Olivia's Pediatrician Appt (August 20)

Here are the stats from Olivia's last pediatrician appointment (August 20)

Height -- 33 inches (75th percentile)
Weight -- 23 lbs 4 oz (20th percentile)
Head circumference -- 47.5 cm (75th percentile)

I'm not really sure why there are so many pediatrician appointments in the first two years. When I once tried to schedule a late well visit, the receptionist told me that if insurance did not cover the appointment, the cost would be around 500 or 600 dollars. While I know that insurance companies pay a negotiated rate, that still seems high to me. I'm assuming that each of the various tests that they give (e.g., the yes/no questionnaire of brain and physical development) are each around a hundred bucks. Couldn't my insurance company just arrange that I take the test online for $10?

Hmmm.. there are many reasons why healthcare in this country is so expensive (and so inaccessible to those who don't have insurance.) While I haven't done enough reading to have a guess as to whether reform will actually work without a large federal subsidy, I admire our president for taking it on. I also don't have much background on how the reform proposals intend to address some of the misaligned incentives in health care utilization, provision, and management in this country, but I am excited that someone has touched the third rail and gotten the discussion going.