July, Chapter 11: The Cost of Care Summary and Analysis

Hazel Mitchell is Hermann's financial administrator. She decides who gets which resources. This chapter is not merely about the tough decisions she faces but about the simple fact that healthcare is not free. Morality does not want to let us consider costs when it comes to those in extreme need, but in the end we must. Considering the cost is Hazel's unpopular job. Hazel has tabulated Armando's bill to date - $57,020.86, a sum that he cannot hope to repay. Belkin goes onto describe the two other major hospital facilities in Houston. There is a poorer hospital that deals with uninsured patients, Ben Taub, and there is a richer hospital, Methodist Hospital, which is the largest private hospital on the planet. Hermann stands somewhere in-between. Hermann is not publicly funded like Ben...