Hidden hospital fees can often be just as worrisome as finding out that you have a fairly expensive disease to cure. However, one woman from Kentucky got a bonus on top of that nightmare after the hospital she visited put up a sign stating that there’s now a new fee if you ever wanted to ask medical professionals about other concerns or a curious question.
The incident happened to Whittney Darnell from Kentucky. Darnell was merely on a routine annual physical at an unnamed hospital when she noticed a relatively new sign on the hospital wall saying the following:
“If you are here for your Annual Appointment. Please be advised that additional charges may be applied if issues, outside of the regular examination, are discussed during your annual visit. Thank you for your understanding!”
Due to the vagueness of the “warning,” Darnell couldn’t help but take a photo of it and present it to her local news outlets, namely WCPO 9. According to Darnell, the warning has also left her hesitant about discussing her health concerns with her doctor, for fear that the hospital might charge her an additional question fee, perhaps even for merely asking if a certain bodily pain might be related to her checkup results.
“I did have some questions I didn’t ask because I didn’t know what that sign meant… If that ache is going to cost me $250 to ask what it is, maybe it isn’t that bad of an ache” says Whittney Darnell, transcript courtesy of WCPO 9
Darnell’s unnamed doctor, however, explained the sign was there to speed up annual checkups and to prevent delays, ensuring that other patients are accommodated promptly. However, warning people that a few questions about their health concerns will cost them extra, or borderline nickel-and-diming, might not be the best way to speed up checkups.
At the back of her head, however, it appears Darnell still fears what specific health concerns could mean, especially if she now has to keep herself in the dark and keep potential diseases secret, all because hospitals might now charge her extra for bringing up concerns.
People are Blaming Insurance Companies
People online were torn on the issue, while some were more than happy to explain what might be the underlying cause for such a warning. Fingers pointed to how insurance companies require hospitals to bill them using specific expectations, and how some of them don’t want to cover acute health concerns.
“This has to do with insurance companies. They cover an annual (preventive medicine) physical but not acute issues. If acute issues are brought up and addressed during an annual (prev med) visit, insurance charges extra.
Doctors have ZERO control over this. If a doctor doesn’t bill the way insurance (with whom they have a contract) expects, the doctor will be charged with fraud and the insurance company will drop that practice,” according to Salty-Ambition9733
“The problem is the name. annual visit. It implies a summing up or a time to pull things together. Instead it’s a nothing visit for a patient afraid of up charges,” points out oldaliumfarmer
Now, despite the issue getting mired in bureaucracy and eventually down to insurance company practices, some people were not having any of it and aren’t exactly happy with how the system is set up. Prevention is better than cure, after all, and asking doctors questions about certain health concerns can help you nip budding diseases in the bud. Hence, sentiments questioning the insurance and the hospital’s logic have gained traction:
“Is inquiring about fees considered ‘discussion outside of regular examination’?,” jokes amakai
“So are you not supposed to bring up new, non-urgent issues during checkups? O.o” questions kooshipuff
“Another day another moment of comical greed in American healthcare…” suggests Legatus_Aemilianus
