Purple Posted July 31, 2007 Share Posted July 31, 2007 So, my 19 year old, who is uninsured, falls off a skate board. Now I get to spend the morning calling County Hospital trying to find out how much an X-ray will be. (I'm currently on hold.) She caught the fall with her hand and may have fractured her wrist. Ariana at 19 was dropped from Sam and my's private insurance, insurance we had to pay for but at least she was insuraed. She was dropped from Healthy Families when she turned 18. Healthy Familes is a Riverside County public health insurance, Austin (15) and Amy (11) are on it, it covers everything, but dispite the name, only covers children, from birth to 18. I could go on about some of the crap doctors on Healthy Families, but that's for another time. We went to get Ariana Medical, California state insurance. Because she is under 21, and lives at home they insist on counting Sam's income in determining if she qualified, at the same time they suggested we add me to the mix, so we did. Sam's work pays for his insurance, they offer it to me, or to his spouse, but he'd have to pay for it, it is a little over $300 a month, just for me alone, we can't afford it, I am currently uninsured. Anyway, medical, I was outright denyed, we apparently make too much money for me to be insured by the state. Ariana was approved, she can see whoever she wants for anything she wants, but... she has a $1400 deductable. Which means she pays $1400, and they will pick up the bill for anything that goes over that. Hey I guess if she got some horrible illness or she was in a horrible accident it would come in handy. I love how one state insurance calls her an adult at 18 and refuses to cover her, while another calls her my dependent so they don't have to cover her. Oh and can I still deduct this dependent off my taxes? NOoooooooo! Okay spoke to someone.... at the county "you can go there uninsured" hospital there is a minimum $280 deposit, a X-ray will be $200 to 300. Now I have to call the neighborhood urgent care to see if they do X-rays, and how much it will be. Urgent care does do X-rays, but cannot tell me how much it will be exactly, they charge on a sliding scale by income, atleast they will count Ariana's income alone. The minimum fee is $30. Okay so anyone here want to explain to me again how our private healthcare system is better then the rest of the civiliased world? To anyone here that is outside the US, be glad, be very glad. Celebrate your insurance, you have NO idea how bad it can be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thurisaz Posted July 31, 2007 Share Posted July 31, 2007 I'm afraid the more I hear about health (non-)insurance in the US, indeed the more I'm happy with what we consider a pretty faulty construct over here... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GraphicsGuy Posted July 31, 2007 Share Posted July 31, 2007 To anyone here that is outside the US, be glad, be very glad. Celebrate your insurance, you have NO idea how bad it can be. Wow, yeah. I never had any idea how confusing it was it the US. I'm in Canada and always wondered why the big hullaballoo over US healthcare. Thanks for clearing the fog. Gees, my work pays my provincial healthcare (covering all doctor and hospital visits) and Blue Cross (prescriptions, dentist, ambulance, etc.). This covers my whole family...even my 18 year old son until he is 21. I walk into a doctor's office and walk out. Walk into the hospital, flash the card, get checked, walk out... We are very fortunate up here... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lycorth Posted July 31, 2007 Share Posted July 31, 2007 Gah - my sympathies, Purple The more I read about the issue, the more I am starting to lean in favor of socialized healthcare. Sure, it's got plenty of flaws, but at least you can get looked at when you need it without having to worry about the price, first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sexton Blake Posted July 31, 2007 Share Posted July 31, 2007 Some views on the American health service: In the late fifties, my aunt from Buffalo was just one of many American women who came over for a visit and to have a baby free of charge on the British NHS. I was in San Francisco in 1980 and talked to someone whose son was in hospital. He had quickly run through the boy's $20,000 healthcare insurance and was trying now to get some more money. In the mid-90's my aunt in Buffalo had her British father living with her and he lapsed into a coma. He took over a year to die and her and her husband had been praying for it as though he was in a coma, he still needed someone there ll the time to look after him. When I took early retirement in 2003, one of the people going at the same time talked of retiring to America. I told him the pitfalls of older people there being sick and the prohibitive costs. I think he still went to America. Here in France, overall the costs work out about the same as in Britain but we get better and more immediate treatment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbobrob Posted July 31, 2007 