Uninsured but Undaunted, a Surgical Patient Searched the Globe for a Deal

An uninsured patient in Maine discovered how drastically hernia surgery prices can vary across the country. Ronmel Rangel, sixty-three, was quoted nearly twenty-three thousand dollars by his local hospital—but KFF Health News reports he found an outpatient surgery center in Maryland charging just twenty-nine hundred dollars for the same procedure. Including travel expenses, Rangel paid roughly forty-seven hundred dollars total. The disparity is stark: his surgeon mentioned another patient who received a thirty-seven thousand dollar quote for an identical inguinal hernia repair. While Rangel's research and willingness to travel saved him tens of thousands, most uninsured patients don't have the time, resources, or medical knowledge to shop the way he did—a burden that falls heaviest on those without coverage.

Listen to this story

Hear this and more stories in a personalized audio briefing.

Open The Chonkerton