Planning on dropping Health Insurance. Change my mind.

[thepumpguysc]

OH.. I got a bill for 16.00 yesterday for a Dr. to "read" the xray.. lol

 

[Turbys_1700]

My neighbors wife is in that situation and I think she pays $1300 a month. Are you going to work past 62 to keep insurance?

Fortunately my insurance is covered through by the State Employees Health Care Plan.

 

[Streetcar]

OH.. I got a bill for 16.00 yesterday for a Dr. to "read" the xray.. lol

My favorite crazy bill was from a couple years ago, I was billed for a second doctor to read X-ray. Charge was eventually down when office could not give me reason second reading was necessary

 

[John White]

For 40 years I worked with no insurance. (hazardous occupation, owned my own business.) I had a few incidents, just paid them out of my pocket. If I had insurance ( a bad gamble) I would not have had money to eat or make my monthly mortgage. I was always healthy but sometimes required a visit to the doctor to get stitched up. Just bit the bullet and paid. When I was 45 I got involved in flying ultralight planes. I had a crash, broke two vertebrates , couple of ribs, damaged my spleen. I was in bad shape. No insurance, and I knew I would loose my house and shop, and equipment, and no means to make a living. I couldn't even stand up. Doctors wanted to fuse my spine back together. The doctor came and gave me a sad review and said I might be paralyzed if they didn't do it, as I had serious internal injuries also. I explained my situation and told him I had no insurance and could not allow them to do anything with me and to dismiss me from the hospital. We had a long discussion about it. Finally he agreed to fit me with a back brace, tape me up, gave me a pair of crutches and said if I could hobble out I could go and I called a employee and had him come and take me home (after three days in hospital) in the back of my pickup. Back then (1984) a 3 day stay was about $1500. Finally got bill paid off. Long road to recovery. Was able to keep my shop and business. Then when I was 62 I got prostate cancer, the V.A took care of that. Then at 65 I got Medicare. I chose a private insurance to take the place of medicare after about a year. They only insured non smokers, and non alcohol and healthy. Around 2006 I begin to get sick, went to 4 different doctors and VA doctors also. I was constantly coughing and something going on in my body, even spent time in hospital. I kept getting worse, got one morning and I knew my body was shutting down, wife said she was going to take me to the Cleveland clinic. We got into a argument and said you just don't walk into the Cleveland clinic without a referral and appointment. She wheeled me into the emergency room. In two hours they did some tests and said I had a very serious disease and my body was shutting down and said I might not make it. They said I had "Churg Straus" They admitted me and treated my aggressively. I was in the hospital for 12 days and the bill was $90,000 (permanent damage to kidneys and feelings in legs) My insurance paid every dime. Wasn't too long and the govt. would not let them insure any one any more because the choose who they wanted to insure. Can't say enough good things about them and Cleve. clinic. I have served my country, paid my taxes, raised my kids to be productive citizens. And at the drop of a hat, something can happen and they will bankrupt you. A friend I know got Hep. C, using drugs. Just quit his $60k a year job and went on the dole. Cost 0ver $500.00 to treat him. Life just isn't fair sometimes.

 

[D2Cat]

I'm guessing you put the decimal point in the wrong place?

 

[John White]

Yes. Should be $500,000

 

[Travelover]

.......... A friend I know got Hep. C, using drugs. Just quit his $60k a year job and went on the dole. Cost over $500,000 to treat him. Life just isn't fair sometimes.

The worst part of this is that the government (us) pays these enormous drug prices to cure Hep C, and people turn around an get reinfected using drugs.

 

[John White]

Yes. He has better health care than I do. He gets dental work, glasses, food stamps, rent paid, never paid his child support, or hospital cost for him. There is a solution to that but I can't print it here. I am 78 years and have worked since I was 12. Started selling wood and delivering the Grit newspaper. (if any one is old enough to remember) and still go to work every day. Some time ago some homeless kid (28 or so) needed money. I told him I wouldn't give him any money but would buy him $25 in groceries if he helped me for a hour. He would show up every once in a awhile and he would help me for about a hour. I would buy him $25 in groceries. Got to talking to him. His father, fathered 18 kids, all were on welfare or homeless. Guess who pays their medical bills?

 

[KubotainNH]

I see this first hand, relative in her mid forties maybe worked a full 5 or 10 years of her life. On the dole, her BF died of an OD but didn't stop her any. The focus is just off too many times.

 

[ultrarunner]

There are really two camps... those well insured and those with nothing who are also well covered... it is the middle that has the most to lose... I have seen it over and over again... both managing low income rentals and working at the Hospital.

The daughter of my 31 year old tenant gave birth prematurely to a son with heart defects... intensive care for many months and many surgeries over the years... the Mom was 15 at the time... and my tenant a Grandmother at 31.

That child received the finest care at Stanford Hospital and each time the family was put up at no cost at the Ronald McDonald House.... care like this today would run millions...

At the time... it was said he received a million dollars in medical care... the young man is now 24 and doing great...

2/3 of our surgical cases are some form of Government Insurance... either Medicare, County, etc...

The real question is what do you have to lose...

 

[MossRoad]

As I mentioned before, my mother-in-laws liver was something like $900,000 after all was said and done. She paid $1500 out of pocket!

 

[goeduck]

As I mentioned before, my mother-in-laws liver was something like $900,000 after all was said and done. She paid $1500 out of pocket!

