I was admitted to the ER: here's how much it cost

I want to understand everyone's current health care systems, so if you've recently been to the doctors, let's share what our costs were If it wasn't covered under private insurance.

A few days ago I collapsed from a sudden pain in my back - this was about 4 days after I had injured it - what was happening was a particular area around one of my ribs was convulsing and spasming next to my spine preventing me from being able to breath fully; spasming more if I attempted to breath in fully, or out fully.

I was brought to the hospital in severe pain, I let the doctors know I had injured my back a few days earlier in the same location.

They decided to ensure I didn't break or fracture anything, so we did an x-ray.

They also wanted to make sure everything else was alright and this wasn't a response to something else, maybe drugs or something. So we also did a blood and urine test.

I received a hefty dose of morphine, gravol, and some form of strong muscle relaxant. All of which helped greatly.

I was then prescribed tylenol t3's. Two to be taken every 4 hours, and ketorolac trometh to be taken three times a day.

30 T3's
10 ketorolac

Without insurance, here were to costs in Alberta, Canada

ER: free
X-ray: free
Blood test: free
Urine test: free
Morphine/gravol/muscle relaxant: free
X30 Tylenol t3: $20
X10 ketorolac: $30

And that's about it

The Canadian Universal Healthcare system is funded by a percentage of our private and corporate income tax. It also doesn't cover everything, and it varies from province to province. In my province, dental, home care, prescriptions aren't covered unless you get private insurance

If you make under $125,000 per year, your income tax is 10%. Again, this is subjective per province, and I believe Alberta is one of the highest in canada

Wow, Canada, here I come.

I had to go to the ER last year because of chest pains. Long story short, no heart problems other than arrhythmia (which I already knew I had. No meds or anything just some EKG work and one other test.

ER visit: $450
Time lost at work : $300
Knowing I wasn't having a heart attack : Priceless

I got an ambulance to the ER for AWS last year.

total cost: $934

that was the ambulance bill. the ICU was covered under Medicare.

As I am unemployed right now, with my health care card, I had it reduced to half.

Thank god I live in Australia...

ETA: thats god Im still alive, Dr Doogie Howser MD was USELESS.

a reply to: Ghost147

Most countries just have it right. Maybe some day the U.S. will catch up.

If I saw you standing in front of me asking about the bill, I would run.......... and holler ....."it's free,no charge"

By then I would be two blocks away, working on three and four blocks....................................lol


Well here in the lower 48, you likely would be into it $ wise about 8-10K....
Hope your feeling better..

a reply to: kaylaluv

Maybe some day everyone in the US will pay taxes too

originally posted by: kaylaluv
a reply to: Ghost147

Most countries just have it right. Maybe some day the U.S. will catch up.

God, I hope. Being here, in the US, I've noticed every year that my insurance rates have steadily increased every year.

a reply to: Ghost147
So--and correct me if I'm wrong, here--you went to the ER, had all of these tests done, you obviously have something wrong in your back, and all that they did was give you muscle relaxers and pain killers?

For $30, I could have gone to my chiropractor, no insurance necessary, and he probably could have actually fixed the problem instead of just drugging you up.

Now, to be fair, you don't go into diagnosis, so maybe a chiropractor couldn't fix the issue, but it definitely does not sound like your socialized doctors fixed the problem, it sounds like they just medicated you to stop the pain, but didn't get tot he root of the problem.

If I'm wrong, and you got a diagnosis and a proper fix other than medication, then great. I'd love to know the monetary amount of direct taxes from your employer and paycheck that are withheld (amount, not percentage) specifically for your socialized medicine--I wonder how it would compare to an individual plan here in the states when all is said and done.

originally posted by: badw0lf
I got an ambulance to the ER for AWS last year.

total cost: $934

that was the ambulance bill. the ICU was covered under Medicare.

As I am unemployed right now, with my health care card, I had it reduced to half.

Thank god I live in Australia...

Oh right, I forgot that the ambulance does charge a fee. Although in the OP's case I was driven by family.

Let's see (searching google for costs)

This is what my government's website states:

"All Albertans, regardless of where they live in the province, will pay the same rate for ground ambulance service in Alberta. The new provincial rate has two fees: $250 if a patient is treated at the scene, but not transported to a hospital, or. $385 if a patient is transported to a hospital."

Is $934 a per-block charge?

Went to the ER last month (USA) for what I thought was a heart issue.

Here is a breakdown of what it would have cost without insurance.

ER Room: $2473.33

Observation Room: $297.54
(They were going to keep me overnight but I was only in there for 10 minutes before being released)

CT Scan: $3,322.84

EKG: $501.23

Lab: $864.84

Pharmacy (1 nitro pill and a few aspirin): $113.65

Radiology: $474.58

Misc Supplies: $61.79

Total Charges: $8,109.80
Insurance covered: $7,445.66

The remainder of $664.14 I had to pay out of pocket. I also had to pay another couple hundred dollars out of pocket after my specialist follow up which only lasted about 10 mins.

