Sticker shock: Army vet gets $8K bill for MRI
As healthcare costs outpace inflation, patients are more and more cost-conscious—with many often shopping around to minimize out-of-pocket costs—but medicine remains far from transparent.
A recent story from WBRC in Birmingham, Alabama, explored one man’s shock when he received an $8,000 bill for two MRIs on his back.
Mitch Brandon, an Army veteran with back pain, was sent to Lakeview Regional Medical Center in Covington, Louisiana, by a physician with U.S. Veteran’s Affairs Administration. Seven months later, he’s hearing from the hospital’s collection department. The VA has yet to pay the bill, while reporters found a medical center down the road from Lakeview offered MRI for $350.
Read more about the situation—and what patients should know about shopping for healthcare—at the link below:
Nicholas joined TriMed in 2016 as the managing editor of the Chicago office. After receiving his master’s from Roosevelt University, he worked in various writing/editing roles for magazines ranging in topic from billiards to metallurgy. Currently on Chicago’s north side, Nicholas keeps busy by running, reading and talking to his two cats.