Health Healthcare in the US

Tsuyoiko

DON'T PANIC!
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This is something I have been wondering about for a while. If you have an illness and don't have insurance or money to pay for treatment, what happens to you? Although I don't believe everything I see on TV :blush: , I get a bad impression from how it's portrayed on TV shows. For example, the other day I saw an episode of The X-Files, called Hell Money. There was a girl in it dying from leukemia (sp?), but it was a treatable form that she would likely recover from with treatment. Since her father had no insurance or money, she was dying. Is this how it really is?
 
I can actually imagine things getting quickly worse in England. For example the cost of dental treatment. I've heard of people waiting way too long and/or suffering quite a lot because they couldn't afford to get work done. Of course, the media highlights only the worst cases and makes it seem out of proportion (like a guy who pulled his tooth out with pliers :eek: ) but... it still worries me sometimes. I can't find an NHS dentist anymore where I live, and I'm likely to need work doing sometime soon (my teeth are sadly not strong) and I dread to think what does happen if I can't afford it... :(

Although here it's as much of an issue of doctor practices having to pay for drugs and such, many of them try and save on money so they don't necessarily give the patients the best treatments. :okashii:

And recently my mother had to pay 7 quid for two pain killer tablets. :o
 
Tsuyoiko said:
Since her father had no insurance or money, she was dying. Is this how it really is?
It is illegal for medical practitioners to refuse emergency treatment of uninsured patients in the US under Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act (EMTALA).
The case you discribed doesn't seem to be an emergency, however there is a federal funded insurance called "Medicaid" for low-income families which would cover inpatient hospital services. To be eligible for Medicaid, you need to have extremely low income which prevents a lot of people from being qualified.

What I don't find here in the US is the insurance that is affordable for people with the avarage income. Although the number of employers or the companies that offer health benefits for their employees(including part-time employees) is increasing.
 
misa.j said:
The case you discribed doesn't seem to be an emergency, however there is a federal funded insurance called "Medicaid" for low-income families which would cover inpatient hospital services. To be eligible for Medicaid, you need to have extremely low income which prevents a lot of people from being qualified.

This can sometimes lead to the ridiculous situation of one spouse quitting a job in order to bring the household income low enough to qualify for Medicaid coverage. One has to question a system/policy which in a capitalistic society promotes reduced employment.
 
Thanks guys. Would I be right in thinking there are a lot of people who earn an average wage, who have ended up in serious trouble because they are not so sensible with their money? And roughly how much does insurance cost?
 
In America you can get all the free health care you want... as long as you enter the country illegally.
 
About $1500US is taken out of my husband's check every month for insurance costs. It's sickening.

And even then, we have to pay $700US for a $1500US operation for my son. A cousin of mine's(who is an unwed and unemployed teenage mom) daughter had the same surgery and didn't have to pay anything...
 
Healthcare for people in the US isn't the best. High income people here can get healthcare very easily. I know it's the worst, for a developed nation. Medicaid be would fine if politicians would stop making cuts on it. I did read somewhere that employers are trying to give healthcare benefits, but it's not up to code either. Overall, it's the worst in the developed world.
 
This is one reason I work for the government. Wages are typically lower, but the health/dental/vision care is included...there's something about SEEING the amount you pay each month that's more psychologically damaging than never getting that money in the first place.
 
Kirei - you pay more in insurance than I earn!

It looks like the bad impression I get from TV is quite accurate.
 
misa.j said:
The case you discribed doesn't seem to be an emergency, however there is a federal funded insurance called "Medicaid" for low-income families which would cover inpatient hospital services. To be eligible for Medicaid, you need to have extremely low income which prevents a lot of people from being qualified.

What income qualifies as "low-income" ? In Belgium, one id considered "poor" (under the level of relative poverty) if one earns less than 700 euro per month (about 850 USD).
 
m477 said:
In America you can get all the free health care you want... as long as you enter the country illegally.

Then it's pretty similar to Belgium. :D
 
Maciamo said:
What income qualifies as "low-income" ?
Income eigibility of Madicaid program depends on the number and types of household.
It's approximately $1,400 for one person and $1,900 for two persons household before taxes, and it seems to change annually as the minimum wages go up.

I didn't have a health insurance until three years ago before I got one through my husband's employer; they deduct about $300/m which isn't too bad.
 
I get health insurance through my employer. I have friends that have lost houses due to medical costs and have had to declare bankrupcy.
 
Maciamo said:
What income qualifies as "low-income" ? In Belgium, one id considered "poor" (under the level of relative poverty) if one earns less than 700 euro per month (about 850 USD).

Since the program is at least in part administered by the individual states, there is very likely no single correct answer to this question. At any rate: http://www.cms.hhs.gov/MedicaidEligibility/ provides a good brief overview of the program.
 
Tsuyoiko said:
Since her father had no insurance or money, she was dying. Is this how it really is?

Thanks guys. Would I be right in thinking there are a lot of people who earn an average wage, who have ended up in serious trouble because they are not so sensible with their money? And roughly how much does insurance cost?

kirei na mei said:
About $1500US is taken out of my husband's check every month for insurance costs. It's sickening.

That is really outrageous and expensive as all hell. I never heard of insurance that high. Maybe you should look into another provider.

It all depends on where you work and what plan you are under. There are hundreds of plans that it is so confusing. I have a friend who is self-employed and pays about $500/month for health care for 4 people; $1,500 deductable and after that he would have to pay ony 20% of major surgery.

For myself, my company pays it for me (my wife has her own insurance at the company where she works which they pay for also). I pay $20 per doctor visit or $30 to a specialist and $20 for perscriptions. I have a $2,500 deductable for major surgery and after that I pay 20% up to $1,000,000.

sabro said:
I have friends that have lost houses due to medical costs and have had to declare bankrupcy.
Health care is a crime in the US. Here is an example. I go for a blood test at the hospital. The bill from my insurance company informs me that the hospital charges $120 for this blood test, but the insurance company thinks it is only worth $60 and that's what they pay. They then laud themselves at how much money they are saving me! Me, I pay $20. The poor fellow with no insurance has to pay the full $120!! Surgeries are just as outrageously expensive. Unless he's an illegal alien then he/she pays nothing. Even for surgery!

The recent bill passed by congress now forbids families to declare bankruptacy for any reason, especially a catastrophic illeness or surgery. You will still have to pay it back in one form or another for the rest of your life!

This is one way they can ensure that they get a socialized medical bill through congress with the next administration.
Me? I will NEVER have surgery or anything major done in the US. I will go to Thailand or India where the price for the same surgery is 80% less and they treat you better with a private room according to a recent 60 Minutes report. Besides they were all trained in the US or Europe and completed their residency there.

For example, heart by-pass surgery in the US would cost about $120,000 just for the surgery! In India, the same surgery (with US trained surgeons) would cost $12 - $18,000 complete with private room and convalescence in a resort hotel by the beach!

Also, according to the CDC (Center for Disease Control) more than 350,000 people per year die in a hospital because of botched surgery, misdiagnosis, contacting another illeness or infection, etc. Hospital? Here? No way.
 
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