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I've poked around for a general U.S. Healthcare thread and asked for links in other threads but I can't find one. If this thread is a dupe, let me know, feed me a link and I'll close it. EDITING MY OP to make it political and less E/N - I've heard it said that "we simply can't afford UHC" and that taxes will go up. While this is obviously true, every study I've read has shown that, on average, the tax increase for MOST people would be about equal or slightly more than what they pay in premiums, and included in that average is the tremendous amount people pay for poo poo like COBRA or plans for people who work jobs that don't offer it. Meaning the MEDIAN cost would go DOWN. So I call bullshit - "But the Wait Times!" Bitch I'm waiting now. Waiting even more due to COVID related stuff. My understanding is that UHC prioritizes procedures based on urgency. "Well "death panels!" where the GOVERNMENT gets to decide". How is that any worse than a for profit company doing the same loving thing, denying coverage while paying CEO's millions? - "A for profit healthcare system drives innovation!" Well...maybe. But it also leads to things like hospitals charging $150 for a single aspirin and poo poo like that. Hospitals and doctors running up costs to increase revenue, whether you need poo poo done or not, no?. I remain baffled why hospitals (or even doctors and insurance companies) ADVERTISE and market. If I get in a car wreck, I'm not gonna tell the ambulance where to take me based on brand loyalty. I work for large format graphics company and we produce a lot of interior murals and poo poo for UF Health, among others. WHY does a health insurance company need all this marketing and interior decorating? Leading to: - "It's 1/5 of our economy/GDP" or whatever it is. Google says 17.7%. Well, that's loving obscene and probably my answer right there. "If you eliminate that, 17.7% of people are out of work!" No, most of them will just work in the public sector, right? You could STILL have private/supplemental insurers, couldn't you? And healthcare is not a commodity in the traditional sense, since WE ARE ALL GOING TO NEED TO GO TO A DOCTOR EVENTUALLY, especially when we get old. I don't have to by a TV, a PS5, a flashy car, new furniture, jewelry, expensive clothes, etc. It's not the same thing. It's a shared asset. Why do hospitals and health insurance companies need so much marketing? - "Well, I eat right and I don't smoke. I exercise. Why should I have to pay for you getting sick?". Because we live in a SOCIETY. My son is 9 and has had 2 epileptic seizures, is insured and it's set me back THOUSANDS.. What did he do? Some kid born with autism? My best friend who died at 52 from esophagus cancer brought on by acid reflux. He didn't smoke. You want to do something, ban cigarettes then. I'd be fine with that but I think tobacco was second only in slavery to the foundation of this nation's economy from the beginning. - Why does the Democratic platform in 2020 oppose Medicare for all?, in agreement with Republicans. Health care should not be a BUSINESS, imo. I suppose 17.7 % of GDP generates a lot of lobbyists. - "Open up insurance across State Lines and restrict tort lawsuits". I don't know enough about this to comment intelligently on it but it smells like bullshit designed to increase profits, not provide better care. Maybe some other goon who knows more than me can weigh in? - "Where will all the extra doctors come from?". That seems so stupid as to defy description. You're basically admitting that people have to choose between being sick and going broke. And right now, those people just go to the ER and stiff the hospital, ruining their credit in the process. Maybe, I dunno, start by funding education more and making higher education more affordable? Seems to me, right now, the main reason someone wants to be a doctor is to make money. ^^^Revised OP^^^ Original, whiny OP on how this effects me personally below: ... Currently, the United States is the global epicenter of the Covid 19 pandemic, so I have picked the worst time to get sick. About me: I am 53, suffer from depression, arthritis in my hips and back and battle alcoholism. I am a smoker with a history of drug use (weed, LSD, coke, XTC) but have not used recreational drugs in some time and most of that was in my 20's and 30's. I am "gainfully" employed, make $23/hour, commute an hour each way to work, freelance cartoons/illustrations/design on the side and have employer provided health coverage. Since the beginning of the year, I have lost about 25 pounds. I've always been thin my whole life, averaging out around maybe 155 lbs at 6'1. I have a high metabolism and can typically eat anything I want as much as I want without gaining weight. In some ways, I am the envy of the average american. Recently, I was weighed at 130 and my neighbors and coworkers are commenting on my appearance. I FEEL fine, for the most part but I am looking like poo poo. Alarmed at this rapid weight loss, I scheduled a physical with my PCP and was referred for blood/urine testing, cat scans, MRI, to rule out cancer. Aside from the Labcorp crap, my insurance company has denied EVERY referral so far and made me schedule other stuff. I am missing work due to these appointments and my job duties are being reassigned and shuffled around because my managers are concerned. These added steps mean I miss more work and cut into my co-parenting responsibilities for my 9 year old son. I wanted to start this thread since it seems so vital right now and neither