The ER visit was about 4 hours.

Apparently, I only suffered a pulled muscle and heart wise, I am good to go.

originally posted by: avgguy
a reply to: kaylaluv

Maybe some day everyone in the US will pay taxes too

Maybe some day everyone in the US will actually pay their medical bills so that costs don't get distributed to those of us who do.

A year ago I went to the ER because of back pain I spent 1 1/2 days in the hospital. Outcome was a muscle spasm.
cost 9,000 dollars. Insurance wouldn't cover the cost because my stay was listed as observation. a reply to: Ghost147

a reply to: Ghost147





This is at me in the US.

We are truly duped.

But hey we make (and sell) kick ass bombs.

You Americans should never have rebelled against us Brits. You would have much less crime, and a routinely unarmed police force as well as free healthcare at the point of delivery.




a reply to: kaylaluv

Due to having a heart attack in Feb. of this year the ambulance fee was over
$800. I don't recall what the ER costs but my overall charge for being at the hospital for about five days was over $40,000 USD. I have no insurance to pay this so they are not going to get paid any of this by me.

originally posted by: Ghost147

originally posted by: badw0lf
I got an ambulance to the ER for AWS last year.

total cost: $934

that was the ambulance bill. the ICU was covered under Medicare.

As I am unemployed right now, with my health care card, I had it reduced to half.

Thank god I live in Australia...

Oh right, I forgot that the ambulance does charge a fee. Although in the OP's case I was driven by family.

Let's see (searching google for costs)

This is what my government's website states:

"All Albertans, regardless of where they live in the province, will pay the same rate for ground ambulance service in Alberta. The new provincial rate has two fees: $250 if a patient is treated at the scene, but not transported to a hospital, or. $385 if a patient is transported to a hospital."

Is $934 a per-block charge?

Try searching for things out side of the United States of America.

St. John of god here, a NFP service ( that they all use ) and also convert to AUD.

a reply to: Ghost147

I'm from Toronto, I remember when I broke my hand, I walked to the hospital and admitted myself, got surgery and a cast the same night, woke up really high on morphine and walked back home.

Cost = $0

originally posted by: slapjacks
God, I hope. Being here, in the US, I've noticed every year that my insurance rates have steadily increased every year.

There are a lot of reasons for that, but the biggest, by far, is the increased control (stranglehold) over the industry that the federal government has incrementally usurped.

Fighting government control with more government control is never, ever the answer.

originally posted by: SlapMonkey
a reply to: Ghost147
So--and correct me if I'm wrong, here--you went to the ER, had all of these tests done, you obviously have something wrong in your back, and all that they did was give you muscle relaxers and pain killers?

For $30, I could have gone to my chiropractor, no insurance necessary, and he probably could have actually fixed the problem instead of just drugging you up.

That's actually what I did when I first hurt my back.

Remember, in the OP I stated this was 4 days after my injury.

The first day I did go to the chiropractor, it helped Mildly, but it didn't go away. Perhaps 40% of the pain left. I went back 2 days later, no inprovement. Then two days after that this suddenly happened and it was several magnitudes more painful than when I actually injured it

Chiropractors aren't covered by our health care system. It costs about $50 per visit to the one I went to, but that was before my private insurance, which covers 80% of it, costing me $10 out of pocket per visit.

originally posted by: SlapMonkey
If I'm wrong, and you got a diagnosis and a proper fix other than medication, then great. I'd love to know the monetary amount of direct taxes from your employer and paycheck that are withheld (amount, not percentage) specifically for your socialized medicine--I wonder how it would compare to an individual plan here in the states when all is said and done.

I actually have my pay stub here Year to date I've paid $511 from this particular job (part time) to income taxes.

I don't know the specific ammount that the government uses out of that tax, however. Remember, it is also used for infrastructure, schools, Medicare, so on and so forth

originally posted by: TorqueyThePig
Went to the ER last month (USA) for what I thought was a heart issue.

Here is a breakdown of what it would have cost without insurance.

ER Room: $2473.33

Observation Room: $297.54
(They were going to keep me overnight but I was only in there for 10 minutes before being released)

CT Scan: $3,322.84

EKG: $501.23

Lab: $864.84

Pharmacy (1 nitro pill and a few aspirin): $113.65

Radiology: $474.58

Misc Supplies: $61.79

Total Charges: $8,109.80
Insurance covered: $7,445.66

The remainder of $664.14 I had to pay out of pocket. I also had to pay another couple hundred dollars out of pocket after my specialist follow up which only lasted about 10 mins.

The ER visit was about 4 hours.

Apparently, I only suffered a pulled muscle and heart wise, I am good to go.

JESUS!!!! How do you guys afford to live there???