So I was running the other day and an exuberant golden lab jumped in front of me, causing me to take quite a spill. I spent the day wondering if I should go in to get my sore wrist checked out or suck it up.
Well, after a day of typing, it was really sore. So after Mr. Kablog put me through a series of "tests" (thumbs up, loser sign, OK sign), which I totally failed (the thumb up sign had us laughing -- and me crying/laughing -- it was so sad looking) we decided I should definitely go to urgent care.
A doctor visit 6 X-rays and a arm cast/brace thingy set me back $10. Mr. Kablog's job still offers a co-pay, no deductible plan.
But if I had a high deductible health care plan or co-insurance, I would definitely have checked out one of the many web sites popping up that are designed to help you research health care costs.
The first is Healthcarebluebook.com. Type in the procedure you need and your zip code and the nine month old site will spit out what it considers to be a fair price. Fair price is "Healthcare Blue Book's recommended price... based on the average fee that providers in your area accept as payment from an insurance company...You can use this price to negotiate with your provider."
Sites such as changehealthcare.com/, outofpocket.com and myhealthscore.com also come in handy when researching costs.
Minnesota-specific sites for medical price info: www.minnesotahealthinfo.org
The Minnesota Health Care Markets Chartbook is a wealth of info as well.
