The doctor didn’t show, but one family was still charged more than $1,000 for ER visit

Dhaval Bhatt and his wife, Mansi, were hit hard by fees from an emergency room – even though their son was never seen by a doctor.

According to KHN, their 2-year-old son burned his hand on the kitchen stove and the family’s pediatrician told them to head to the hospital. There, the family was directed to the emergency room at SSM Health Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital, and the boy was assessed by a nurse. The family was then told a surgeon would be there shortly.

But that surgeon never arrived, and the family left.

His burn healed quickly without any medical care. Despite leaving before seeing a surgeon, the family was still sent a bill for $1,012 – the biggest portion was $820 for a facility fee.

“My wife did not drive for 45 minutes to get to an ER and wait for an additional 1½ hours for someone to tell me that our child’s vitals — weight, height, temperature and blood pressure — were OK,” Bhatt told KHN. “We already knew that. … It is absolutely ridiculous and unethical.”

SSM Health spokesperson Stephanie Zoller Mueller defended the charge, saying: “A patient does not have to receive additional treatment — procedure, labs, x-rays, etc. — to validate an ED [emergency department] level charge.”

In other words: A hospital can charge a facility fee just because it wants to.

Many people are unaware of these facility fees when they go to an emergency room, and hospitals aren’t often transparent about these costs.

The Bhatt family tried to get the hospital to reduce the charges but the bill was eventually sent to collections. Luckily, after KHN contacted SSM Health, Bhatt’s facility fee was dropped, and the family was left with the remaining balance that covered the nurse’s fee.

How can you keep this happing to you?

First, be aware that emergency rooms are among the most expensive places to get care. If you can’t get into your primary care physician, try urgent care, which is often less expensive.

Once you pass that front desk and head back into the emergency room, you’ll often face a facility fee – regardless of if you see a doctor or not. Have you been surprised by a “facility fee?” Share your stories with Voices for Affordable Health.