Medical Expenses

This is my first major health related event in my life. I didn't really know how much health care cost before this injury.

My hospital stay in Colorado was not a small amount of money.

• $5,484.60 for room and board
• $5,750.44 for drugs
• $431.20 for non-sterile surgical supplies
• $19,000 for sterile surgical supplies
• $11,900 for my fibula implant
• $691.33 for laboratory work
• $633.20 for radiology
• $2,099.35 for my foot and ankle CT scans
• $2,180.54 for full body CT scan
• $15,395.54 for the operating room (they charge by the minute)
• $1,284.10 for general anesthesia (I received a separate anesthesia bill for $2,000)
• $898 for physical therapy
• $323 for physical therapy evaluation
• $488 for occupational therapy
• $329 for occupational therapy evaluation
• $3,397 for the emergency room stay
• $545.14 for "pulmonary function" (I think this is what kept me alive during surgery)
• $2,681.64 for the recovery room stay

This added up to just over $73,500! I was admitted to the hospital in Colorado around 11:45 AM on February 13th and I left around the same time on February 16th. It was about a three day stay.

It just blows me away how the health care industry works.

Fortunately, since hitting a tree on a snowboard is considered an emergency, my insurance covered everything. But what if I didn't have health insurance? I guess I'd still have a floppy foot.