Reading it's $20-80k to treat one snake bite, is this true?

Anyone here been bit and care to disclose some real numbers?

My dad got hit by a copperhead about 4 years ago and it was around 100 k with 2 days hospital stay. $7500 a antivenom dose and he had 11 doses.

A buddy of mine got hit by a copperhead last year. Cost $20k a round for anti-venom. He took 3 rounds, insurance covered the first two.

Wow...that is terrible

My wife got bit by a juvenile copperhead, which is the worst bite as they haven't learned yet when to let go. Extremely painful and dangerous. Within 3 hours her swelling went from her hand all the way to her shoulder. Took 6 shots of morphine to dull the pain. 4 vials of antivenin at 9500 each vial. 2 day hospital stay and fortunately didn't lose her hand or arm. Bill was $44,000 insurance paid it all except for $2000 deductible. My company has a program that further reimburses everything over $500, so we got a check for $1500. All said and done it cost us $500, instead of 44000$

A guy I worked with in '92 was bitten in Odessa. He picked up a rattlesnake and started playing with it when it crawled into the machine shop. Back then it cost the boss $30K. He didn't lose his arm but was fired after he got out of the hospital. The owner told the dambass he was too stupid to work for his company.

Hope to never find out!

Price per vial varies anywhere from $4,000 - $7,000. You essentially will continue to get a dose until symptoms start to resolve. That can be anywhere from 10 to 50+ vials. All bites respond differently and each human responds differently to the anti-venom. That's just for the price of the anti-venom. You still have to add in the price of the hospital stay, staff care, possible fasciotomies to relieve pressure in extremities. It adds up real quick.

Do most hospitals keep anti venom?

I was bit last Thursday luckily it was a dry bite. I still went to the emergency room because it turned red really quick and started to spread out from bite mark. They tested blood and held me for four hours to make sure. But it sounds like if venom is injection you're bit twice. Once by snake and then by hospital.


Got me some snake boots after this little mishap. Be safe!

I called hospital first before heading in.

Most regional and county hospitals where there are problems with snakes will carry it (i.e. central, West Texas, probably East Tx for that matter though I don't know). Also all major level 1 or large academic centers in big cities will carry it as well because these are higher level of care centers where very critical or difficultly treated patients will get transferred to.

I might go the way my grandfather did in 1950. He got bit on the big toe by a rattlesnake and they just took the toe off.!

Medical personnel suggest it can easily cost over $200,000 now and if the victim happens to be allergic to the antivenom it can double instantly. I'm sure every situation will warrant different charges.

A lot of the cost is product liability. People get bit and are given the anti venom and don't make it. So the relatives sue.
In Mexico anti scorpion is free (at least it used to be), here it is thousands of dollars a hit because of possible lawsuits.

M

Here is an article that delves into the issue. The conclusion is the manufacturers and hospitals mark it way up, so they can give health insurers discounts at the end. The other difference is in Mexico, the government places a large order and distributes it widely through the country, reducing the cost per person. In the US system, all of the costs is borne by a couple thousand individuals as patients.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk...th-14-medicine/

Wow jeffbird and good article, thanks. I love how the US healthcare system works. I'm moving to Mexico

Agree, great article.

nice article

neighbor got bit by a copperhead 3 months ago. i saw the bill. 177,000!!!

My wife is a veterinarian and is commuting to a facility in DFW area working part time there. Here in TN we have bites but obviously not nearly as many as in TX. The anti-venon is not nearly as expensive as what the hospital costs may imply. Here we buy it 12 doses at a time and it is very affordable. Same formulation as the human side btw.

That's true of many drugs, but good luck getting the vet to give it to a human.

I do have to confess to self medicating a couple of times with animal drugs. It worked as intended with no adverse effects, but I wouldn't recommend anyone try it.

That's crazy, never knew it was so expensive.

My friend stepped on one and got hit several times before he could react. We were in the mountains and he had to get a chopper ride to Grand Junction and spent over a week in the hospital and then weeks of PT to regain his calf muscle. I don't know what his final bills were, but well north of 100k.