Trump nor Biden is gonna do gently caress all about it and it sucks that neither political party is gonna do poo poo. And not just because of my current situation and how much light it's shined on how little private coverage helps, but due to how much I see other people suffering at the worst possible time on the rare occasions that they will see me in person rather than teleconference. I overhear so many arguments and back and forths in waiting rooms, watching people way worse off than me struggle with this stupid system, fumbling with records and appointments, old people who can barely walk unsure how to work zoom and poo poo like that. People freaking out because they don't have $200 they didn't think they'd need. I can only imagine it's about to get way worse as people lose their jobs (and their insurance), get evicted and as C19 spreads. I get calls from doctors, labs, numbers I don't recognize, etc., so I miss some important info on occasion and I'm also not supposed to be on my phone at work either so I miss several of them due to that. Their websites and touchtone phone interfaces are abominable. If I DO get diagnosed with cancer, I am inclined to skip the treatment and liquidate what I have to leave for my boy, rather than go broke buying another 3 or 5 years. I got a prescription today for Chantix to help me quit smoking. Only thing the lab work turned up was low testosterone, which checks out. I need therapy/psychiatric visits, pain management and now this. I haven't even touched dentistry or vision. The shrink and the pain doctor REQUIRE I visit them a month to get refills, so that's time and money I DO Not Have. What do we do? Speaking of solutions, for anyone having trouble with prescription costs, there's a good website called GoodRX that works. I;m not sure what their business model is but it's saved me a lot of money, especially when I was unemployed. That's the only good solution I've personally found to anything, but please share. OK then. BiggerBoat fucked around with this message at 22:15 on Aug 5, 2020 |
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Aug 4, 2020 19:52
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Coolness Averted posted:Yeah I think in the current incarnation this is more E/N or ask/tell, unless you wanted it to sorta become a general hub for talking about the pathetic state of healthcare activism in the US and general resource hub for both academic stuff like why M4A is good, and how utterly hosed we are as a failed state, or general tips for navigating the healthcare hellscape. Yeah, my OP kind of sucked but it was poo poo I needed to get off my chest and what you described is more what I wanted to shoot for. I really wanted to create a political thread about the subject since so much of why I am E/N about it is directly related to that. So maybe framing it in a better way might generate the discussion I am looking for. I'll offer some bullet points and revise the OP some.: - I've heard it said that "we simply can't afford UHC" and that taxes will go up. While this is obviously true, every study I've read has shown that, on average, the tax increase for MOST people would be about equal or slightly more than what they pay in premiums, and included in that average is the tremendous amount people pay for poo poo like COBRA or plans for people who work jobs that don't offer it. Meaning the MEDIAN cost would go DOWN. So I call bullshit - "But the Wait Times!" Bitch I'm waiting now. Waiting even more due to COVID related stuff. My understanding is that UHC prioritizes procedures based on urgency. "Well "death panels!" where the GOVERNMENT gets to decide". How is that any worse than a for profit company doing the same loving thing, denying coverage while paying CEO's millions? - "A for profit healthcare system drives innovation!" Well...maybe. But it also leads to things like hospitals charging $150 for a single aspirin and poo poo like that. Hospitals and doctors running up costs to increase revenue, whether you need poo poo done or not, no?. I remain baffled why hospitals (or even doctors and insurance companies) ADVERTISE and market. If I get in a car wreck, I'm not gonna tell the ambulance where to take me based on brand loyalty. I work for large format graphics company and we produce a lot of interior murals and poo poo for UF Health, among others. WHY does a health insurance company need all this marketing and interior decorating? Leading to: - "It's 1/5 of our economy/GDP" or whatever it is. Google says 17.7%. Well, that's loving obscene and probably my answer right there. "If you eliminate that, 17.7% of people are out of work!" No, most of them will just work in the public sector, right? You could STILL have private/supplemental insurers, couldn't you? And healthcare is not a commodity in the traditional sense, since WE ARE ALL GOING TO NEED TO GO TO A DOCTOR EVENTUALLY, especially when we get old. I don't have to by a TV, a PS5, a flashy car, new furniture, jewelry, expensive clothes, etc. It's not the same thing. It's a shared asset. Why do hospitals and health insurance companies need so much marketing? - "Well, I eat right and I don't smoke. I exercise. Why should I have to pay for you getting sick?". Because we live in a SOCIETY. My son is 9 and has had 2 epileptic seizures, is insured and it's set me back THOUSANDS.. What did he do? Some kid born with autism? My best friend who died at 52 from esophagus cancer brought on by acid reflux. He didn't smoke. You want to do something, ban cigarettes then. I'd be fine with that but I think tobacco was second