Really???

I took Tinker to her pediatrician a month or so ago for what I thought might be croup. The visit itself run me about $75. Not bad, right? For the peace of mind that your child is getting the oxygen they need, probably not going to die and that somebody besides you has diagnosed your child with a fairly routine ailment, I think it's ok.  Except this...

A few weeks later (after the bill had been paid), I get another bill from the pediatrician. It's for $14.73, an odd amount especially considering the visit bill had already been paid in full.  I call the accounting department and they tell me that that all of the charges hadn't been submitted when the bill was paid and that the $14.73 was the charge for using the pulse oximeter.  Do you know what this is? It's that little thing they put on your finger that tells you your oxygen saturation.  True, this is not a reading I can get at home since the pulse ox I use for work is for adults but this is my gripe...

The doctor sees patients...
I see patients...

The doctor charges per visit...
I charge per visit...

The doctor monitors vital signs...
I monitor vital signs...

The doctor routinely uses a pulse oximiter on her patients...
I routinely use a pulse oximiter on my patients...

The doctor charges for each use of the pulse oximeter...
I consider it part of the visit fee to use the pulse oximiter...

Why didn't they charge me for using the thermometer, the stethescope and every other object they utilized during the visit? Why just for the pulse ox?  It is just another device to measure vital signs!

I am so irritated about this that I actually laughed when the billing creature told me what it was for.  Wow, I thought. Now that's really getting down to the nitty gritty.  Am I going to be charged for the lollipop next?

I sound like my dad. Frickin' doctors.