Tars
02-14-2007, 09:48 PM
Don't know if this topic matters to anyone else here. But I'm very concerned because Sutter Hospital is closing down. I've had experience with all three main hospitals - Kaiser, Sutter, & Memorial. Here's my 1/50th of a buck; take it for what you will.
Kaiser - I was a member for about 8 years. They provided excellent services. But every year there were more and more patients. Finally, the lines at the pharmacy became so long it just wasn't worth it to me. I also became a self-pay patient eventually, and Kaiser was instantly way out of my price range.
I was kicked by a horse a few years ago. I went to Palm Drive (I'll save that place for a different rant), but they sent me by ambulance to Memorial. I stayed there 3 days. It was one of the worst 3 days of my life. They performed unnecessarily redundant services, and services I plain didn't need. I was "seen" by several different doctors for the same malady, and charged by all of them.
Memorial, charged me way WAY too much for what they did. Every time a nurse walked into my room it was $80 - some of my meds were over $80 per pill! Of course they refused to let me use my own medication. 2+ years later I am still contesting their charges. They apparently won't budge an inch, and are now getting into the threatening phase of things. I'll be looking for a lawyer...
Because Memorial was such a horrendous experience for me, a subsequent time when I needed to go into the hospital I went to Sutter. I was hugely impressed by the quality of services there. They were very willing to negotiate charges for medications, which Memorial is not at all willing to do.
My insurance coverage will only cover various services to a very specific amount. I found that Sutter charged almost exactly what my insurance would cover - Memorial is trying to charge me over two times that amount.
I'm afraid now, that if Kaiser and Memorial are the only options available to me in the future, I may not be able to afford to get services which will keep me alive.
Tars
https://www.rpriddle.com/avatar/worried_125.jpg
Kaiser - I was a member for about 8 years. They provided excellent services. But every year there were more and more patients. Finally, the lines at the pharmacy became so long it just wasn't worth it to me. I also became a self-pay patient eventually, and Kaiser was instantly way out of my price range.
I was kicked by a horse a few years ago. I went to Palm Drive (I'll save that place for a different rant), but they sent me by ambulance to Memorial. I stayed there 3 days. It was one of the worst 3 days of my life. They performed unnecessarily redundant services, and services I plain didn't need. I was "seen" by several different doctors for the same malady, and charged by all of them.
Memorial, charged me way WAY too much for what they did. Every time a nurse walked into my room it was $80 - some of my meds were over $80 per pill! Of course they refused to let me use my own medication. 2+ years later I am still contesting their charges. They apparently won't budge an inch, and are now getting into the threatening phase of things. I'll be looking for a lawyer...
Because Memorial was such a horrendous experience for me, a subsequent time when I needed to go into the hospital I went to Sutter. I was hugely impressed by the quality of services there. They were very willing to negotiate charges for medications, which Memorial is not at all willing to do.
My insurance coverage will only cover various services to a very specific amount. I found that Sutter charged almost exactly what my insurance would cover - Memorial is trying to charge me over two times that amount.
I'm afraid now, that if Kaiser and Memorial are the only options available to me in the future, I may not be able to afford to get services which will keep me alive.
Tars
https://www.rpriddle.com/avatar/worried_125.jpg