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by ksl » Tue, 14 Apr 2009 4:27 pm
Well I can finally explain what could have happened!
I was admitted early monday morning with chest pain, yesterday that is.
We discussed the fee for an angiogram which was around 5K, so I agreed, although today on discharge the bill was 8500$ I wasn't shocked, because of this posters post, although i wanted a full explanation in detail, after 20 minutes of discussion I finally received a detailed bill.
I have to agree that it is very misleading of consultants not to include possible extra charges, when making a quote, and also the quotations given, which i had before accepting the operation, is misleading.
Hidden under the term consumables is a list which if you ask for the detailed bill, it will show clearly these extra items. My extra item was 4200$
Shocked because i didn't have a stent or a ballon put in, I decided to query the bill, this special wire was a pressure wire, they used to measure resistant at the point of narrowing, my argument is that, that should be standard procedure of a angiogram, although it is not...
Anyway I didn't require a balloon or a stent and have been told that i do not have to pay the full bill, until i am happy with getting an explanation from the consultant.
I found the hospital staff very helpful, and cooperative, and suggested with billing that they need to be more clear of likely extras, in a quotation, as i also felt it was terribly misleading.
True enough it was right, they had used this item, so now i will take it up with the consultant on why it wasn't clearly pointed out to me, and only the ballon or stent was.
It's certainly a blow, if one has no medical insurance, which i do not, not because I haven't tried to purchase it, but because you have to declare your past illnesses for it to be valid.
Insurance for myself is 3 times the normal rate so at 3k pounds a years normal its 9k for me, although it is just money, and my life was at stake, I could still have got to Taiwan and paid half the price, because i had already been once to Taiwan and stayed overnight at the hospital.
I decided simply on the consultant saying, that it was vital for the angiogram to be done, and i could have the stent done elsewhere, and the fee was 4.5k, totally misleading from a true estimate of the minimum price of an angiogram, which would have included the consumer item has a minimum with a stent or a ballon being also additional.
It does state on the estimate, that the estimate may not be complete, and other charges may be included. Like consumer items, which are not listed.
Like i say i was prepared for the bill to be doubled, for me it was a matter of life and death, so it was a cheap alternative in the end.
So we have all learnt something, when you get an estimate go through all the small print with a fine tooth comb. Ask the consultants for a detailed minimum fee and the maximum it could be, and shoot for the middle figure.
I would also like to point out, the service was very good, and the facilities room too was excellent. Conclusion customer care needs improving, they will lose expat clients based on their practice. Room price was 450$ a day thank god i was only there 1 day.
! You should check it out! Good luck!