The hospital stay was about $700 USD. This included only one night (labor began late, she pushed, baby was born early). Mrs. Wolf went home the next day. We were poor, she was young, we relied on everyone's sturdy constitution. Everyone did wonderfully.
I received the bill and paid about $35/month until the hospital was paid for. I am sure we took the baby to the doctor as well, probably at six weeks and one a year there after. (Some of the details may be wrong - it was over 40 years ago...)
Mrs. Wolf knew what she was doing - she was a clever girl. Trained by women who grew up in wooden shacks in the south and had to "make do" with nothing when raising kids. These women had a sharp eye for things that were actual problems versus BS - and I learned to listen.
The inflation calculator says that $700 USD is now the same as about $2,900 USD - the same as the cost of a fancy gaming PC or Apple laptop. Today that same hospital visit would cost around $30,000 USD - the price of a decent new car.
I was reminded of this when I came across this article about how "modern" kids are put "at risk" by foolish old grandparents "Study: Grandparents’ old-school parenting putting kids at risk."
How interesting...
Since the 1970's medical costs have increased ten-fold over inflation. We are now 35th in the world in terms of health care. We are obese. We have tens of thousands of opioid deaths a year (using 80% of the worlds supply). We take too many pills for everything, we take pills to address the symptoms of pills. There are millions of children on "anti-psychotics" and ADHD medications (see this). We are the least efficient at delivering healthcare in the industrialized world (see this).
When something like vaping comes along to help people stop smoking we kill it off.
We are failures.
Complete and total failures.
So what about this article?
God forbid grandma should just leave the kids cut knee uncovered (without a "bandaid").
The NY Times agrees with grandma (see this).
Far fewer of us were overweight when old school "healthcare," i.e., "none," was in effect. I remember my friend Steve taking off his surgical wrapping off his hand in school to show us how his tendons worked (you could see them moving). No one died. No one cared. We still went out for recess. A bottle of iodine, a few other things in the "medicine cabinet" you you became an adult without a hospital trip save for the occasional broken arm.
There was charity.
People were also realistic: "don't be stupid in the first place."
Today poor Steven would be on opioids and in a clean room.
Grandma figured if you didn't poke your eye out you'd do all right. Had a high fever? Into the tub you went with a "cool bath" - not ice water. If you were dumb, the world would teach you. Grandma would just smile...
Today we live longer but are less healthy by far.
Grandma and grandpa lived better in later years before - and it was okay to die when it was time. Family helped out. You were sad but grandma was old.
Today grandma is on dope. Three OC-80's a day and at the rehab if needed.
No, the idiotic "healthcare" model is putting everyone at risk - most of all grandma and "the kids."
The kiddies grandma lets run loose around will be healthier because of her.
It's only a "cult of ignorance" that makes us dumber. After all, "doctors" went to college - makes them smarter than us, right? They know everything...
(Remember only 1 in 20 medical studies are actually accurate - the rest "fake news...")
The real "cult of ignorance" are the buffoons who believe that US "education" is actually helping the country do anything but become more stupid each day.
Without critical thinking people believe the BS put out by the modern "media" - who for the most part cannot add, subtract or create an original thought.
But at least they know what lever to pull in the voting booth so we're all good.
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