In 20+ years I have spent less than $2000 on medical bills. I always go to my family practitioner. I've torn the miniscus in my left knee twice. Had salmonella once, lost 10 lbs in about a day, and live with a messed up right shoulder, torn rotator cuff I think. Never had insurance. Always paid cash. I know health insurance is good to have,and I've been lucky, but if you can't afford it you can't afford it. Too many people have trouble paying rent and feeding their family let alone being forced by the govt to buy insurance. I know a lot of people that live paycheck to paycheck. They make enough to pay for rent/ mortgage, utilities, vehicle payments, food, and gas. And around here private school payments. My half for 2 kids is $390 a month. Sad thing around here, if you want your kids to get a decent education and be safe, you have to send them to a private school at $390 to $500 a month per kid. It's more of a necessity than a choice. Now make them drop another $250 plus and something's gonna give. If the thousands of bums with headaches, tummy aches, and hangovers would quit going to the ER because it's "free". Then maybe hospitals could cut back on charging that to those that pay. And open insurance across state lines. Make those companies compete against each other for customers. That would also lower premium costs. If not for being insured through the fd I still wouldn't have insurance. And I wouldn't be buying it either. I pay insurance on my bass boat, 4 wheeler, truck, and I have workmans comp, at both jobs. IMO that's plenty. http://safeshare.tv/w/zwhKdMtFHf
My condolences. Maybe my job is just seriously subsidizing the changes, but the slight premium hike was it. The deductible was $1250 before and did not change. You mention that it's $3000 for a family, does she have an HSA or HRA that covers that amount? I know I have it setup so that my entire deductible comes out through employer contributions and then the extra is taken from my check tax free.
I definitely get you there. The few times I've had to go to the ER they've always asked me why the hell I waited so long. My response beyond I hate hospitals is that I can usually take care of it myself. I actually recently had to go in for pneumonia because my 104 fever wasn't breaking even with ice or heat. I had to wait because some college frat boy had a minor cut on his arm. Something I might not have even bandaged, much less gone to the ER for.
Not sure which it is. But it's my understanding that she paid $20 copay for office visits and the rest was billed to insurance till the $1000 deductible was met? That's how my insurance was explained to me also. I go to my Dr. and a visit is $20. If I go to the hospital I pay the first $1000, as of last August anyway, then insurance pays %80? I have never used insurance for medical reasons so it's all Greek to me. Hope I don't need too either. This week I've lost 2 friends and have 2 more in ICU. The flu got them. A 28 yr old also died from it. The Health Dept is thinking its H1N1.
I'm the same way. If I feel a cold or flu coming on I hit the OJ and grape juice and let my immune system deal with it. Tore my knee up the. 1st time and went to dr. He X-rayed it and wrapped a bandage around it. Charged me $150. I sold my prescription pain pills to recoup my money. 2nd time I tore it. I hit Walmart and the liquor store. Ace knee wrap and a 1/2 gal. of Crown. I go to Dr. for breaks and stitches. ER only if I'm carried. One way to stop some of the bull shit ER visits by those that think it's free. Take the bill out of any tax refund they may get. I bet that'd slow that down a lot.
More reality over the false promises that Pelosi and Obama made. http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_...p-come-face-to-face-with-obamacare-trade-offs
"If you like your insurance you can keep it" Barry Soteiro. If you don't mind paying double or triple. Why in the hell would someone want to vote for more govt control? The Feds screw up just about everything they take over.
this statement is exactly why we need the ACa. Because people like you don't get health insurance and one day you will get sick, seriously sick to where you will need health insurance because your job(s) will not pay for your treatment. I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and say that you are a straight enough arrow that you make payments until you die but you never pay it off and guess who gets stuck with the bill then? That's right, all the rest of us. How in the hell is that being persoanlly responsible? You guys like to preach about personal responsibiltiy but you don't practice it. Do you really think that you will never contract anything more serious than the flu? give me a break. you live in MS, the heart attack capital of the world, the fat capital of the world and the cancer capital of the world. One day you will get sick, serously sick, because we all do. By your statement above I take it that your 4-wheeler is more important than if you screw the rest of us with your unpaid medical bills. Fuck that but thanks for making the perfect case for why we need the ACA more than ever.......and your not the only one.
I have my own IRA. Why should I keep paying SSI? I'm paying for health insurance now why keep paying Medicare/Cade taxes then? If I'm voluntarily doing both then I should be able to stop paying into the other. What's fucking up the hospitals is the people that go for something that a regular doctor visit would take care of. Go ask an ambulance driver what kind of bullshit calls they get like Headaches, hangovers, belly aches. Then you have the baby makers spitting out kids and letting the taxpayers pay for it. A friends daughter just had her 2nd baby. She just graduated high school in 2011. He told me the bill was $40,000! His insurance paid $23,000, Aflac I think. He told me he wasn't paying the rest cause $23,000 was plenty. I didn't realize having a healthy, no complications baby was that much. His son, graduated hs in 2012, just had his 2nd by a 2nd gf. With his thinking the hospital will eat that $68,000. And it will get passed on to us not just higher medical payments, but also more burden on taxpayers because of a welfare benefits increase. Add malpractice insurance and lawsuits. That is why hospitals charge what they do. At least I would make an attempt to pay. When I was married we had insurance before we decided on having babies and owed nothing to hospital afterwards. My 4wheeler, boat and truck insurance is mainly to pay for medical bills should someone get hurt on them. I don't have to have anything but auto. How's that not being responsible? All Obamacare is for is more govt control of your life. ACA hell. More like the Unaffordable Care Act.
