Sorry...got to rant!

[collecture]

OK...my oldest son has always had a dexterity/balance issue and been diagnosed with ADHD. It has always been difficult for him even walk a straight line, tie his shoe laces, write legibly. etc. He is a smart kid and is in some of the advanced classes for his grade, but the teachers can't read his writing all the time. The school has an Occupational Therapy program, but they have denied him access because he only has one deficiency and to get into it there is a two minimum.
Anyway, so in working with the school nurse and his teachers we figured to get him into the 504 program which will allow him to use electronic means to take notes, take tests, etc. Well, the nurse said she needed a doctors note IDing the issue.
I call the doctor and have to come in with him, so I make an appointment even though she has known him since infancy. I pay the $35 copay, she talks to us as she writes the note and we're out in 15 minutes. I get a notice from Blue Cross saying I owe another $57 because it was billed as an outpatient and that is my share of the deductible. The total bill from the doctor was $181 for her to write a NOTE!! She did not check his pulse, blood pressure or perform anything that she went to med school for.
I am sorry, but the Healthcare system is *%$#@!*!
It is not the money because I would spend all my savings for anything to benefit my children, but the fact that it costs me and the insurance company $181 is asinine!

[VMAXMAN]

I'd go off and demand at least 1/2 of my money back!
thats BS!
my brother in NC has 2 kids with autism and has issues with the schools constantly
I definitely dont envy him!

[Cokemachinesandmore]

They claim that they have to charge those ridiculous prices to offset the losses on the people with no insurance. To qoute a line from one of my favorite movies, " The working man is a sucker". from the movie A Bronx tale

[Cokemachinesandmore]

Tom unfortunately its not just happening with health insurance. Here's my rant, my car was in the shop (my work car) for about 4 months. I was unsure if I was going to fix it or get rid of it. I didnt not buy a city sticker for it, which is due on July first and cost 75.00 dollars for the year. I didnt not get my car out of the shop till friday and go to purchase the city sticker. I was told i still had to pay the 75.00 for the full year plus 40.00 dollars late fee for not purchasing it in July. I tried to explain and they said pay it or get out of line. WTF is all I could say 

[Larry]

That sucks.  Your doctor should've just given you a note seeing that she was your kids doctor.  Maybe you can ask her to resubmit the bill as something else??  Or is it too late??  

Anyway, I'd call up Blue Cross and Blue Shield and bi h them out and then while I'm still ticked, I would call my doctor up and give her an  a s chewing just for fun.

[collecture]

They claim that they have to charge those ridiculous prices to offset the losses on the people with no insurance.

That and monies paid to defend frivolous lawsuits! Doctors do the work without providing any sort of estimate to you, subcontract labor on your behalf and then bill you in full. If they don't run all tests and explore all options, the lawyers will come after them and file suit for malpractice. Why didn't you run this test? If you had, my client would not be here...blah, blah, blah?

The human body is still vastly unknown. How a person has lived for 30-40-50 years...what do they eat and have they eaten like that all their life? What drugs have they taken in their life...have they ever abused drugs or alcohol? All of this plays a role on the body's overall health. And then there is genetics...one person is susceptible and another not. Those accident attorney ads on TV always get me riled up.      

[davethebirdman]

Tom - I'm sory to hear about your son.. My boy also has some "issues".. Thankfully the Good Old National Health Service picks up the tab.. We may have to wait a few weeks (I also have a supplimentary health care policy just in case) but cost has never been an issue here.

I hope everything gets sorted.....

Dave

[collecture]

Thanks Dave!
It will be alright - I've just been P.O.'d at doctors and lawyers recently and not necessarily because of personal experience.
Every parent has challenges to overcome - I am sure I was perfect as a kid!  
I am up at 2:30am because my youngest gave me his cold. 

[RED SPARKS]

 I think I have a combo of OCD and ADHD...  I taught myself how to write and make letters incorrectly and even at 30 write sloppy in a mix of caps and lower case and print and cursive...  So one thing I can tell you from being a smart kid, but not having good study habits or ever taking notes in school is to help him figure out if he is an auditory or visual learner etc...  Also you might try diet changes.  Sounds crazy but get him off wheat and anything with gluten and high fructose corn syrup.

As for you Doctor, they could have been cool and not charged you a dime...  However by saving you a slot that might have bumped someone that they could have run a battery of tests on and charged them thousands of dollars...  Which it goes hand in hand with the insurance compaines...  They are for profit entities...

I wish your kiddo well.