The Twitter post has received more than 486,000 likes and thousands of comments.
An American woman recently told that her sister was charged $40 (almost Rs 3,100) “for crying” at a doctor’s appointment.
Camille Johnson, who is a popular YouTube and internet personality, shared on Twitter a photo of her sister’s medical bill highlighting part of the bill her sibling had docked for a “brief emotional/behavioral assessment”. In the following tweet, she explained that her sister has a “rare illness” and “got emotional because she feels frustrated and helpless” as she struggles to find care.
My little sister has been struggling with a health problem lately and finally got to see a doctor. They charged her $40 for crying. pic.twitter.com/fbvOWDzBQM
— Camille Johnson (@OffbeatLook) May 17, 2022
The itemized medical bill revealed that Mrs. Johnson’s sister had visited the doctor in January for her condition. The various costs of the doctor’s visit include a $20 visual assessment test, a $15 hemoglobin test, a $30 capillary blood draw, and a preventive health screening that cost $350. What caught Ms. Johnson’s attention, however, was the $40 amount for “crying.”
In a Twitter thread, the 25-year-old wrote: “One tear and they charged her $40 without addressing why she’s crying, trying to help, doing an evaluation, a prescription, nothing.”
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Since the photo was shared, it has gone viral with over 486,000 likes and thousands of comments. Internet users shared their own experiences with excessive medical bills, while others offered tips and advice on how to negotiate hospital bills.
“When I had surgery to remove a tumor last June, I asked them what ‘Women’s services’ were for. It was for the pregnancy test they ran,” one person wrote, adding: “$1,902 to pee and to dip a stick in it. Luckily most of it was covered by insurance, but gosh”. “Tell me you live in America without telling me you live in America,” replied another person.
According to the IndependentA brief emotional/behavioral assessment is a mental health screening that tests for signs of ADHD, depression, anxiety, suicide risk, or substance abuse. It is usually issued as a questionnaire that is handed out and completed before going to the doctor.
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However, Ms Johnson told the media that her sibling has never been evaluated. She reportedly claimed that the doctor at the unnamed medical facility noticed her sister’s tears but said nothing. Ms Johnson revealed that the health center was not evaluating her sister for depression or other mental illness. Her sibling didn’t even talk to a specialist, wasn’t referred to anyone, and she wasn’t prescribed anything.
The 25-year-old said her younger sister was fortunately covered by her father’s insurance plan, which helped pay for medical services. Now Ms. Johnson hopes that sharing her sister’s medical bill online can help change how the US health care system treats others.
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