News, Snake-bite victim socked with $55K bill (snakes, look, Florida)

[JD59]

A Maryland woman treated for a snake bite received another shocker: a $55,000 medical bill.

Jules Weiss had stopped to take a photo at an overlook along the George Washington Parkway. On the way back to her car, she felt something bite her.

Snake-bite victim socked with $55K bill

[claudhopper]

Wow, that's absurd. Good thing we've got that Affordable Care Act kicking in , which won't do a damn thing to reduce costs. Open heart surgery costs roughly 36k.
Amputation would have been cheaper.
I understand anti-venom is hard to come by, but if other countries can make it more accessable, why can't the US? Read some of the comments below the article.
Wonder how they knew it was a copperhead.

[PAhippo]

I don't agree with the 'getting soaked' thing. She had the treatment. It wasn't cheap.

and could another country treated her as cheaply? Do other countries even make snake bite antidote?

[NJmmadude]

It was almost definitely an antivenom called 'cro-fab'. I think they have to actually use horses as an intermediate body to produce it.

Very few people die from copperhead bites, but it's not out of the question that she may have lost a limb if not treated.

[claudhopper]

Originally Posted by NJmmadude

It was almost definitely an antivenom called 'cro-fab'. I think they have to actually use horses as an intermediate body to produce it.

Very few people die from copperhead bites, but it's not out of the question that she may have lost a limb if not treated.

Yes I was reading about snakebites. It seems that the majority are warnings, with little to no venom.
The poisonous snakes have eyes like a cat, the harmless have round pupils. The copperheads only bite when they feel threatened. We are increasingly moving into their habitats, which is primarily North America. They are also called a moccassin snake. Only about 7-8 people die from snakebites annually.
We have no choice but to seek immediate medical treatment.

[P47P47]

Originally Posted by claudhopper

The copperheads only bite when they feel threatened. We are increasingly moving into their habitats, which is primarily North America. They are also called a moccassin snake.

If you're referring to a (water) moccasin, that's a cottonmouth, not a copperhead.

[bumpus7]

Originally Posted by claudhopper

The copperheads only bite when they feel threatened. We are increasingly moving into their habitats, which is primarily North America. They are also called a moccassin snake.

A copperhead and a Moccasin are two different snakes
and the real Moccasin is more poisonous.

I know a man who was bit by a pygmy rattlesnake in Florida and it cost over a $100,000
by the time he got out of the hospital and they had to get the serum out of Georgia.


Copperhead Snake
copperhead snake pictures - Yahoo! Image Search Results


Water Moccasin
water moccasin - Yahoo! Image Search Results


pygmy rattlesnake
pygmy rattlesnake - Yahoo! Image Search Results
.

[NJmmadude]

Originally Posted by claudhopper

Yes I was reading about snakebites. It seems that the majority are warnings, with little to no venom.
The poisonous snakes have eyes like a cat, the harmless have round pupils. The copperheads only bite when they feel threatened. We are increasingly moving into their habitats, which is primarily North America. They are also called a moccassin snake. Only about 7-8 people die from snakebites annually.
We have no choice but to seek immediate medical treatment.

The pupil is only elliptical in bright light. If you see one in the shade (they tend to hide in leaf litter) it is not out of the question that you will see rounder pupils.

Also, it is correct that they are sometimes referred to as moccasins, but they are differentiated from the cottonmouth (water moccasin) by the name 'highland moccasin'. These two snakes, the copperhead and cottonmouth, are related. Both are of the genus Agkistrodon. Cottonmouths are A. piscivorous ('fish eater') and copperheads are A. contortrix. The Northern copperhead is Agkistrodon contortrix mokasen, FYI.

[claudhopper]

Thank you NJ, you know your snakes.
This site has some good information, including a repellant they say actually works, while not harming the animal. I am surprised at how common these snakes are, and how many people get bit.

Do not try to kill them as this how most people get bitten.
Copperhead Snake.com

[brokencrayola]

Originally Posted by John1960

A Maryland woman treated for a snake bite received another shocker: a $55,000 medical bill.

Jules Weiss had stopped to take a photo at an overlook along the George Washington Parkway. On the way back to her car, she felt something bite her.

Snake-bite victim socked with $55K bill

Treating an venemous snake bite is very expensive. I don't think most people realize how expensive anti-nevom is and that it often takes many doses before a person begins to get better.