Share Posted July 31, 2007 Be thankful, Purple, she does not live in Massachusetts. Under the new law just enacted, she would be penalized, fined and or withholding of any tax return money, for not being on insurance. If you don't have insurance here, don't get sick enough to have to go to the hospital, because the government will start penalizing you for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carolyn the Red Posted July 31, 2007 Share Posted July 31, 2007 ....To anyone here that is outside the US, be glad, be very glad. Celebrate your insurance, you have NO idea how bad it can be. That generally sucks. I can't imagine not being able to just go see a doctor when I need to. Hope you sort things out inexpensively, and it's not a break. Believe me, I'm glad for my imperfect health care system. Not everything is free, but none of it is budget destroying, at least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple Posted August 1, 2007 Author Share Posted August 1, 2007 That generally sucks. I can't imagine not being able to just go see a doctor when I need to. Hope you sort things out inexpensively, and it's not a break. Wel, we went, and it's done I guess, but was it inexpensive?? We still have NO BLOODY CLUE! This is where I start to tear my hair out. They made her pay the $30 fee right there, they minimum you HAVE to pay even if your homeless fee. What will the 3 Xrys and splint cost her/us? No one knows they took a copy of her pay check stub, and will bill her according to their sliding scale. So, could be $10 bucks, could be nothing, could be $600 + dollars. Now if she/we don't pay this they'll screw up her credit, and send bill collectors after her, but can they give us some idea of what it will cost so we could oh I dunno plan? Nooooooooooooooooooooo that would make just too much god damned sense. Oh and... it's not broken, but it is sprained they've put it in a splint and told her to baby it and take motrin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple Posted August 1, 2007 Author Share Posted August 1, 2007 Be thankful, Purple, she does not live in Massachusetts. Under the new law just enacted, she would be penalized, fined and or withholding of any tax return money, for not being on insurance. If you don't have insurance here, don't get sick enough to have to go to the hospital, because the government will start penalizing you for it. Jesus H fucking Christ! Hello, you can't afford insurance?? Well then we are going fine you so we can make sure you are ruined finacialy. MUWAHAHAHAHA! That is totally fucked. What's the word for the day boys and girls? It's even worse then. "Well well well, your DD is now 18, congratulations she's an adult. So sorry but we will no longer cover her as a child under the public insurance. She's a big grown up girl, yes she is. Oh, so she wants to get insurance on her own, what is she thinking?? That she's a big grown up or something. Nuh uh uh, she still lives with Mommy and Daddy, they are responcible for her until she is 21, but they better not try to write her off on their taxes, cuz she's an adult!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garrisonjj Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 So, my 19 year old, who is uninsured, falls off a skate board. Now I get to Doesn't exist here in Pennsylvania. If you are an illegal immigrant of any age and walk into an emergency room you are treated at no cost! Trust me,good friend is hospital administrator! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jun Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 Okay so anyone here want to explain to me again how our private healthcare system is better then the rest of the civiliased world? It's not! Compared to Japan, the U.S. doesn't even have a health system! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R. S. Martin Posted August 1, 2007 Share Posted August 1, 2007 Not so long ago a person raised the question on here about socialized medicine. Where is she now that we actually have a real life case on our hands? Never ever have I heard of a case where a person could not get medical service for lack of money. My people refuse the province's healthcare assistence but they take care of someone's health first, then worry about paying the bill because they know the church will take care of it. However, I don't think it's right the way this church handles things. I was without health coverage for several months because of it. Had I gotten a health card before I left, I would have been penalized (if anyone found out). I applied right away when I knew for sure that I had to leave. But first I had to get a birth certificate, something I never needed before. And then I had to get a social insurance number because the church forbids it, too. You know how everything takes at least six to eight weeks. All of this was before 9/11--I hate to think what it would be like now. I got my health card just before New Years. In Feb. I got into an accident and landed in ER. Some months later one of my sisters was asking how I paid for my hospital