only in slavery to the foundation of this nation's economy from the beginning. - Why does the Democratic platform in 2020 oppose Medicare for all?, in agreement with Republicans. Health care should not be a BUSINESS, imo. I suppose 17.7 % of GDP generates a lot of lobbyists. - "Open up insurance across State Lines and restrict tort lawsuits". I don't know enough about this to comment intelligently on it but it smells like bullshit designed to increase profits, not provide better care. Maybe some other goon who knows more than me can weigh in? - "Where will all the extra doctors come from?". That seems so stupid as to defy description. You're basically admitting that people have to choose between being sick and going broke. And right now, those people just go to the ER and stiff the hospital, ruining their credit in the process. Maybe, I dunno, start by funding education more and making higher education more affordable? Seems to me, right now, the main reason someone wants to be a doctor is to make money. ... I'm gonna C&P this into the OP to steer my thread's intent in a better direction if no one minds.
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Aug 5, 2020 22:09
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TwoQuestions posted:The same reason credit cards are in Delaware. It allows insurance companies to pick and choose which set of State laws they want to follow, which results in a race to the bottom wrt rules and taxes around insurance policy. It's basically a way around state's rights to regulate companies in general. Of course. We've all seen how more "affordable" your average credit has become over time and how it's led to so much LESS fuckery. Also, my median tax increase comparison estimates left out deductibles. EDIT: Ok, real quick, explain THIS: I got prescribed Chantix yesterday by my PCP to help me quite smoking. Pharmacy says I need a "prior authorization" form from my Dr to cover it. So I need to call them. Again. So, umm....Yesterday was prior to today and the scrip should be authorization, right? "prior authorization". To take a drug that will help me quit smoking loving cigarettes. Got it. You'd think they'd give the poo poo away. So which lobbyists from the Chantix corporation make this happen? And why does my employee proved health insurance require "prior authorization" for a scrip he called in yesterday morning again? Also, without insurance, a 30 day supply is $500 loving dollars. Cheaper than smoking 2 packs a day. How is UHC worse than this again? I'm listening. BiggerBoat fucked around with this message at 23:18 on Aug 5, 2020 |
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Aug 5, 2020 22:37
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KingNastidon posted:The "Chantix corporation" (Pfizer) isn't making you get a prior auth. Why would a drug company but any barriers in your way to purchasing their product? A prior auth is something used by insurance companies to control costs. It'll typically ask you basic information about you, your treatment history, and why the doctor thinks you need this medication. In many instances it's simply a formality or a data collection tool. In other cases it's used to verify that you've tried other less expensive therapies first (e.g., generics) before going to a more expensive therapy. Thanks and...uh....OK I guess  That all seems totally reasonable and not at all stupid.But all that's a petty complicated, convoluted and stupid way for my Insurance to ask for "prior authorization" for a scrip I got written yesterday and when the obvious reason it was "authorized" is "I would like to quit smoking please and heard this might help" along with a WELL documented "this person is rapidly losing weight and may have cancer" additional reason. My insurance company ALREADY HAS this information, believe me. You totally skimmed over about how "yesterday" is "prior" to today (when I went to pick it up) and how "authorization" is "has a prescription from a loving doctor". Unless I loving forgot how to speak English or something. And, oh, wait, because perhaps I have. I totally skimmed over the completely reasonable and not at all idiotic "formulary" and "step edit" procedures that exist because "reasons" that might be less "efficacious" after already REPEATEDLY having to do other tests before I do the ones my PCP ordered. You'd think "this guy needs to quit smoking" would...uh...be a decent and basic enough place to start with what ails me. But maybe I'm being overly cromulent and not factoring in the hypotenuse and the bilateral precipitation involved in this carefully calculated decision to basically require my doctor to re-authorize a legit prescription he already loving wrote. I suppose it's all for my own good though and "holds costs down". The gently caress do I know though? Thanks for the...uh..."Explanation" though. I think in some ways you helped describe some of the problem but maybe not and I'm just old and frustrated. I'm sure there's an app I can download that makes all this much easier. *lights a cigarette*
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Aug 6, 2020 00:35
