The insanity of the American health care system, in one hilarious video

You know what would be horrifying? If air travel worked anything like health care. You don't have to strain to imagine—this video does that for you:

The video isn't new, but it still rings true. It keys in on a lot of issues that plague the American health care system, not the least of which is the mess we call "prices".

In health care, prices exist in something of a black box — the cost for a given service can vary wildly across hospitals. Need a hip replacement? That'll run you $11,000—or maybe $125,000. The reported variation in appendectomy prices is even worse: $1,529 to $182,955.

It's somewhat impressive that those studies were able to report prices at all. A different set of researchers reached out to Philadelphia hospitals to try to get a quote for an electrocardiogram, a super routine heart monitoring procedure. Only three of the 20 hospitals could name prices (which ranged from $127 to $1,200).

But almost all of the hospitals could report the price for parking — a trivial cost, by comparison.

Part of the problem is that hospital "prices" have limited relevance; insurers work to set payment rates with providers that are often far below sticker cost. In exchange, the hospital knows that they'll see patients from that insurer. But these negotiated rates aren't publicly known, which is what makes it challenging to "shop" for health care in any meaningful sense.

Will you support Vox’s explanatory journalism?

Most news outlets make their money through advertising or subscriptions. But when it comes to what we’re trying to do at Vox, there are a couple of big issues with relying on ads and subscriptions to keep the lights on:

First, advertising dollars go up and down with the economy. We often only know a few months out what our advertising revenue will be, which makes it hard to plan ahead.

Second, we’re not in the subscriptions business. Vox is here to help everyone understand the complex issues shaping the world — not just the people who can afford to pay for a subscription. We believe that’s an important part of building a more equal society. And we can’t do that if we have a paywall.

So even though advertising is still our biggest source of revenue, we also seek grants and reader support. (And no matter how our work is funded, we have strict guidelines on editorial independence.)

If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today? Any amount helps.

One-Time Monthly Annual

$5/month

$10/month

$25/month

$50/month

Other

$

Yes, I'll give $5/month

Yes, I'll give $5/month

We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. You can also contribute via