So here’s the thing about in-network hospitals: the doctors inside them aren’t necessarily in-network too. Did you know that? Because as it turns out, a lot of people don’t. And it’s costing them dearly.
A study published in November in the New England Journal of Medicine gives us the costly details: a fifth of 2.2 million medical claims from ER visits included treatment by out-of-network doctors. 1 out of 5 claims means lots of patients got a surprise bill in the mail for emergency room care that they thought was covered by insurance.
That’s bad news, considering that an average ER trip costs more than $1200 — more than the average month’s rent. Not the kind of surprise you want to come home to, hmm?
Read more about the study here.
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