“Over 6½ years ago, KFF Health News and NPR kicked off “Bill of the Month,” a crowdsourced investigation highlighting the impact of medical bills on patients.
The goal was to understand how the U.S. health care system generates outsize bills and to empower patients with strategies to avoid them. We asked readers and listeners to submit their bills — and they kept coming. “Bill of the Month” has received nearly 10,000 submissions, each a picture of a health system’s dysfunction and the financial burden it places on the patients.”
“Millions of Americans rely on prescription medications each year. But how easy is it to get them, and how much are people really paying for them? The GoodRx Research Team ran a 9-month survey to try to answer these questions.
Most health insurance plans cover preventative care services — such as immunizations, mammograms, and colonoscopies — regardless of whether or not you’ve met your annual deductible. However, once you’ve paid your deductible, which depends on your specific plan, your insurance company will help you pay for additional medical services. You may only have to pay coinsurance or copays depending on your plan.
The average cost for an emergency room visit is $2,600 without insurance, according to UnitedHealthcare. Health System Tracker, a partnership between Peterson Center on Healthcare and Kaiser Family Foundation, recently came out with a report showing a slightly lower average of $2,453. You have other options!