70-year-old Covid-19 survivor receives $1.1 million hospital bill
WASHINGTON: A 70-year-old American man who nearly died of Covid-19 has been billed a heart-stopping $1.1 million for his hospital expenses, the Seattle Times reported on Saturday.
Michael Flor was admitted to a hospital in the northwestern city on March 4, and stayed for 62 days-- at one point coming so close to death that nurses held up the phone so his wife and children could say goodbye.
But he recovered and was discharged on May 5 , only to receive a 181-page bill totalling $1,122,501.04, he told the newspaper. That includes: $9,736 per day for the intensive care room, nearly $409,000 for its transformation into a sterile room for 42 days, $82,000 for the use of a ventilator for 29 days, and nearly $100,000 for two days when his prognosis was life-threatening.
Flor is covered by Medicare, a government insurance program for the elderly, and should not have to take out his wallet, according to the Times.
But in a country where health care is among the most expensive in the world, he said he feels “guilty” knowing that taxpayers will bear much of the cost. “It was a million bucks to save my life, and of course I’d say that’s money well-spent ... But I also know I might be the only one saying that,” he told the Times.
A plan adopted by Congress to keep the American economy afloat includes a $100 million budget to compensate hospitals and private insurance companies that treated Covid-19 patients.