Routing out waste, one pair of crutches at a time
August 12, 2012 in health care costs
My colleague Deb has very active kids and a pile of crutches in her basement. “It drives me crazy,” she’s told me several times, ” the doctors say don’t worry, we’ll just give you a new pair.”
Deb isn’t giving up. She’s starting handing out crutches to anyone who’s going in for surgery and knows they won’t walk out without assistance. She just brought in this pair for a friend’s husband who’s having arthroscopic knee surgery.
I called a couple of hospitals to find out how much Deb is saving the system.
“How much do you bill insurers for a pair of crutches,” I asked. One woman said, “anywhere from $100 to $800, depending on the type of crutches.” Another billing office staffer said, “around $150, I’m not sure.”
So Deb will save the system several thousand dollars if she keeps handing out her gently used crutches. And then, if they get passed along again, well, who knows how much she’ll save. Of course, we can buy our own from the local drug store or the local big box chain for much less than what the hospital charges.
Either way you have to remember to bring the crutches with you when you go under the knife. But maybe this is what getting rid of waste in health care looks like, up close and personal. Hmmm, I wonder if all hospitals let you bring in your own?
Catherine Dooley said on August 14, 2012
If Deb knows there are crutches in her basement – why take a new pair home?
Catherine Dooley said on August 14, 2012
If you know you have crutches at home – don’t bring a new pair home from the hospital!
Martha Bebinger said on August 14, 2012
Hi Catherine – good point. I know in my case, this is easier said than done. The hospital hands my husband or child the crutches, I try to give them back and my child says no, mom, I want the new crutches, the old ones don’t fit, or something like that, and tada – I have another pair in the attic. But we can all keep trying!
Diane Boover said on August 15, 2012
I just say thank you anyone who sees a problem and tries to address it. There is tons of waste of this sort in the medical industry. I told the clinic where we go for health care that we already had crutches and they said that we needed to take the new ones because of some kind of liability issue. They had to be fitted properly etc. I tried to give back wheelchairs, canes, and various supplies and the same thing happens. Maybe we have gotten so afraid of being sued that we are going to burry ourselves in all this junk to avoid it at all costs.