# Hospital or xray w/o insurance for hand injuries?



## LIIT (Sep 8, 2008)

so i dislocated, possibly broke some fingers and bones in the hand. OTB when my phone jumped outta its pocket into my front wheel while hittin some lil jumps. I've been icing it and taking vitamin I, it's black and blue with a slightly rotated pinky. I don't have insurance. 

Can I goto the hospital now that we have obamacare? Or should i jus ice? I'd like to get an xray on monday out of pocket, but im pretty sure i need treatment.


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## pecsokak (Sep 23, 2010)

tape it to your other fingers around it, or tape it up to a popsicle stick or something. i broke several fingers growing up, and my dad is a doctor and thats what he always said to do. as long as it isn't severely dislocated or hurting like hell you might not need to go in. 

basically unless you think something else might be seriously wrong with it, all an x-ray is going to do is confirm that it is broken and they will put it in a splint. if you ice it some and immobilize it you can achieve the same thing.

if it is at the knuckle though, almost at your hand then you might want to get it checked out. i broke my thumb there once and had to have a cast up to my elbow.

<not a doctor, so take everything i say with a grain of salt and lots of motrin.


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## giantone (Dec 18, 2011)

Get it x-rayed . Would you rather: have to owe $$ or live with a constant reminder that you didn't get it looked at when it could have been fixable?

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2


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## ivanovnv (May 1, 2012)

Obamacare or not, emergency room takes all insurances and nothing. They won't return you for not having insurance, but the people who do have one will have to cover your bill. If you can live with that just go and have it checked.


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## john#21 (May 21, 2012)

Get it looked at, you want it to heal properly.


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## 411898 (Nov 5, 2008)

Absolutely have it looked at whatever the cost. If it's heals wrong, you'll never have full use of that hand again. Is that OK with you?

You have to consider your future here, not just the present.

Good luck, I hope it's nothing serious.


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## LIIT (Sep 8, 2008)

Ok i got it looked at by a hand specialist/surgeon. It was $225 w/ an x-ray. It appears i broke the proximal phalanx bone near the pinky knuckle. 

The joint face is intact, but there are two other pieces broken in there. They want to do an ORIF, open reduction, internal fixation. basically cut it open push those pieces on them and put a metal plate screwed in there. 

The surgeon isn't bad $650, but the hopsital fees threaten to be very pricey. I'm lookin for an outpatient surgical center to get it done at versus the hospital, but I'm having second thoughts on getting any form of surgery due to the invasiveness required, it's my non-dominant left hand pinky finger, and several people have informed me that the total cost will probably be $8000-$15000... 

It doesn't seem worth it...wondering if an displaced phalanx fracture will heal on it's own is my next question to the doc on monday, but i know what he'll say ($$$$-no)... Anyone ignored this and healed up fine? or had problems? pinky is slightly rotated which i hear isn't a big deal compared to the other fingers... I think my main hangup is that I don't want to go into massive debt over a pinky...I just got out of creditcard debt of 7 years of dedicated paydowns....Self-employed, non-insured, making about $45k a year, sole-provider for 3 kids and my wife... 

Insurance plans were running about $450 a month with a $5k to $7k annual deductible. I have not purchased and have been saving my cash (accumulated a $4k healthcare reserve in cash).

I've shown it to others. Couple folks that had been in motorcycle/car accidents say don't mess with it...you'll still have the same issues as if you did nothing, and you'll be financially ruined from the bills...Other folks that are urbanites and have insurance, think i should get surgery because it's "my hand." I correct them and say, "left pinky finger." honey badger don't give a f*$K.


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## bballr4567 (Mar 12, 2006)

It won't heal right due to where you broke it. I see it probably 2-3 times a month as I'm an xray technologist student. The people always say they wish they would of got it fixed because the majority can't close their hand. Pretty brutal. 

Only thing I can say is to get a brace/splint on it to keep it immobile but again where you broke it close to the knuckle makes it hard for it to stay stable to allow for good healing.


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## giantone (Dec 18, 2011)

Financial ruin from an expenditure that costs roughly 1/3 or your annual income? I would choose health seems like a no brainer to me why anyone would consider their $$ more valuable to them than their hand is beyond ridiculous in my book.
(That's my g rated version of the 'are you ****ing serious')
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2


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## LIIT (Sep 8, 2008)

on financial ruin, my friend was speaking of $300k in hospital bills for himself (he's single w/o kids), but $15k out of $45k to a family of five is quite significant. Yes, I choose health, but I don't like unnecessary procedures that will put me into debt, while producing only slightly improved results. I'd rather put that money toward house payments or something my kids need.

My wife has had several broken bones, some treated some left untreated. She thinks it's fine not to bother unless it's life threatening. But then again, who knows what her motives are... 

I'm 50/50, i'd like it fixed, but I'm just gonna have to find something reasonable or it's gonna be RICE treatment w/ the splint they gave me, followed by hand, finger exercises. the swelling is going down and i'm starting to be able to move my fingers a lil more...scheduled for next weds, but i cannot get anyone, and i mean anyone to give me any kind of rough estimate for the costs....The numbers $1k-$20k were what the interweb said...I'm more nervous about the bills than the injury. I just spent a couple of years eating steak only once or twice a YEAR, in order to pay bills. lotsa black eyed peas, cornbread and rice to make things work. I can buy meat more often now and don't want to go back to all the frugality (it makes my wife angry)... holl'r if you broke it and didn't fix it ya'll!!!


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## LIIT (Sep 8, 2008)

2nd opinion monday and 3-d xray, hopefully from a neutral source aka friend.


