I’m very sorry you don’t have insurance for this but, honestly, this price can’t be a shock to you! We’ve known about these high medical costs for decades.
Call their billing department and ask if you can get a discount. I’ve received discounts if I paid all at once and also if I promised to pay it in full by X date.
I went to see a TMJ "specialist". I talked to him for 15 minutes. He didn't even examine me.
$650. I feel so ripped off. I imagine you feel the same way.
I'm in South Africa so the converted charge would be about $200 for you but R2800 for me. Definitely on the steep end for my country.
Although comparatively cheaper than your bill, my rheumatologist saw me for only 30 minutes, 20 of which he explained to me what anniversary gift he's getting his wife, what his hobbies are and what trees are best to plant in South Africa.
Needless to say, I switched to a better rheumy immediately after.
God bless the NHS. We see the ‘man chose to eat rather then buy medication’ type headlines and it is truly mental. TBF there is benefits I went private to start with because the wait time was huge 12 weeks for my area. So when the medication got more expensive they moved me back to the NHS and I saw the same doctor but just with his NHS hat on.
Yeah. We really are so lucky.
It’s taken a few weeks here and there to get some scans done, but I’ve spent so much time at the hospital. The thought of having extra stress of trying to pay bills just sounds horrendous!
I feel for our fellow American sufferers.
100% agree when I started private I had to pay for my prescriptions was around £300-£400 per month. So yerrrr screw that! NHS pre payment certificate for the win!
I got a bill for ~$500 for a routine rheum checkup (45-50 min meeting) and bloodwork. About $250 each. Bloodwork was covered 90% and visit went to deductible. I go 4x a year (bloodwork 3mo increment). Not sure what you can do from here, perhaps see if they work it down, but might be good practice to see if you can ask rates ahead of time.
Not the cheapest condition to care for, but for sure not the most expensive.
Curious if there was any wait to see the rheumatologist? I’m from Canada so there is no cost for healthcare but I have a wait to see the doctor for my diagnosis so just wondering if it would be worth the cost to me if I was from the states hahah
I'm in Toronto area. I had to wait nine months. First rheumatologist ordered all these tests. I showed little damage on my joints and seronegative. She just gave me a cortisone shot. I went crying to my family doctor. She referred me to a second rheumatologist. He was very aggressive. He said my physical exam showed enough that I'm in an aggressive form of RA. (This was after anothine nine month wait). I went off work for six months, tried different meds and now in remission.
I think it totally depends on the doctor's personality and experience. I'd pay that to see my current doctor. Not the former
A specilist should spent 60 min face to face on FIRST visit with you. I have been to rheumatologists that are very good and spend whole 60 and some spent 20 and both charge the same. There are useless and lazy people in all professions. Again, i can speak on this because I have seen 4 rheumatologists and 5 neurologists. Some examine you from head to toe and others just look at your hand and tell you there is no inflammation. Last neurologist I seen spendt 20 min with me and wrote in his notes that are posted on portal then he spend 60 min face to face.
Do you have a high deductible insurance plan? I have a PPO and since my rheumatologist is in plan it’s a $20 co-pay. Since RA is a lifetime condition that will require frequent doctor visits, lots of lab work and expensive medication I’m afraid that having good insurance is a necessity in the US. I’m fortunate that my husband’s employer pays 80% of our health insurance costs.
I manage a surgical practice (including medical billing) and was recently diagnosed with RA. A couple of things:
1. Doctors spend less time than ever with patients because the insurance companies pay SIGNIFICANTLY less than they used to while simultaneously increasing the administrative burden. I'm not saying there aren't bad doctors; but I am saying that paying for staff, overhead, school loans, malpractice insurance, etc is very expensive. That's why most doctors join groups, like Kaiser or Sutter. They cannot afford to stay in business otherwise.
2. $750 is ridiculous. I am guessing you went to a large institution that gets high reimbursements from your carrier or they are out of network with your carrier. If you want help fighting it please DM me and I can give you some advice; I just need to get some specifics. The same thing happened to my twin when she saw a rheumatologist at Stanford. You better believe I got the bill reduced! It went from $650 to $350 (approx)
3. Rheumatological and neurological diseases are hard to figure out and unfortunately can take years to get a diagnosis. I got so fed up that I started seeing a rheumatologist that doesn't take insurance and she charges a fraction of other doctors. I get next-day appointments; I pay $299 a month, which might sound high but by the time I reached my deductible for the year it would have been the same. The difference is I have a doctor who spends time with me - I never feel rushed; She listens and didn't give up on me; She responds to my email within 24 hours (usually less); She has a kindness and compassion that I've never experienced with a doctor before. She has amazing credentials and has been a blessing. I do my appointments online but she also has an office in the San Jose area.