Was the $900,000 the total invoiced? If so, do you recall what insurance actually paid? The first $450,000 invoiced for my wifes cancer was settled up with insurance for around $120,000, about a quarter of the total. We paid $1700. Without insurance they would not be settling with me for 25 cents on the dollar, you can bet that.

 

[MossRoad]

Was the $900,000 the total invoiced? If so, do you recall what insurance actually paid? The first $450,000 invoiced for my wifes cancer was settled up with insurance for around $120,000, about a quarter of the total. We paid $1700. Without insurance they would not be settling with me for 25 cents on the dollar, you can bet that.

No, I don't know that. It was 11 years ago. Pretty amazed she's just alive and only had to pay $1500. We didn't really care how much they charged VS how much the insurance companies negotiated it down to since she had such great insurance. But I understand where you're coming from. I've had some emergency room bills for multi-thousands of dollars that negotiated down by 40% on several occasions. Makes you wonder how much you'd have to pay if you didn't have insurance.

 

[goeduck]

No, I don't know that. It was 11 years ago. Pretty amazed she's just alive and only had to pay $1500. We didn't really care how much they charged VS how much the insurance companies negotiated it down to since she had such great insurance. But I understand where you're coming from. I've had some emergency room bills for multi-thousands of dollars that negotiated down by 40% on several occasions. Makes you wonder how much you'd have to pay if you didn't have insurance.

I think getting concurrence on and paying the fair price is going to be a big part of solving the country’s medical costs.

 

[ultrarunner]

No, I don't know that. It was 11 years ago. Pretty amazed she's just alive and only had to pay $1500. We didn't really care how much they charged VS how much the insurance companies negotiated it down to since she had such great insurance. But I understand where you're coming from. I've had some emergency room bills for multi-thousands of dollars that negotiated down by 40% on several occasions. Makes you wonder how much you'd have to pay if you didn't have insurance.

Sometimes nothing... especially when waiving the Bankruptcy Card or if you are Judgement Proof as with government assistance...

For scheduled medical services including surgery... there is always a cash pay fee schedule.

Just remember typically there are at least 3 providers/bills for surgery... sometimes more.

The 3 are facility, surgeon, anesthesiologist the sometime more might include lab work such as biopsy... or extraordinary costs such as blood or ICU transfer to another facility.

One pitfall to navigate is In Network and Not... ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO ANESTESIA... as the facility and surgeon you would know with certainty... the Anesthesia is a wild card... sometimes there is a last minute switch... a case goes long or a cancellation and the Surgeon is ready to go...

I don't like it and even my own brother got trapped... his Anesthesia was not available and the surgeon could not wait... so a Anesthesiologist was substituted... out of network!

My brother did not back down... in the end he prevailed... but not without calling the Doc at home and several times... he said every time I get a call... you get a call...

 

[Monster diesel]

Keep crossing your fingers that this country will join rest of the world in the healthcare department and we will have universal healthcare soon. It’s crying shame that one of the wealthiest countries in the world has a for profit health system in a social service.

 

[goeduck]

Keep crossing your fingers that this country will join rest of the world in the healthcare department and we will have universal healthcare soon. It’s crying shame that one of the wealthiest countries in the world has a for profit health system in a social service.

Profit, malpractice insurance, those that do not pay, those that pay for themselves AND effectively pay for those that do not pay..... it is a mess all around.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Keep crossing your fingers that this country will join rest of the world in the healthcare department and we will have universal healthcare soon. It痴 crying shame that one of the wealthiest countries in the world has a for profit health system in a social service.

It works so so in the USA called the VA Medical System. The down side to what you are talking about turns healthcare over to the politicians to finance. If they raise taxes to provide the requested services then there can be voter riots like we are seeing in the news. The working people still have to pay more to fill the gap left by those who will not or can not pay since in either case everyone seems to have access to healthcare in the USA at some level or another if they show up at ER.

If one is financially independent and can go the Private Pay route then the noise about healthcare I guess does not make much sense.

It is not popular option with family and friends but with the handwriting on the wall in 2014 at the age of 63 I changed my way of eating, moving and thinking to get me free of health issues requiring Rx meds. So far so good.

For you younger ones out there Prevention may be the best healthcare solution in your future. Everyone today can look at countries with socialized medicine and see services being rationed and people are lining up at their borders to get in like today in Europe to get free healthcare, etc.

 

[ultrarunner]

Even in countries rated highly for social medicine... every person I worked with had supplemental insurance... not a single one went without.

The Doctor and Nurse friends were amazed at the broad coverage Medicare offers and said they have nothing similar to offer...

Again... even with Socialized Medicine... plenty of people crossed boarders for specific treatments...

The German Dentists bordering Austria had many Austrian patients and the Austrian Dentists had many German patients...

No one system is a panacea... and we all pay for it in the end...

The focus is on well baby, youth and productive adults during their earning years... those on pensions simply are not a priority or even offered some expensive options.

Doctors have almost total freedom from malpractice... no worries a screw up might cost you your home.

 

[Travelover]

........One pitfall to navigate is In Network and Not... ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO ANESTESIA... as the facility and surgeon you would know with certainty... the Anesthesia is a wild card... sometimes there is a last minute switch... a case goes long or a cancellation and the Surgeon is ready to go.............

You have some insight into this issue - what is the deal with these anesthesiologists that charge full freight as opposed to assigned rates? Are they just pirates gouging vulnerable people or do they have some legitimate excuse?