News & Analysis This Month/Supplement / A $44 million bill for a patient

The hospital cured his pneumonia, but the bill � for an eye-popping $44 million � made him sick.

Unemployed doorman Alexis Rodriguez couldn�t believe his eyes when he opened an envelope from Bronx-Lebanon Hospital last week and saw what he appeared to owe.

�I almost had an asthma attack,� said Rodriguez, 28, just one of several hundred patients to receive absurdly inflated bills because of a �system error.�

His amount due was $44,776,587 for outpatient services that in reality amounted to no more than $300.

Initially, Rodriguez panicked because he had spent three weeks in the hospital with pneumonia in the spring and knew he had to pay part of the $40,000 cost.

But he quickly realized the terrifying invoice couldn�t be right. He called the billing company and found out he wasn�t the only one with sticker shock.

The billing firm, PHY Services, said it was a simple mistake: The subcontractor that prints the bills put the invoice number into the �amount due� field.

�We are sending an apology letter to everyone who received it,� said PHY Services rep Ricardo Paul.

The company has apparently been deluged with complaints. A recording for callers says:

�If you are calling with respect to a billing statement for services provided at Bronx-Lebanon Hospital, please disregard the statement

. You will be receiving a new statement shortly. �

Rodriguez said that even though no harm was done to his bottom line, the sloppiness surprised him.

�It was a big error,� he said.

�I think they should have somebody look over the bills before they send them out.

�I understand manpower may be down, but to send out a lot of bills with numbers that big � someone could have had a heart attack.�

Hospital spokesman Errol Schneer said he didn�t blame Rodriguez for being upset.

�We certainly share any concerns he would have,� he said.

tconnor@nydailynews.com

$44 million bill from Bronx-Lebanon Hospital

'System error' is blamed

James Keivom/New York Daily News