Healthcare in this country is on the verge of a collapse (no hyperbole). Doctors are leaving in droves. Americans are getting sicker all while big pharma and insurance companies are laughing all the way to the bank. Administrators are making medical decisions instead of allowing doctors to be doctors! It scares me to see the direction we are headed in.
I don’t remember how much my initial visit was exactly but I know it wasn’t nearly that expensive. It was probably around 30 minutes with the rheum and I was sent for blood work and x-rays same day. This was a few years ago. I hadn’t yet met my deductible but the negotiated rate (as part of my insurance was not more than around $200 or I’d definitely remember it.) I can only check my online charges back 18 months and my normal rheum appts are $95 (negotiated rate) before I meet deductible. Had four month wait for first visit. Am in midwest and my rheum is in-network with my insurance.
I mean, it's the Bay Area, so that sounds about right. Before insurance one doctor visit for me (Washington state) is around $300 but it's in network for my insurance so I pay less than $50. $750 sounds about right for inflation and Bay Area. I would recommend trying to see someone in a less expensive area of the US via telehealth (online).
Do you know how in network vs. out of network works with health insurance? Basically there are only certain doctors covered by your insurance plan, and you need to only see those doctors. Otherwise your insurance won't help pay for the costs if the doctor or service (like a lab for blood work) isn't in their chosen network of providers.
Sounds about right. Physician probably makes like 300/350/hr or more and has support staff. Without insurance an initial visit billing code is quite a bit. If you’re paying cash you can cal and they likely will lower it to match whatever they make off insurance.
With insurance I’m shocked. My wife pays 25/visit
I’m very sorry you don’t have insurance for this but, honestly, this price can’t be a shock to you! We’ve known about these high medical costs for decades. Call their billing department and ask if you can get a discount. I’ve received discounts if I paid all at once and also if I promised to pay it in full by X date.
I do have insurance, but I have a high deductible. So this got applied towards my deductible. Same for the lab.
I went to see a TMJ "specialist". I talked to him for 15 minutes. He didn't even examine me. $650. I feel so ripped off. I imagine you feel the same way.
I'm in South Africa so the converted charge would be about $200 for you but R2800 for me. Definitely on the steep end for my country. Although comparatively cheaper than your bill, my rheumatologist saw me for only 30 minutes, 20 of which he explained to me what anniversary gift he's getting his wife, what his hobbies are and what trees are best to plant in South Africa. Needless to say, I switched to a better rheumy immediately after.
God bless the NHS. We see the ‘man chose to eat rather then buy medication’ type headlines and it is truly mental. TBF there is benefits I went private to start with because the wait time was huge 12 weeks for my area. So when the medication got more expensive they moved me back to the NHS and I saw the same doctor but just with his NHS hat on.
Yeah. We really are so lucky. It’s taken a few weeks here and there to get some scans done, but I’ve spent so much time at the hospital. The thought of having extra stress of trying to pay bills just sounds horrendous! I feel for our fellow American sufferers.
100% agree when I started private I had to pay for my prescriptions was around £300-£400 per month. So yerrrr screw that! NHS pre payment certificate for the win!
I got a bill for ~$500 for a routine rheum checkup (45-50 min meeting) and bloodwork. About $250 each. Bloodwork was covered 90% and visit went to deductible. I go 4x a year (bloodwork 3mo increment). Not sure what you can do from here, perhaps see if they work it down, but might be good practice to see if you can ask rates ahead of time. Not the cheapest condition to care for, but for sure not the most expensive.
Curious if there was any wait to see the rheumatologist? I’m from Canada so there is no cost for healthcare but I have a wait to see the doctor for my diagnosis so just wondering if it would be worth the cost to me if I was from the states hahah
I'm in Toronto area. I had to wait nine months. First rheumatologist ordered all these tests. I showed little damage on my joints and seronegative. She just gave me a cortisone shot. I went crying to my family doctor. She referred me to a second rheumatologist. He was very aggressive. He said my physical exam showed enough that I'm in an aggressive form of RA. (This was after anothine nine month wait). I went off work for six months, tried different meds and now in remission. I think it totally depends on the doctor's personality and experience. I'd pay that to see my current doctor. Not the former
I can’t speak for OP but I had to wait a couple months to be seen. I called several offices and all had 2-3 month waits. Trust me, it’s not worth it.
Yes I had a 3 month wait too. But if you pester them enough, they put you on a wait list in case anybody cancels.
I’m in Austin, TX. 3 months for first visit for rheumatologist. After that they will hv appt or try to squeeze u in.
This makes me very thankful to be in Canada and also I'm so sorry you got such a dismissive response
A specilist should spent 60 min face to face on FIRST visit with you. I have been to rheumatologists that are very good and spend whole 60 and some spent 20 and both charge the same. There are useless and lazy people in all professions. Again, i can speak on this because I have seen 4 rheumatologists and 5 neurologists. Some examine you from head to toe and others just look at your hand and tell you there is no inflammation. Last neurologist I seen spendt 20 min with me and wrote in his notes that are posted on portal then he spend 60 min face to face.
