The Cost of Cancer

Catching up on the financial aspect of this ordeal.  I only got the BCBS summaries for the 2nd surgery a couple of weeks ago; maybe Brigham & Women's is a lot slower with their billing than Mount Auburn.  I tried categorizing all the service costs on the summaries I have gotten so far.  Some of the service descriptions are vague, e.g. "Clinic."  Good enough to give an idea though.  Here's where we stand as of the last summary I received, dated 10/9:

Clinic/Consultation   1,076.00
Emergency Room    1,949.00
Inpatient                 6,687.34
Labs/Scans           22,257.00
Medical Supplies        591.03 (these are specific to my ostomy)
Surgery                16,516.50

TOTAL                49,076.87

Tests are apparently wicked expensive.  If I weren't reading Mr. Brill's book, I would have been surprised they were the highest cost (but I am, so I'm not).  Otherwise, we've spent just under $800 out of pocket on things related to the above - copays, prescriptions, parking, and meals while at the hospital or during treatment.  Only the copays are included in that 49K total and there haven't been that many of them, maybe $100 worth.  Have I mentioned how fortunate I am to have amazing health insurance coverage?

I'm wondering what the cost of chemo is specifically, but haven't seen that treatment listed yet.  Dana-Farber could be even slower than BWH with their billing.  If that gets backed up anything like their laboratory does, it could be months!

Tomorrow begins the third round.  Having a relaxing Sunday to prepare.