RSS FeedGRANTS - As Cibola General Hospital celebrates its 50th Anniversary, politicians in Washington argue over health care reform and many Americans face financial ruin when experiencing a serious medical problem, it is interesting to look back at the charges the hospital billed for various medical procedures when it opened in 1959.
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In 1959 a blood count and urinalysis cost $6, the first pint of a blood transfusion was $12.
The use of a minor surgery room was $15 per use and a major surgery room was $25 per hour, while a delivery room was billed at $18 per use and use of the nursery was $3 per day.
An electrocardiograph set the patient back $10, while a semi-private room cost $19 per day and a private room went for $24 per day.
The original hospital was built for $500,000, a pittance in comparison to the current cost of almost $1 million for any school renovation project undertaken in 2009.
The annual payroll for the hospital in 1959 was $200,000 and annual supply expenses were $60,000.
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