I recently watched an alarming video. Elizabeth Cohen, Senior Medical Correspondent for CNN, reports on ridiculous medical expenses that are wasteful, and could perhaps, be avoided. Can you imagine paying a whopping $1000 dollars for one toothbrush? According to this report, a hospital changed one of its patients that price. Do you think one Tylenol pill is worth $140? Another hospital reportedly charged a patient that amount for a single pill.

During the interview Cohen speaks with Cindy Holtzman, a billing advocate that deals with these charges a bit too often. Holtzman reveals that often times insurance companies do not pay attention to large charges unless they exceed 100k. Paying the bills, instead of investigating the reason for high cost, leads to higher premiums for those with insurance. One case in particular involved a patient who was charged for 41 IV bags after she visited the Emergency Room for 2 hours. She actually only used one bag, but due to error, was unnecessarily charged.

Don’t let medical waste lead to higher costs for you; do some investigating and save some money!

Watch the whole video here

http://cnn.com/video/?/video/health/2010/03/01/cohen.health.care.bills.cnn

Stay Tuned…

Chelsea