Too Bad I Take Things Seriously-Chapter 495 - 206: You Really Can’t Get Into This Hospital!_4

"Then my money... I can’t get it back?"

After hearing that, Su Yongnian’s expression soured. He looked a bit disheartened. He had worked hard all his life just to save a little bit of money.

But...

Just treating a cold had cost him nearly 1,200.

If he had any minor illness in the future, wouldn’t he just have to wait to die at home?

"The medicine you bought at the pharmacy before was a health product, not a regular medication, so it can’t be covered by health insurance."

Qin Mu looked at Su Yongnian and continued, "Actually, Western medicine can also treat a cold very cheaply, with medication costing very little."

This Han Dongting... Probably for personal gain, he didn’t prescribe the cheap drugs. Rather, he chose to prescribe health product medications. Health product medications only have an auxiliary effect and are not direct treatments. And, health product medications, not supported by health insurance, are not reimbursable.

"Ah?"

Su Yongnian’s eyes widened, and he was momentarily stunned. He muttered, "Do you mean... he did it on purpose, prescribing me expensive medicine?"

Qin Mu nodded. "There are several cold medicines with the national drug approval number that are specifically effective for treating colds and have excellent effects, but he chose to prescribe you a health product that costs 288 per box, which is clearly intentional."

This practice of prescribing expensive medicines for minor ailments happens quite often, especially for the elderly, and it’s becoming more and more common. After all... compared to younger people, the elderly are more blindly trusting of doctors. They don’t question things. The elderly also don’t understand the differences between these medications.

After saying this, Qin Mu paused and then advised, "Actually, based on the prescription records provided by Han Dongting, you can go to the Health and Health Commission to file a complaint, and you should be able to get your money back."

With such cases of prescribing expensive drugs... as long as one has evidence, a complaint is certain to succeed. The money can definitely be reclaimed.

However...

"Prescription slip?" Su Yongnian thought for a while and said with a bitter smile, "When I went to Wanantang to buy the medicine, the owner took the prescription slip that Doctor Han had written, and I don’t have it."

"No slip?"

Qin Mu frowned, feeling even more that these people were thorough in covering their tracks.

The hospital doctor writes a prescription. You buy the medicine at a pharmacy outside the hospital, and the pharmacy takes back the evidence. On top of that, the pharmacy owner advises patients to finish the medicine as soon as possible. Patients, when ill, typically consume all the medicine. In such a case... there’s not even any medicine left over as evidence, no solid proof. The entire process is seamless. Even if patients realize there’s an issue afterward... going to the Health and Health Commission to complain is futile. Patients have no way to prove that the health products were purchased according to the doctor’s orders. The prescriptions written by Han Dongting are likely handwritten and not entered into any computer system. With such methods, it’s almost impossible for there not to be issues. Many patients... can only chalk it up to bad luck.

Thinking this, Qin Mu took a deep breath.

By now, he had almost confirmed that this hospital must be in cahoots with the pharmacy. Or to be precise, the doctors at this hospital were in collusion with the pharmacy. Sanhe Hospital was also a private hospital. It had been open in Jin City for over ten years. It had a considerable reputation. And this pharmacy had only opened three years ago, but its business had always been booming.

In reality, doctors getting kickbacks are just a small part of the entire drug sales rebate chain. A drug goes through a long chain from the factory to the patient’s hands. Pharmaceutical manufacturers, distributors, medical reps, price bureaus, the Health and Health Commission, the Drug Administration, tender offices, drug committees, hospital sales, patients... And when patients buy medicine, they generally follow the doctor’s advice. The operation of a pharmacy is different from other industries. Other industries focus on product quality, reputation, popularity, and the like. But for pharmacies... what matters more are the doctor’s medical advice, prescriptions, and so on. Therefore, many pharmacies, in order to boost sales... often seek out many doctors to "cooperate," asking them to help "promote" certain medicines from their pharmacies. And they offer commissions or kickbacks in return. Otherwise, they would not survive the fierce "market competition."