Three Rivers Hospital

I recently had to go to the hospital to get a fishing hook removed from my finger. It was a barbed hook and rather than try to pull it out myself, I went to the hospital. It was only in past the barb. Well they were not busy that week day morning and took me right in. I sat in a chair, no bed, it was in the tip of my ring finger. This wasn't the first time they had to take a hook out of a hand, and knew how to do it. They first numbed it by poking a needle in it, which hurt more than the hook itself.

So then the Dr. got a needle and went up the shaft of the hook and in less than a minute the hook was out. They then put a bandaid on it and I was done. But the real damage was when I got the bill. ($519.73)

I was in there less than 30 minutes total. How in the world do people pay hospital bills like that?

Fortunately for me, unfortunately I had cancer last year and I have insurance and have already paid my max out of pocket so my insurance paid the bill. But $500 for a simple procedure is highway robbery. Outrageous! I did learn how to take a barbed hook out. So all wasn't lost.

Mike Mauk

Brewster