| You won't like the answer to that particular question, | | | | because they have no idea what they will bill you for |
| but the facts are the facts. Health insurance rates are | | | | until they bill you. |
| going up because of us. That's right, we are the | | | | Surgery has almost become an a la carte menu |
| authors of our own misfortune if you will. Very simply | | | | where the doctor (and hospital) picks and chooses |
| we do not look after ourselves and by doing that, we | | | | what you will get billed for. From the cost of dispensing |
| send the price of health care rates sky high. | | | | pills to the cost of the pill itself and from the cost of the |
| We drink, we smoke, we're aging (OK we can't do | | | | extra pillow you wanted to the extra dressing required |
| anything about that) and we don't work out. Our | | | | for your incision. You get billed for each item. No |
| obesity rate as a nation is abominable. The health care | | | | wonder bills are so high and they can't tell you what it |
| costs of treating alcoholics, smokers and obese | | | | costs. |
| patients are phenomenal. | | | | However, having said that, it's interesting that doctor's |
| It's not just that we don't take care of ourselves either. | | | | offices are able to tell the biggest insurance companies |
| The other factors that drive up the cost of health | | | | paying the freight how much it costs to stay in hospital |
| insurance rates are medical inflation and medical errors. | | | | per day and what a certain surgery costs. See what's |
| Now you might be thinking medical errors must cost a | | | | happening here? The doctor gets paid a rate by the |
| bundle. Actually, they are declining - a good thing by | | | | insurance company and then bills you extra for other |
| any standards. | | | | things. Nasty, but it works. |
| The biggest area of problems is medical inflation. Just | | | | If you want lower health care rates, start taking care |
| try to find out what a surgery will cost you, and good | | | | of yourself. Don't smoke, don't drink to excess and get |
| luck on that. Let's say for instance you needed an | | | | moving and work out. The healthier you are, the less |
| appendectomy. You want to know what that will cost. | | | | expensive your health care costs tend to be. |
| No hospital or doctors office will give you that figure | | | | |