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## tony477g (Jul 2, 2012)

Hospitals are expensive, I went in for dehydration, vomiting/nausea, fever. I tried going to quickcare but he said he couldnt do anything for me. Went to the ER and came out with a bill of about 9000-12000. Xrays and medicine was all they did to me


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## bballr4567 (Mar 12, 2006)

3D xray? You mean a CT? 

Let us know how it turns out.


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## Shakester (Jun 26, 2012)

Its better to be safe than sorry. If its fractured or broken in any way and it heals wrong, you will feel it for the rest of your life. A long time ago, a friend and I decided to head out and ride in the rain. We were going down this semi-steep single track that was just torn up and muddy. My buddy in front tapped his brakes and lost control and I ended up clipping his rear tire and I ate it bad. Luckily my head didn't hit anything, but my rear did. I ended up just riding it out and for the next few days, just took a bunch of ibuprofen to ease the pain. Finally, I ended up making an appointment with my doctor who then had to refer me to specialist and x-rays. It turned out that I fractured my tailbone. Not that they could of done anything with it but to give me meds and let it heal, but my point is..you never know.


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## LIIT (Sep 8, 2008)

i got a 3d panorex from my dad's office. Everyone in the family is a doctor and has money except me lol, but I got all the chitlins. It's misaligned, guess i didn't set it perfectly in the woods. I've messed it up but my adjacent knuckle stiffness seems to be the most uncomfortable part. 20lbs of ice daily for a week straight now. Seeing a different specialist tmrw. I called the hospital to get some pricing. It's not good. It's $13,204 just for the operating room. Does not include radiologist, anesthesia, doctor, blood testing, hardware, supplies, or post-op. I'm pretty sure final cost is approaching $20-$30k...I'll keep updating... I'm making bone broth in my crockpot-going old school.


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## john#21 (May 21, 2012)

Well you know what it is now, if you are fine with the current mobility of the hand then just let it be. If you plan to keep riding invest in some insurance.


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## Old Ray (Sep 5, 2010)

8-15 GRAND? For a PINKIE? That's disgusting. Totally out of line, but in this country, that's what we have for health care. Too bad you didn't break that while on a vacation anywhere in Europe. (hint-hint).


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## Shakester (Jun 26, 2012)

If you're okay with a crooked pinky, then you can just leave it. I have a buddy that broke his finger and didn't goto the doctor. 15 years later, his finger is still as crooked as Lombard Street in San Francisco, but he's a Chiropractor now and it doesn't bother him one bit.


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## LIIT (Sep 8, 2008)

. If i get money one day and it's bothering me they can fix it or cut it off. Still going to a second opinion, but like my wife says, "If you're gonna be stupid, you gotta be tough."


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## R+P+K (Oct 28, 2009)

Insurance seems like a total waste of money *until* you need it.

Seriously, if you are the sole provider to a family, you owe it to them to be fully covered - even more so if you don't have state-funded healthcare.


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## LIIT (Sep 8, 2008)

Alright some better news from the second opinion (a doctor that my dad's accountant used to work with...) He is a plastic surgeon hand specialist and had much more experience. I paid $150 cash upfront then waited. 

When he looked at the xrays, he felt that I could go a much "cheaper route" with some closed fixation and correction of the finger. He proceeded to inject me with novocaine with a long ass needle between the knuckles. I about grabbed his arm and definately yelled out "mutherhunker" and a couple of other choice words without apprehension due to the pain...Waited 15mins all numb in the pinky and half numb ring finger. He began to work on it. I could'nt watch but after each movement he'd have me make a fist to look at alignment...Jeezus, Mary, and whomever else...

Finally, we're all satisfied after about 5 minutes felt like 15mins of adjusting. 

My arm is in a half cast w. two fingers buddy taped inside and i have to return in 2 weeks and then a few followup hand therapy sessions and prolly final xray. He said if that didnt work, I can always have surgery if i choose. He gave me a generous dose of pain meds and I'm back at home after all this worry. I hope things turn out well...I'll followup with results and final costs.


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## LIIT (Sep 8, 2008)

Update: I survived about a week before the half-cast was driving me nuts cause I sweat so much. I cut the gauze to do cleanup and retape the fingers, a lil ice, then back in the cast that I'd let dry out by the window. Took it off for maybe 30mins in the eve and mornins. I only used the pain meds for a few days and some intermittent nights. 

I went for the followup today, and the prognosis is good. I still have some localized swelling in those fingers, knuckles, palm and limited mobility in those figures. However, I'm using the injured hand (not the pinky tho) to type this message, A milestone 24 days after the injury. He sent me downstairs for a splint to be made and worn for three weeks. No charge from his office!!! I owe this guy, big time!!!

Guys downstairs, splinted me up on an uninsured rate of $99. I gave them a c-note, no change, thanks . I'll revisit doc in 2 weeks for an xray, then maybe one or two hand sessions. 

I ran for the first time the other day, but am really missing any and all forms of training. I'd love to do a pushup or pullup right now, but I can't. So remember that while you sit and read this. Do a couple for me. I'll be coming back from this like a mofo!!!

See ya for my final followup on jul 14th...


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## Striper (Aug 1, 2012)

Good you got it taken care of. I broke my right hand at the 5th metacarpal 3 times in 2007 so be cautious even if you think its healed. My first break was really bad and the bone was sticking up making a huge arch in my hand so I had it set and cast but re-broke the same bone a week after the cast came off snowboarding and another 3 months later falling on it. So after it heals up do what you can to avoid re-injury for a few months at least.


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