So cataract surgery in one eye cost $14,000

Wow.

I had to call the hospital to confirm the charge was for real.  Mom said it had to be a mistake.  I called the hospital.  It's not a mistake.

$13,185.00 alone just for the "hospital" charge for my non-eventful, routine cataract surgery in one eye.  I didn't even get a multifocal lens.  Add in the other charges, and the total comes to around $14,000.00.

Again, for one eye.

That means that once both eyes are done, the total will be $28,000.00.  For routine cataract surgery.

Our medical system is so screwed up.  I can't wait to go to France and tell my doctors there how much the surgery cost.

Thank God my insurance is picking up most of this.  Though, I'm still paying out of pocket nearly $600 for that eye alone.  Which kind of ticks me off.  I "thought" it was paying 10% of the total bill, and that the total bill would be around $2k to $3k for one eye.  I figured $300 an eye, out of pocket. I didn't figure $600 an eye, so I'm paying $1200 for this surgery out of pocket instead of the $600 I was expecting.  Though it could have been worse - they could have tried to charge me 10% of the hospital bill, which would have been $1400 an eye.

What a mess of a system we have in this country.  What if you have no insurance?

In good news, I got my check up a few days ago and my left eye, post surgery, has 20/20 vision.  For distance.  My near and intermediate vision (meaning, reading and computer and then some) is now skatá as we say in Greek.  But it is pretty cool to wake up and be able to see.  To shower and be able to see.  Even though I now see the world in "cool white" in the operated eye, and "soft white" in the other, due to the old lens having yellowed (it happens to all of us, but we don't notice until we get a new lens and the entire world is far less yellow and far more blue).

Oh, and remember kids, we're number 1.