bill. I told her that it's covered by the health cad. She asked in surprise, "Did you have a health card yet?" It was with some satisfaction that I replied in the affirmative. I was also seriously offended. Just how stupid did she think I was not to have gotten a health card right away??? She's been the family's mouth-piece for informing me on various occassions over the years that I really am incapable of making my own decisions because I am so stupid. She has apologized but it's not a sincere apology. She was sorry only that she let me know; she did NOT change her mind about my abilities to take adult responsibility for my own care. For all I know, she probably credited god for working a miracle that I had my health card in time. Yet I had gone to the social services center in broad daylight to find out the process. Some things are better forgotten and I guess this is one of them. Purple, I sincerely hope your daughter will be okay and that somehow or other you can pay the stupid bill without selling your home or some other equally major sacrifice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Christine Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 Doesn't exist here in Pennsylvania. If you are an illegal immigrant of any age and walk into an emergency room you are treated at no cost! Trust me,good friend is hospital administrator! I'm in Pa and I believe they have to treat you but I'm pretty sure you wil recieve a bill. Purple, I feel for you. We are often saying in our house "Don't get hurt (or sick), we can't afford to go to the hospital!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Unknowing1 Posted August 2, 2007 Share Posted August 2, 2007 Purple, I am sorry about your daughter. I hope that her injury heals quickly without any complications. I understand where you are coming from. It just doesn't make any sense. States offer programs for kids which is great but it seems that there is nothing there once you get to a certain age except medicaid, which to qualify you have to be way below the poverty level and once you do the deductible is outrageous. What middle class american can afford to pay over $400.00 per month for single coverage under health insurance or up to $1400.00 deductible plus co pays for illness? Sure the law does require any hospital receiving public funds to treat anyone regardless of ability to pay; however, that does not stop the bill from having to be paid. It's not so much being seen but the issue of what happens after you are seen. You get the bill, don't pay or even pay what you can and you still are turned over to a collection agency, your wages can and will be garnisheed and if the hospital was a state funded hospital and legislation is in place, your state income tax refund can and will be withheld. I have an 18 year old who works full time and goes to school part time. He pays for half his college expenses and we pay the other half so we don't have loans to contend with. Luckily we can keep him on our health insurance until age 23; however, if our policy said we had to drop him at 18 I don't know how we could afford to pay for a policy for him. I know he couldn't afford it nor could we. It just doesn't make any sense at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Wolf Posted August 5, 2007 Share Posted August 5, 2007 I sorely wish America had some form of national health coverage. Not only are thousands unable to pay for needed medical treatment, people like me have to give up high risk hobbies due to no insurance. I don't have insurance, nor can I afford it. I also had to give up pro-wrestling because I will be fucked many times over if I am seriously injured again. I was very fortunate that when I tore my ACL wrestling, the initial doctors visit and visit to a specialist was 10 dollars out of pocket. Surgery only cost 10 dollars out of pocket, and the Vikodyn was only five. That would have been over 20,000 dollars had I not had insurance. My brother was involved in an car wreck, that left him with both hip sockets dislocated, both cups of the hip sockets shattered, and a broken femur. Four surgeries, enough metal put in his legs to stock a hardware store, and a month and a half in the hospital, left him with no choice but to file bankruptcy. My mom was having heart problems about a year and a half ago, and it turned out it was the early stages of a heart attack. She is still paying that bill today. She also had gall bladder stones removed 22 years ago. It took her 18 years to pay that bill off. My dad does have insurance though. Last year alone, he had a surgery on each foot, three surgeries on his right shoulder, gastric bypass surgery, abit of an artery replaced, and one or two other surgeries. Financially, it didn't even make a dint in his budget. All of those surgeries were necessary (save for the stomach one), and didn't cost much out of pocket. Had he been uninsured, he to would have had no choice but to ruin his credit and file bankruptcy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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