I wore an ankle boot for 6 weeks, and so I wasn’t about to undergo surgery without seeing if it had done me any good. I had my second CT scan yesterday. It’s really quite an amazing process. You spend 20 minutes in the waiting room, fill out paper for 10 minutes, then go back to the on-deck circle for 10 more minutes. Then they bring you into the room, put you on the table, and then align you and scan you in less than 3 minutes.

While an MRI is the gold standard for soft-tissue imaging, CT is the gold standard for bones. A fracture like mine, that is almost invisible on an X-ray (the first doc didn’t see it on the first four X-rays, the second caught it on the 7th or 8th) is clear as day on a CT. I didn’t have doubts about going in on Friday, but if I did, the CT was clear enough: I’m not getting better.

So obviously this technology is pretty cool, but not everyone gets to have it. The actual scan I had was complete in about 45 seconds. If you walk in off the street, the going rate is about $1500. If you have any insurance that is in network — including the terrible “open access” HRA I have — the in-network discount is about $1200, which brings the cost down to under $300. Even if I pay out of my own pocket (which I will probably have to, but many people don’t) it’s quite affordable. Now, if you’re a poor person without insurance, at $1500 the cost is 5 times higher. This is a diagnostic, often preventative measure. Who decided that people that can’t afford insurance should have to pay more for the same service?

I asked all the questions, did my reading, called surgeon friends in Tennessee, Oregon, and even phoned Boulder Sports Med in Colorado. I’ve done my homework and I am confident I have the best person to perform the operation. 

I was really lucky to have access to the doctors I’ve seen. I saw 3 of the best ankle surgeons in Georgia before picking one I liked. I also saw the  podiatrist who sees most of the Atlanta Falcons and is a local legend and hero in the cycling and running communities.

I will no doubt face a lot of out-of-pocket expenses, but since I can a la carte several items, such as the hospital, I can choose an in-network facility and an out-of-network surgeon. Maximum choice mixed with cost-savings. My corporate insurance is the only reason I’ve had this level of choice and affordability. Most Americans aren’t this lucky.