It's a big enough umbrella, but it's always me that ends up getting wet.

-Sting




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The way that a hospital/HMO bills is not exactly kosher.

When I did the stats for the Operating Room, they billed a surgery based on pre-packaged surgery kits they ordered from a sugery supply company.

There has been a trend to go ahead and to try and pre pack a 'kit' that takes care of most of the trends for a particular surgery.

For example?

An appendectomy surgery kit will contain all the items needed for a "standard" surgery. By packaging all the items into a standard kit, they eliminate the need to pull individual items for that surgery.

In essence it becomes a One-Size-Fits-All kit.

The patient is charged for everything in that kit.

Even if it is not used. There are many things that go into the trash, taken home or stashed for another surgery.

Other times kits are cannibalized for parts and the missing parts are taken off the shelf - to complete the kit - and the patient is charged for a total kit.

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In the 'old days' billing was done on a per item basis, Now billing is done by computer and everytime a hospital stay goes into a data base, the patient is charged based on an average of the items used/given.

The reason? Stocking the items used and stafffing costs.

It's far easier to charge based on an average rather than costing out a stay based on EXACTLY what a patient uses/needs.