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KingNastidon posted:bunch of stuff DO you work for an insurance company? Or have in the past? You sound like it. I appreciate your attempt(s) at some sort of explanation for this dumb bullshit but it aint cutting it for me, sorry. You said few things that make sense to me, especially near the end there. Wouldn't ALL this stuff be less complicated and make more sense without marketing and advertising? Or worrying about which hospital or doctor is "in network" in the event I'm barely out of a coma? And just LOL at the idea that I'm some sort of "drug seeker" that Chantix writing physicians need to be cautious about by writing me for it "willy nilly". It's not OXY or loving morphine. It's easier for me to get Vicodin right now. And the fact that it's easier for me to buy cigarettes (or alcohol) than fill this totally legal scrip speaks volumes just about...something...unless I am ignorant about certain mechanisms, which you seem to be implying I am and that takes me back to my OP and "why is this like this?" And I'm pretty sure the politics behind how we run this poo poo in the U.S. explains 95% of it. Also, you said, "given my insurance is paying for it". That's the point. They're NOT. I'm being denied tests and medicine at every turn and I'm "one of the good ones" who WORKS for my super duper private insurance. Still Dismal posted:Hospitals themselves don't get nearly enough flack honestly. Insurance companies are the main villains in most healthcare reform arguments (not at all saying they don't deserve this), but hospitals are a huge part of the problem as well. Hospitals have much better PR but are every bit as culpable for the insane runaway cost inflation that you see in American healthcare. I think the problem is that people generally like doctors, nurses, etc., and hospitals like to conflate attacking their predatory pricing and practices with attacking the workers providing healthcare themselves. I agree with this. I don't know much about it but there's always been something off putting and odd about hospitals advertising with billboards and poo poo. I mean...WHY? Believe me, if I need to go to the hospital, it's almost like picking a mechanic. The CLOSEST one to my house, my job or wherever the gently caress it is I got maimed, please. I'm not choosing a pizza place here. Plus, I've heard the game and the incentive is to over bill insurance for every god damned thing and then haggle down from there, yes? What's that telling us and why are so many politicians committed to this model? People going broke for getting sick, old and dying? Which is going to happen to all of us. I think I just answered my own question. Quite a business model when you think about it. BiggerBoat fucked around with this message at 22:51 on Aug 6, 2020 |
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Aug 6, 2020 22:34
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I've wondered the same thing. Usually the answer is "advertising" so I'm gonna go with that.ILL Machina posted:Rand Paul has said this publicly. He's saying if you're off duty or not on call and someone needs help, you would have to respond no matter what or the government could hold you criminally accountable. It is a tech, to be sure, and seems like would only be managed with more regulation protecting schedules, overtime, and on-call respect...which I think his libertarian sensibilities would contest. Oh, cool. Then he'll agree with my refusal to monitor my work emails when I'm off the clock and link my work messages to my personal phone since I am paid by the hour. Nah, he'd tell me if i don't like it to get another job. BiggerBoat fucked around with this message at 19:48 on Aug 7, 2020 |
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Aug 7, 2020 19:42
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So... What are the healthcare PLANS of the two parties/candidates exactly again? You'd think during a global pandemic that healthcare coverage would be front and center in the discourse, but all I hear is LAW AND ORDER and "the economy", but we've already pointed out that the economy is 17% related to healthcare. So...uh... And I was surprised to learn that pre-existing condition coverage still exists. Because I got to thinking about all these all these unemployed and uninsured people facing a $569 monthly COBRA premium and lord help you if you let that slip. So all those lazy people gettin that sweet sweet UEI cash can skim 1/4 off the top and, if you have epilepsy like my 9 year old son and he get's bounced for a month, it seems to me that the GOP wants to make it so he never gets his medicine again. A cursory google search of GOP Healthcare plans gives me something from a guy named Mike Johnson and a lot of articles dated from 2 or 3 years ago. So nothing. Same with the Democrats but slightly better. Here you go. Here's Joe Biden's "platform" on this issue, which is basically "Stop repealing the ACA". Jesus loving christ. https://joebiden.com/healthcare/ At LEAST there's a public option buried in there if you can suffer reading all that horseshit and swiping past the solicitations for money. I mean....at least it's a PLATFORM. Built on poo poo but a platform. GO read it. See how inspiring it is. Here's all I could find on the Trump/GOP end from whitehouse.gov quote:Obamacare is hurting American families, farmers, and small businesses with skyrocketing health insurance costs. Moreover, soaring deductibles and copays have made already unaffordable plans unusable. Close to half of U.S. counties are projected to have only one health insurer on their exchanges in 2018. Replacing Obamacare will force insurance companies to compete for their customers with lower costs and higher-quality service. In the meantime, the President is using his executive authority to reduce barriers to more affordable options for Americans and U.S. businesses. I mean... UHC has to happen SOON if for no other reason that there's just no other loving option, right? RIGHT?
