*** OFFICIAL *** Colonoscopy Thread

[NickyPipes]

Is this true Nickey about your Pipes?

Colon cancer is rising in young Americans. It’s not clear why.

A report released early this year by the American Cancer Society found that people younger than 55 went from accounting for 11 percent of all colorectal cancer in 1995 to 20 percent in 2019. About 3,750 people younger than 50 will die of colorectal cancer in 2023, according to the report.

Never been healthier other than numerous horrible injuries I obtained in a recent brawl

[Tellafriend]

i highly doubt that. maybe it's state specific, but in Ga the dr is usually going back and forth b/n 4-5 rooms while the nurse aesthesis administers and watches it throughout (supposedly). I, like you, hate this. but no one cares. i know for a fact on my last colonoscopy a nurse administered it. i recently had a major surgery in a major hospital and it was done by a dr.

How do you doubt this?

I saw the doctor administering it both times.

in the hospitals i have been in, it is nearly if not impossible to discern the difference b/n a na and a dr. not saying it didn't happen in your cases, but a colonoscopy is as routine as it gets for them and they would lose money standing over you for the entire procedure, guaranteed. their business model doesn't work that way.

[Texter]

I love the old well the doctor and facility are in network but the anesthesiologist was out of network…that will be $1400.

If you look earlier in the thread, you’ll see I talked my way out of this charge.

You probably can too.

The first time it happened I told them I’d pay $100 or $0….they took the $100.

Next time the doctor told me to call the PPO for balance billing and the insurance covered it…by paying me which I then paid the doctor…wtf?

[Dan Druff]

How do you doubt this?

I saw the doctor administering it both times.

in the hospitals i have been in, it is nearly if not impossible to discern the difference b/n a na and a dr. not saying it didn't happen in your cases, but a colonoscopy is as routine as it gets for them and they would lose money standing over you for the entire procedure, guaranteed. their business model doesn't work that way.

I can't say 100% he didn't walk away and let someone else monitor me, but the guy administering the propofol to put me out was definitely an MD. Same with my previous colonoscopy in a separate facility. Both facilities also guaranteed me that a doctor would be the one doing it and monitoring me.

These colonoscopies usually go quickly (10-20 min), so the doctors can make plenty, as these colonoscopy centers are like mills.

I think the reason the dude was annoyed regarding my 5am bottle of water was that he now had to waste additional time emptying my stomach, when they were already running over an hour late.

[Dan Druff]

If you look earlier in the thread, you’ll see I talked my way out of this charge.

You probably can too.

The first time it happened I told them I’d pay $100 or $0….they took the $100.

Next time the doctor told me to call the PPO for balance billing and the insurance covered it…by paying me which I then paid the doctor…wtf?

Yup, you can often talk the PPO into paying, if you have an individual plan. They are much less flexible with group plans, but for anesthesia, they will sometimes still cover it upon appeal.

Since I've already got my psychological issue exemption covered last time, I'm gonna take that same line when I get the bill this time.

[desertrunner]

Thanks to this thread, I emailed my doctor to do a follow up as I think Druff and I got this procedure done at the same timeframe last time.

[Dan Druff]

Thanks to this thread, I emailed my doctor to do a follow up as I think Druff and I got this procedure done at the same timeframe last time.

If you had no polyps last time, and no family history of colon cancer/polyps, you can go 5-10 years between them.

And once you're old enough, if no polyps have ever been found, you can stop them completely, as the risk of the procedure no longer justifies any possible preventative gain. My mom does not get them anymore for this reason. I am stuck doing them for life.

[Dan Druff]

I got off cheap this time.

Expected a 4-figure bill. They gave me all kinds of crazy figures on the phone last year, but couldn't fully explain them.

When I got there, they collected about $300 from me, for my "expected patient responsibility". I thought to myself that I'd be happy if it ended up just that amount, plus the $65 for the useless initial e-visit (required), plus the $200 for the propofol which I was going to try and fight with insurance to pay.

Anyway, the bills and EOBs came.

Propofol was covered somehow this time, and my portion was $47.

The colonoscopy itself was.... ZERO POINT ZERO.



They cut me a check back for the amount I paid at the appointment.

So it looks like the entire thing cost me $112.

Maybe it's because they found nothing, but who knows? Not going to question it.