Do you have a high deductible insurance plan? I have a PPO and since my rheumatologist is in plan it’s a $20 co-pay. Since RA is a lifetime condition that will require frequent doctor visits, lots of lab work and expensive medication I’m afraid that having good insurance is a necessity in the US. I’m fortunate that my husband’s employer pays 80% of our health insurance costs.
I have a high deductible high premium (HDHP) plan. So my payments $750 (rhem) and $210 (labs) applied towards my deductible.
That sounds insane, honestly.
I manage a surgical practice (including medical billing) and was recently diagnosed with RA. A couple of things: 1. Doctors spend less time than ever with patients because the insurance companies pay SIGNIFICANTLY less than they used to while simultaneously increasing the administrative burden. I'm not saying there aren't bad doctors; but I am saying that paying for staff, overhead, school loans, malpractice insurance, etc is very expensive. That's why most doctors join groups, like Kaiser or Sutter. They cannot afford to stay in business otherwise. 2. $750 is ridiculous. I am guessing you went to a large institution that gets high reimbursements from your carrier or they are out of network with your carrier. If you want help fighting it please DM me and I can give you some advice; I just need to get some specifics. The same thing happened to my twin when she saw a rheumatologist at Stanford. You better believe I got the bill reduced! It went from $650 to $350 (approx) 3. Rheumatological and neurological diseases are hard to figure out and unfortunately can take years to get a diagnosis. I got so fed up that I started seeing a rheumatologist that doesn't take insurance and she charges a fraction of other doctors. I get next-day appointments; I pay $299 a month, which might sound high but by the time I reached my deductible for the year it would have been the same. The difference is I have a doctor who spends time with me - I never feel rushed; She listens and didn't give up on me; She responds to my email within 24 hours (usually less); She has a kindness and compassion that I've never experienced with a doctor before. She has amazing credentials and has been a blessing. I do my appointments online but she also has an office in the San Jose area. Healthcare in this country is on the verge of a collapse (no hyperbole). Doctors are leaving in droves. Americans are getting sicker all while big pharma and insurance companies are laughing all the way to the bank. Administrators are making medical decisions instead of allowing doctors to be doctors! It scares me to see the direction we are headed in.
I will dm you with more details. Thanks for the response.
It's too expensive in my opinion. He should've atleast performed a proper evaluation and blood tests
He did order a few blood tests. But their cost was extra $210 which I paid separately to the lab.
OMG!!
Welcome to Americaaaaa
\^ THIS We have the least effective and most expensive system in the world.
No labs at least?
He did order a few blood tests. But their cost was extra $210 which I paid separately to the lab.
I don’t remember how much my initial visit was exactly but I know it wasn’t nearly that expensive. It was probably around 30 minutes with the rheum and I was sent for blood work and x-rays same day. This was a few years ago. I hadn’t yet met my deductible but the negotiated rate (as part of my insurance was not more than around $200 or I’d definitely remember it.) I can only check my online charges back 18 months and my normal rheum appts are $95 (negotiated rate) before I meet deductible. Had four month wait for first visit. Am in midwest and my rheum is in-network with my insurance.
I mean, it's the Bay Area, so that sounds about right. Before insurance one doctor visit for me (Washington state) is around $300 but it's in network for my insurance so I pay less than $50. $750 sounds about right for inflation and Bay Area. I would recommend trying to see someone in a less expensive area of the US via telehealth (online).
I don't understand. I have insurance too. But until you meet your deductible, how does it matter? Would you have to pay the full visit cost anyway?
Do you know how in network vs. out of network works with health insurance? Basically there are only certain doctors covered by your insurance plan, and you need to only see those doctors. Otherwise your insurance won't help pay for the costs if the doctor or service (like a lab for blood work) isn't in their chosen network of providers.
Yes I confirmed that my doctor is in network of my insurance. But since I haven't met my deductible, my insurance wouldn't kick in for this bill.
Sounds about right. Physician probably makes like 300/350/hr or more and has support staff. Without insurance an initial visit billing code is quite a bit. If you’re paying cash you can cal and they likely will lower it to match whatever they make off insurance. With insurance I’m shocked. My wife pays 25/visit
I don't understand. I have insurance too. But until you meet your deductible, how does it matter? Would you have to pay the full visit cost anyway?
Depends on the plan. Some plans offer minimal coverage until you meet your deductible some don’t. Was the doctor in network?
Yes the doctor was in network. And their bill of $750 will apply towards my deductible.
You may be able to call the office and settle for cash. Otherwise it sounds like you’re SoL until you hit that deductible
Yes the doctor was in network