subject: The Reality Of Being Chronically Ill And Uninsured In The United States [print this page] I'm known to be quite defensive when implication is that anyone who has a full-time job should be able to afford health insurance provided by the employer or. This simply is not the case for a very large percentage of Americans, including myself and my husband. I learned a lot during the past two years, while suffering from ME / CFS and fibromyalgia, and ensures that, because patients need to take a long leave of absence from my job. I very much hope that the following will open some eyes to the real difficulties very many of the citizens of the United States afford simply because they are sick.
I have not had health insurance for about ten years, and I think that this is the last time you had an employer who offered him. When you put off by I my employer in 2001, making books for a software development company in New York, and is not able to pay Cobra since I received one month of cutting health benefits. After that, I paid less than temporary jobs has no health insurance at all until I have used them for you for at least two years without interruption. Work up to forty hours a week, I did not earn enough money to pay the rent, utilities, and push my car, food, gas, etc., as well as high health insurance premiums.
When I lost my job, and twenty-five years of age and in good health. The occasional visit to the doctor and antibiotics for sinus infection, for example, and was expensive, but in fact just a nuisance. I turned 39 recently and in 2011, I spent nearly six thousand dollars in medical bills, which included working visits, Dr. blood and medicines on the large sum of money with the previous year as well. Became my costs of medical significant burden for me.
There are exactly four people (including myself) who work at the hotel I manage very small. Employers do not provide health insurance benefits because the cost is disproportionate to its benefits and to do so would make the company run by successfully for more than forty years, do not bother to have. Companies can get big discounts on group health insurance to their employees, but this is simply not realistic for small businesses. Reported two other small business owners worked in apologizing for the same conclusions after studying the subject with enthusiasm.
My husband works at least forty hours a week, but employers for different. And none of them does not allow him to work on the minimum number of hours per week required to be eligible for health benefits. Occur even when I got pregnant, to the boss and he was unable to help. I am very happy at the end of the day to qualify for the health program for the families of California of our income is very low, so it has been covered the costs of pregnancy and childbirth.
There is a misconception that really gets my anger for a silly idea that anyone can go to the emergency room for treatment under the law since they can not refuse any person and that somewhere and that means you do not have to pay. I've heard a lot of people ignorantly repeat this idea has become something of an urban legend and nothing could be further from the truth.
My friend came when he was still in college and silly things like medical bills, down with a severe case of the flu, so when I started to vomit blood, and took him to the emergency room. I will not get all the bloody details, but the result was thousands of dollars in medical expenses it took us many years to pay off and destroying our credit because of some of the laws that will be in groups. And raised my fiance (who later became my husband, then her ex-husband) in a family dependent on welfare and food stamps for survival (largely as a result of a chronic disease diabetes, a chronic fatigue). He worked several jobs while in school, and paying tuition fees and loans of its own, to become one of the first in his family to have a university education. So what can you do to avoid various exorbitant medical expenses? Do not go to college? Do not try to improve himself?
As a mysterious disease may progress to me during the past two years, was forced to take a medical leave of absence from my job, which paid my expenses more medical increasingly difficult than it was already. I made plans to pay most of my bills, but it became very difficult to pay the minimum each month. I did, but really valuable lessons along the way to reduce or eliminate many of my medical charges.
If your income is low enough, you can take advantage of usually several different programs. Unfortunately, if you are a person who has a low income, but not below the poverty line (one person who makes about $ 25,000 a year, and more if your spouse and children), can be taken in "the land of no man" was not eligible for help, but your income is not high enough to pay cash to cover your medical expenses or private health insurance every month. I would like to say a very high percentage of people in the United States fall into this category, but it is very difficult to get reliable data on this subject since almost completely private health sector.
If you have found yourself in a similar situation to mine, your plan must battle begins even before walking in the door of the doctor. When you call to make an appointment, ask someone on the phone if the practice provides a sliding scale or other financial assistance to uninsured and low-income. If they do not know, ask a number of people do not. Even if you are not sure of falling into the "low-income" category, and fill in the forms anyway you may find that you qualify for something. I found the doctor's office staff rarely provide this information so that you have to ask. Practices, a group of doctors in my example, offers a discount of twenty percent if you pay your bill on the day of the visit. This brings the total, for me, less than $ 100 per visit (Believe it or not, which is very reasonable). Even if you're not the full amount on that day, and I put it on the credit card and pay my bill when he returns. In an attempt to avoid paying in cash because it is difficult to prove how much you pay for medical expenses. You may need compelling evidence of these expenses in the form of credit card data or credit in the future.
I warn that some practices simply will not treat patients who do not have health insurance. Was a great shock for me the first time I met him. I was desperate to see a doctor that you have read good things about and offered to pay the full amount in cash, even before seeing the doctor, but it will not take my appointment. I'm still a bit confused about the reasons for this policy because health insurance companies and government programs such as medical care until the end of the doctor and pay much less than the individual is uninsured.
Practices group of doctors in my also offers "charity care" program, which depends on the level of income that provides discounted or free. I note that you need to talk to someone about it administrative, not a doctor. Doctors, if any, are often unaware that these programs exist.
The health status of the United States dismal at best. When people lose their homes because of their illness and their inability to pay their medical bills, there is something seriously wrong. I find it sad that we Americans have become very satisfied with this system, which we seem to have lost the fight. Many European countries provide health care for its citizens (and some who are not citizens), including Sweden, where some of my family. Paying tax on income is very high, but they have nice homes, travel several times a year and not have to worry if they get sick. If this is socialism, it is not so bad, and certainly not something to fear.