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Aug 7, 2020 22:19
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Complications posted:20% of the economy buys a lot of lobbyists, donations, bribes, and advertising. Plus it makes up a ton of investments for the upper class, since the healthcare industry is only going to grow in the coming decades. The upper class which makes up our professional politician class. So no, UHC is not going to happen. Too many powerful people would see a lessening of the growth of their unfathomable fortunes. I get that but... Doesn't this require people to have money to not just lie down and die in the streets? The 5% already already have 95% of the money so the orange is squeezed dry. They can't lock us all up can they? Oh wait.
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Aug 7, 2020 23:12
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https://twitter.com/latrey69/status/1294019780744056833?s=09
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Aug 15, 2020 11:13
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F_Shit_Fitzgerald posted:Question for those in this thread: how in the world do you respond to morons who tell you that universal health care is "slavery" because it's "forcing people to give charity"? I've run into this on another forum and its baffling, though I know it's a dumb way to reframe the issue. Maybe ask why so many of my tax dollars go towards the military and how that "forces me to pay for wars I oppose"? Paying taxes for cops or firefighters I've never personally needed isn't slavery. Paying into social security so that my street isn't lined with the corpses of widowed 70 year olds isn't slavery. Paying for basic sanitation and trash collection I think we can all agree is good. Even before I had a kid, paying into a public education system I didn't use wasn't slavery because I want my neighbors to have an education. Whatever forum you're on sounds like it's filled with idiots but I usually just tell these types that "we live in a society", see if there's any traction and then go from there. I mean, the simplest answer is that something like healthcare is a thing all of us are going to need at some point so sharing the costs and eliminating the profit incentive is just simply more cost effective. I mean, should I be forced to go bankrupt because my son has epilepsy and has had 2 seizures by age 7? I think socializing the costs of common needs is wise even if it creates other problems but for some reason the types of people you're talking to tend to think that "free market competition" solves everything. You wouldn't want to privatize water, electricity, food, education, prisons and... oh wait. I personally think we need to socialize the commons and let capitalism do the consumer products end of things but I dunno and am lacking the energy to really get into it. My hip/back/leg arthritis driven pain has spiked up to about level 9 over the last 3 weeks or so. Level 10 is when I can't walk or sleep hardly at all. Right now I can walk SOME and sleep SOME. My insurance company won't cover cortisone injections and my options for physical therapy are limited so I'm reduced to doing that last part myself by watching you tube videos. I'm cranky, beaten and mad about it. Everyone tells you "your health is the most important thing!" but god for loving bid you get sick or throw out your back and can't do your job anymore. Or, maybe worse, have to miss work hours to visit doctors.
