Did we have health care back in the 30's and 40's? I had my appendix out in June, 1950, I am not sure how it got paid, I suppose my family paid for it. I don't even know if they had health care insurance then. I remember Blue Cross and Blue Shield, their home office was a rather small building in Columbus, Ohio.
I remember I had an ache in my stomach, my Dad, who was a Doctor, poked me, made a phone call, and took me to the hospital. He wanted a surgeon, Dr. Harry Houston, who Dad had known for man years, to do the operation. He had actually lived at our house for a short time while he was full filling his residency at Miami Valley Hospital, and he and Dad were old friends.
He was a Captain in the Navy, during the war, and was one of the most respected surgeons in the Navy. He worked on some high ranking officers, official and politicians while in the service.
My Dad trusted Harry, with his son.
Harry was a very busy surgeon, he had a tight Monday morning schedule. My pre-surgery preparation, due to the hospital being busy, was done in a large storage room, and my Dad did the prep work, shaving the area, etc. I still remember his shaking hand approaching my abdomen with that Gillette razor. It was different working on your own.
Harry sandwiched me in between operations, removed my appendix, my recovery room was a broom closet, and then I was taken back to my room. I think, then, I was in the hospital for a few days, recovering, which they don't do now.
I was taken home, recuperated a few days, and I remember my Dad taking out my stitches. I was lying on the couch in the living room. He removed them with an old Gillette blue blade and the tweezers out of the bathroom.
"This won't hurt," zip, zip, zip, zip, zip and it was all over.
I imagine today, I would need X-rays, Cat scans, much more sophisticated blood work, two or three specialists, the hospital chaplain would visit me, after I arrived at the hospital, and was driven to the door by the "Courtesy" Van, through all the shrubs and flowers surrounding the building.
I have no idea the cost, but I am sure it was very little, and this was a special case. My guess, a few hundred dollars.
Now, today, an example I found on the Internet, at Stanford Hospital, in 2008, an insurance bill shows: $515 for emergency service, $694 for diagnostics (probably the CT scans), $2486 for anesthesia, $2485 for the actual surgery procedure, and then of course, they put you in a room for at least one day or two, and room & board for that stay cost $41,194.
Now, the do a laproscopic procedure, very short stay. Here is one example I found.
My total bill is $24,417.28 for a routine appendectomy and very short hospital stay.
Technology is great, but comes at a VERY high price.
I wonder why medical costs are so high.
