A $3,000 Bill for Bronchitis Is Possible If You Walk Into the Wrong Facility

Your child has bronchitis and you can't get in touch with your family doctor. So you take your child to what you think is an urgent care center for a quick diagnosis and hopefully a prescription to ease the pain.Prepare for sticker shock if that center turns out to be a standalone emergency care room. You might be looking at a $3,000 bill for out-of-network emergency room services that otherwise might cost less than $200 at an urgent care center. That's right, bills for common problems like coughs, sore throats and fevers can cost 10 times more than you would expect. And you're on the hook for it when your insurance company balks at paying the outlandish bill.  Continue reading...