Praise God for Health Insurance
One of the principles my dad impressed on me from about high school through college was the importance of having a job that provided health insurance. He always said that landing in the doctor’s office, or the emergency room without health insurance could be disastrous for my finances. He wasn’t kidding either.
My bout with pneumonia for the last few weeks landed me in the ER on the morning of New Year’s Eve. I was in there less than 2 hours. (We arrived at 4:00 am, and I was out around 5:50 am.) Total bill?
$1,9243.85
Yup, you read that right, those two hours cost nearly a thousand dollars each. Here’s their itemized list:
| Item | Cost |
| Medical Surgical Supplies | $6.12 |
| Respiratory Services | $302.45 |
| Emergency Department Services | $1574.00 |
| Self Administered Medications | $42.28 |
| Total | $1924.85 |
I can’t even imagine having to pay that out of pocket. I mean, think of all the things we could pay for with that much money. That’s more than a month’s worth of rent. That’s more than a Canon EOS 7D ($1699.00). It’s more than my next lens, the Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM ($1699.95). Heck, for some people, that’s even a used car.
All that to say my dad was right. Having health insurance is super important.
So what was our final cost for that visit with insurance?
$50
Yup, praise God for health insurance!