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Aug 15, 2020 18:42
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F_Shit_Fitzgerald posted:It definitely is filled with idiots. This particular idiot didn't respond after they proposed making medicines and treatments cheaper (which is a start) and I answered that everyone needs health care regardless of their ability to pay, their health condition, or their job (or lack of one). Since I smoke, have abused drugs in the past and drink, I hear the argument a lot that "why should I pay for your poor life choices when you get sick?" And most of these people are fat and eat McDonalds and Taco Bell and poo poo, wondering why they can't lose weight. But OK. Fair enough. My ex wife (and my son) both have epilepsy. My mother had bipolar disorder and mental illness brought on in large part by rape and molestation as a child committed by her father and half brother. My ex was also molested by a family neighbor at the age of 11 that contributes to her acute anxiety. My son also has ADHD and caught a nasty gash above his eye at gymnastics class that put him the ER. They all need(ed) care. The gently caress did THEY do to deserve what's coming to them? And why should they have to go broke for the crime of being sick? We've barely even touched on the mental health part of this health care thread. That whole "forcing people to pay charity" quote you cited burns my rear end the more I think about it. It's so selfish, backwards and mean spirited and the point is that we shouldn't NEED charity to cover medical expenses. Those assholes would be the first ones whining about their taxes going to support someone on disability and I automatically have to assume they routinely poo poo on homeless people, many of whom are there due to medical issues. Also, since we're talking about being "forced to pay for charity" and since these dickheads are usually heavily involved in some sort of church that they'll generally cite for all their glorious charity work, maybe ask them why churches are tax exempt but still allowed to own entire city blocks, huge TV networks and politically stump from the pulpit as they rake in cash? One could argue that I have to pay taxes to support an ideology I strongly disagree with while a lot of these fuckers revel in opulence and, in many cases, make or break my elected representative candidates in elections. BiggerBoat fucked around with this message at 21:26 on Aug 15, 2020 |
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Aug 15, 2020 21:23
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Communist Thoughts posted:It's American exceptionalism to think that only Americans think their country is exceptional. I dunno, man. Every poster I read here that is visiting/has visited this country always posts the same poo poo: That they are astonished or at least taken aback with how many flags we insist on flying and the crap we slap on our vehicles. To tell you the truth, I find myself creeped out by my instinctual sense of dislike and mistrust of pretty much anyone brandishing red white and blue loving anything these days. Feels like I'm at war with my own country and it bugs me to be reminded that that is pretty much true. But, hey, I didn't start the fire.
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Aug 20, 2020 00:46
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KingNastidon posted:To revive this dead healthcare thread that always dies because it strays from interesting/hard policy discussions, tell us more about your work in Switzerland and US vs. Ex-US dynamics. Basel is lovely Well, I might have several things to add to it in the near future since I got poo poo canned from my job Wednesday and my insurance runs out end of September. I have pain management issues (arthritis, bulging disc, sciatica), depression that I see a shrink for and a bunch of tests/scans being ordered to determine the cause of my rapid weight loss that my insurance company was denying at every turn. Even when I had private insurance through my job, it sucked and I was getting hosed on the regular. Not sure which one of those I should eliminate due to cost concerns but I suspect I'll have to chop at least one of them. Doubt I can afford COBRA. Fun times. So I got clipped from my job due to corporate downsizing/C19 related recession issues and now, just because of that, I am forced to decide which health issue I have doesn't require attention. Even if I land a job any time soon (and I have my doubts), usually the health coverage only kicks in after 90 days - assuming they even offer it. I can actually make a lot MORE money freelancing but not enough to offset these costs and, also, good luck with me refinancing my house or buying a car, both of which I've been looking at doing and will need to do soon. I won't be homeless or dead broke since I can sell the house and can still cash out what little there is in my IRA but it sucks anyway.
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Aug 29, 2020 16:52
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Communist Thoughts posted:nah this is a pretty common problem among the left in coloniser states, it's pretty awkward to get patriotic about a country with an evil past. Well, that, and the right has co-opted the U.S. Flag and every other symbol (see: The Bible) as litmus test for authoritarian and theocratic "patriotism". Every car or truck I see or person wearing a flag shirt or some poo poo I can usually, these days, safely assume is a giant loving rear end in a top hat. None of that helps left wingers with their "problem", assuming they even have one.
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Aug 30, 2020 22:15
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I've asked this question before in other threads from time to time but: What stopping a collective of citizens in a certain neighborhood, town or city from buying a group healthcare plan together, similar to what companies do? I guess getting everyone to actually pay would be a problem since there's no automatic paycheck deduction but as far as negotiating a group rate, what's stopping it?
