daycare.
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Steph Harrison Steph Harrison Community Member Follow
Especially as I imagine the amount lost in taxes would be less than the amount they pay in insurance, but one supports just them and the other supports those less well off.
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Wilf Wilf Community Member Follow
Speaking as someone from Europe, I wonder how many Americans realise just how utterly bewildering this is to other countries. It just doesn't seem possible outside of a dystopian novel. I just genuinely don't understand it.
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Jyri Hakola Jyri Hakola Community Member Follow
And even more, I wonder how many Americans realise that on top of the free covernmental healthcare we can whenever needed also services from the private sector with way more lower prices and our reasonable priced voluntary medical insurances also really handles most of those costs :D
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Hannah Edwards Hannah Edwards Community Member Follow
I had to stop reading, these are so depressing. Do they effect your credit score? Do you have to sell your homes to pay for them? How is this bullsh*t even legal?
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renee brack renee brack Community Member Follow
Yeah, I found it increasingly depressing to read. It's hard enough dealing with a medical emergency without the stress of extortion.
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