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I ran across this the other day and it got me thinking.
That's a 6 day stay for $130. Granted, in 1947 wages were lower.
www.census.gov
Median household income was $3000/year. That works out to $250/month. Wait, a six day stay for less than 3 week's wages?
In 2020, median household income was about $65,000/year or $5400/month.
www.statista.com
In 2019, the average hospital stay cost about $2150 per day, or 12,900 for 6 days. This would make that hospital visit cost more like 10 weeks wages, which would be a huge increase.
Now, was the above receipt representative of a typical hospital stay in 1947? I have no idea. They probably did a lot fewer tests back then, so maybe.
Has medical care improved since the 1940's? Yes, a lot. We have better equipment and better trained doctors, nurses, technicians and so forth, all of which cost a lot of money. Anecdotally, I had a medical emergency a few years ago. My cardiologist told me that if this had happened 5 years earlier, there is no possible way I'd have made it because the equipment and training used in my surgery didn't exist. The hospital stay was 5 days and cost over a quarter million dollars.
So costs have increased, but lives are being saved. Is the benefit worth it? Probably, but with these huge increases in spending come many, perhaps very tempting, opportunities for graft. I don't see how an aspirin cost more per pill at a hospital than a whole bottle of them does at a store.
I know that there are some new price transparency rules, and I think that's a good start, but what else can be done? I for one think that allowing people to buy insurance across state lines would be a great step, but I haven't even looked into the details.
edit: added sources
That's a 6 day stay for $130. Granted, in 1947 wages were lower.
Income of Families and Persons in the United States: 1947
Distribution of families and individuals, by total money income for the United States, urban and rural.
www.census.gov
Median household income was $3000/year. That works out to $250/month. Wait, a six day stay for less than 3 week's wages?
In 2020, median household income was about $65,000/year or $5400/month.
Inpatient day hospital costs in the U.S. by type 2019 | Statista
In 2019, the average cost of an inpatient day at nonprofit hospitals was 2,738 dollars, compared to 2,149 dollars at a for-profit hospital.
www.statista.com
In 2019, the average hospital stay cost about $2150 per day, or 12,900 for 6 days. This would make that hospital visit cost more like 10 weeks wages, which would be a huge increase.
Now, was the above receipt representative of a typical hospital stay in 1947? I have no idea. They probably did a lot fewer tests back then, so maybe.
Has medical care improved since the 1940's? Yes, a lot. We have better equipment and better trained doctors, nurses, technicians and so forth, all of which cost a lot of money. Anecdotally, I had a medical emergency a few years ago. My cardiologist told me that if this had happened 5 years earlier, there is no possible way I'd have made it because the equipment and training used in my surgery didn't exist. The hospital stay was 5 days and cost over a quarter million dollars.
So costs have increased, but lives are being saved. Is the benefit worth it? Probably, but with these huge increases in spending come many, perhaps very tempting, opportunities for graft. I don't see how an aspirin cost more per pill at a hospital than a whole bottle of them does at a store.
I know that there are some new price transparency rules, and I think that's a good start, but what else can be done? I for one think that allowing people to buy insurance across state lines would be a great step, but I haven't even looked into the details.
edit: added sources
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