Questions you’ve always wanted to ask about your hospital bill

Why a $2 aspirin?

Have you ever wondered why hospitals charge so much for an aspirin? The short answer is you are not just paying for the pill, but the facility and technology, as well as the education and experience of the persons giving it to you. 

For example, The Heart Institute’s dedicated operating suites are backed by a state-of-the-art

Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit (CVICU), staffed by specially trained personnel who provide the highest quality care for the patient and comfort to the patient’s family and friends. 

The Trauma Neurosurgical Unit, staffed by trauma-certified nurses and surgeons, cares for patients around the clock.  “We have worked hard this past year, adding millions of dollars in equipment and physician coverage so that we are primed to become the Treasure Coast’s only Provisional Level II Trauma Center, all for the benefit of the patients we serve,” said CEO Rodney Smith.

The next reason for higher bills is lower reimbursement rates to facilities and physicians. Even the best insurance companies will only reimburse at 40%, while state-run programs are much lower.

Does the hospital benefit from lengthening your hospital stay, thus increasing your bill?

Delivering high quality, appropriate care to our patients is our top priority. While a longer hospitalization results in a higher bill, that is not our focus. Most insurance companies are up-to date with the less invasive surgical treatments and shortened recovery times. For example, while we have the best outcomes for cardiac patients on the Treasure Coast, we also use the least invasive procedures first, to speed your recovery in our hospital and discharge you back to your home environment as quickly as possible.

These include diagnostic services in our Cardiac Catheterization Lab, where interventional procedures such as angioplasty or coronary stent placement are performed. When these approaches will not resolve the problem, the hospital offers open heart surgery services, including coronary artery bypass grafting and valvular repair and replacement. Another minimally invasive procedure, endoscopic vein harvesting, allows the surgeon to obtain veins for bypass through a one-inch incision in the patient’s leg, versus an incision of several inches. This technique results in less pain and scarring and quicker recovery times..

Is it safe to pay my bill online?

Yes. All payment and account information obtained in other areas of our website is encrypted or encoded, securing the information so it can only be read by the intended recipients.  You can pay online at www.lawnwoodmed.com.

Our financial services office number is (772) 468-4494; office hours are from 8:00 am to 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. We hope you use this service to resolve any billing inquiries that you may have.

Are there really that many patients who do not have insurance or do not pay their bills?

Yes! This is the data from 2008-2009 at Lawnwood of the self-paying, or uninsured patients. Below is the cost of business.

Uninsured Trauma Patients                                       22.00%  (since May 1, 2009)

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