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Sep 2, 2020 17:22
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I really thought this thread would get more action and assumed it effected more of us. Don't worry. It will. Honestly surprised there's not more horror stories here. The lack of activity in this thread leads me to believe that I'm either an outlier or that anyone else experiencing the horrors of the US health care system is too sick to post. Cross posting from USPOL/Update: Tying healthcare to employment still makes me sick. Especially since every job I can track down doesn't offer coverage and is low balling me real hard since the UE rate is so high. Even those jobs that DO offer benefits don't offer enough flexibility or time off to even see the doctor and work out your poo poo. I'm almost 100% certain I was let go from my job due to my physical appearance, but of course they can't say that. The prep and procedural requirements for my colonoscopy and endoscopy basically took 48 hours and needed me to arrange transportation to and from along with a caregiver that I really don't have. Thankfully I found a friend that could take 4 hours out of their weekday to help me out. I was let go from my job last month and had a ton of health tests scheduled for September, every one of which was denied and required a different preliminary test that I had to reschedule. So I did, since my employer extended my coverage for the month and I tried to jam as many procedures in there as I could. And I was still out $2500, thanks to my deductible, and denied coverage for all the tests my PCP ordered to determine why I had lost 25 lbs in 6 weeks. Without coverage, it would have been $22,000 I was told. I was "One of the Good Ones", who WORKED for their coverage and still got hosed over every other day. Even when they DID cover me, I had to do all the leg work and make all phone calls, fax everything, work the phones and basically do everyone else's job to make it happen. Most jobs won't LET YOU be on your phone except during your "break", assuming you get one, and, trust me, you have to work the phones to squeeze a dime out of these people. Text confirmations, online forms, emails, etc. exhausting. I can't tell you how many lunch hours I wasted dealing with this poo poo. Not being able to EAT since I'm on the phone and digging through emails or looking for cards and papers as I turn into a human skeleton. I'm 6'1" and weigh 130 lbs. I average around 155. I'm not making this poo poo up. It's a loving disgrace. I can't be the only one, can I? My coverage runs out in 2 days and I am quite "literally" facing down which medicines to take and tests to schedule based on how much money I have left and what is covered over the next 2 days ALONG with looking for work and and dealing with Florida's broken unemployment website. I'll be shocked if I live another 10 years and/or don't go broke trying, whichever comes first. I'm not going to live in the streets or beg for someone to help me pay to figure out what's wrong. I'll honestly retire myself first and hang on to my humanity at least. Only positive thing that's happened, aside from (so far) no lung, stomach, throat, colon cancer diagnosis, is that my insurance agreed to 100% cover Chantix to help me quit smoking/vaping, which was shocking since it's insanely expensive. EDIT: Sorry TL/DR: I'm having a lot of trouble here and wondering if I'm on an island or something. Seriously weighing doctor visits against my bank account, trying to determine which is worth it. Honestly surprised this thread died on the vine. BiggerBoat fucked around with this message at 20:15 on Sep 28, 2020 |
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Sep 28, 2020 20:13
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edit nm i found it
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Sep 28, 2020 20:56
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Dr. Red Ranger posted:The only way this makes sense is if you're starting pharmacotherapy for your depression and the doctor expects to feel things out and change your drug or dose with follow-up visits, which is normal. Not true. I suppose it depends on the medication but I have to be seen at least every 90 days for mine.
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Oct 2, 2020 11:14
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WampaLord posted:I said it's not complicated, I didn't say it would be easy. True, but have you considered that the real answer is that sick people simply need to work harder? I lost my job recently and am almost 100% it was because I was having health problems, even though they didn't directly interfere with my work or job performance. Of course they can't TELL me that but it was weird how as soon as I started losing weight and needed some doctor's appointments, suddenly I was a detriment to the company. Phone posted:Correct me if I’m wrong, but I was under the impression that “doomposting” wasn’t permitted. How are we supposed to discuss U.S. healthcare then? No wonder this thread is nearly dead.
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Oct 20, 2020 22:16
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Color me shocked that the net profits for the HCI were only 3%. I would have assumed much higher than that. At least double. How much would it be if you stripped out the marketing and advertising budget I wonder. I work in large format printing and the amount of poo poo we do HC companies just looking to spruce up their offices is staggering.
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Oct 21, 2020 17:58
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