We have about 35% more beds than we need at an average cost per bed per day of $10,000.

Well, the big problem is the 10K.
I had a less than 1 hour out-patient cancer surgery and my cost to the hospital was $29,789 and some-odd cents.
The doctors fee was only $995.00
The problem, as usual, is the governments involvement in medical care. THEY set the prices for everything that is charged from a single dose of aspirin to open-heart surgery.
The same pharmaceutical companies that gave us Covid vaxxes that don't work and end up putting people in those hospitals? Fools gold

How much did your insurance company actually pay? Unless you received your care at a government hospital, they did not set the prices. The "unit dose," billing system you refer to came from the insurance companies' accounting systems, not some government bean counter.

The pharmaceutical companies are part of the free enterprise system. They developed a cure for Hepatitis-C that will save millions of dollars of healthcare costs per patient over their lifetimes. Similar drugs are also showing promise for cancer, etc.

News flash... Big Pharma is in it to make money... not cure people...

News flash: They make money by developing cost saving drugs. The drugs for Hepatitis C, actually cure the disease, for less than a year's health maintenance costs. And they eliminate the million dollar-plus costs of liver transplants for many patients.

out of pocket...i didn't have insurance

Out of pocket? Most systems discount their costs for "out of pocket," customers. Have you paid the bill? If not, there are companies that will negotiate reductions in your bill for you. Nobody but fools pay full price for medical care.

yes...that WAS with the discount, Larry

First, I am sorry that you were that ill. I hope the surgery was successful. I am sure that you can easily afford to pay your bill. Most of the rest of us have some sort of health insurance to mitigate the impact of those kinds of costs.

Dont bother. "Reality of things" is lost to some.

I worked for the largest healthcare system in the US, the VA, for 30-years. I was a health care manager at a UCLA affiliated VA medical center. I was the Western Regional Director for Public Affairs for a number of years. VA is affiliated with the top 100 university medical centers in America and employs thousands of our country's top medical researchers. But these Trolls for the Tangerine Traitors "instinctively," know more than me on the subject.

🙄You were/are a part of the problem.

My first job in healthcare was part of a study to decrease costs by better using doctors' time. I graduated to being an Administrative Officer of the Day, (night manager) where we had to make do with whatever we had until the day shift took over. That led me to be one of the early "Utilization Review Coordinators." That is another cost containment job. I have always looked for a better, and more often than not cheaper, way to do things.

We are always going to need care. Health care employees are more likely than others to defend doing things as they have always done them. That attitude starts with practitioners and spreads to others. If you knew how long it took us to do away with the "routine admission chest X-Ray in the 1970s, you might understand. In the early 1950's the Routine Chest X-Ray caught undiagnosed T.B. But, by the mid-1970s that was no longer the case. We had to convince doctors that the low level of radiation they were unnecessarily exposing their patients to for no diagnostic data, was doing harm.

Inertia is the enemy.

Once again, they dont read. If they do, they have already formulated that you are a liar!

I dont know how they get out of bed everyday.

Yes, that's why Big Pharma gouges Americans...

"Big Pharma," is private industry and free enterprise. That is what America is all about. That's why these drugs are developed here. Most EU countries have laws preventing drug companies from recouping development costs from consumers. Thank your friends in Europe for passing these costs on to you.

Canada does not allow its citizens to sue Drug Companies. Malpractice insurance and the costs of ambulance chasing law firms suing everything that moves add to the costs of medications to all of us. Hold people responsible for the harm done by their products, if they knew about them and did not tell us. But, after the FDA and other serious scientists have examined everything that they could and concluded that the benefit of a drug outweighs known risks, it is safe to conclude that the companies are not out to do us harm.

The US, like most countries, recognizes exclusive patent rights of seven years for new drugs. In the US, the seven years start with the application and before clinical trials (which can take years).
That means US companies have fewer years to recoup the costs of developing better drugs. Having a full seven years, starting from when the drug is approved, could reduce costs. I would have a system where generic drugs are free to the consumer, over Brand Name Drugs that provide the same effect. Insurance companies should be required to pay the full cost of such drugs, with no co-pay.

I am a 74-year-old under-utilizer of health care. I can afford the $10 a month co-pay for the one Thyroid drug I take. I pay almost $200-per month for my group health insurance from my former employer. I see a Physician Assistant, once a year. I do not make enough money with my retirement pay and Social Security to afford many of the drugs others take in order to not die. I will not burden my family or friends if and when I have to face a choice. I suspect, I am not alone in that sentiment.

Fun fact... health care under Trump was cheaper for me than it is now... We know who gets donations from Big Pharma and it wasn't Trump...

Fun fact...Because of the pandemic, most routine healthcare procedures were cancelled in many markets. Reduced demand and a stable supply, usually holds down costs. Healthcare demand has resumed pre-pandemic levels. Healthcare has seen similar reductions in employees as other sectors report. Increased demand for decreased level of services available will usually result in higher costs. This is Capitalism. It is the second worst economic system there is. All other systems are tied for worst.

Fun fact... I know what I paid... so you're full of it...

You are an outlier. Lets hear about your costs...