More Proof That Health Care is A Mess

Differences between highest and lowest bills per region for pacemaker surgery in 2011 $60,000-140,000 $20,000-60,000 $0-20,000 More proof that health care is a mess Average initial bill MOST EXPENSIVE PROCEDURES Average Medicare payment California Nevada New Jersey Colorado Pennsylvania Kansas In nearly three- quarters of states, the procedure with the highest bill was the treatment of severe An uninsured patient would pay the full amount that the Florida South Dakota hospital billed. But the same treatment Texas Alaska Alabama infections that lasted for someone with Arizona more than four days. The average bill in Kansas was $205,000. Medicare would result South Carolina in a much lower final payment-in Kansas, only $47,000. Oklahoma Washington District of Columbia Minnesota Missouri Nebraska Connecticut Louisiana Rhode Island Oregon Mississippi Georgia Illinois New Mexico Ohio Virginia Tennessee Wisconsin Hawaii New Hampshire Indiana Wyoming Kentucky lowa New York NERD BOX Medicare payments are Idaho the total from both the insurance and Arkansas North Carolina the insured patient. Maryland has a different system for claims, so it is not shown here. Medicare's full data Maine Michigan Utah set contains the 130 most common Delaware procedures for more than 3,000 care centers nationwide. Montana Massachusetts North Dakota West Virginia Vermont $250,000 $200,000 $150,000 $100,000 $50,000 $0 $0 $20,000 MEDICARE PROVIDER CHARGE DATA 2011 STORY AND ILLUSTRATION BY Katie Peek INPATIENT OUTPATIENT