Is paying for health care a struggle?

From the Community…

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  Posted by Ahleah G Wed Jun 24, 2009 7:13am PDT

  I would not be able to afford healthcare if it was not covered by my job. When I waited tables after college I had no insurance because I would have needed to buy my own and it was too expensive. I don't have hundreds of dollars a month that is not designated towards something, I rarely go out to eat or to bars, and keep my expenses on the low side. But healthcare is lower on the list than housing or utilities or food or transportation to and from work.

  I have seen some healthcare plans that would make purchasing healthcare mandatory and provide lower rates. I don't think that is going to help a lot of people and I really don't know how people with children that aren't covered by work are expected to afford it.

  I have put off doctor visits, and I do not have dental coverage so I have been putting off having some needed work done for years.

  I understand the downsides of public healthcare and have heard complaints from friend from Canada. But our healthcare system is overpriced, fraught with problems, and too many people do not have coverage.

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  Posted by __A_YAHOO_USER__ Wed Jun 24, 2009 7:16am PDT

  To me it is. I have a full time job and getting medical insurance thru my employment would cost me over $300 dollars a month for a family and over $ 200 for just me. Very expensive so I have to hold off on it for awhile.

  Lou @ http://EarningFreeMoney.com

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  Posted by Katie B Wed Jun 24, 2009 8:11am PDT

  I think for somethings it really is... and it shouldn't be... but the more we put it off the more expensive it gets. We are fortunate and have a good plan and before that we had our respective universities student health centers... But it is definitely harder for people to get the preventative care they need to stay healthy and avert the more catastrophic health problems that can be controlled when caught earlier...

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  Posted by Cranberry Lips Wed Jun 24, 2009 8:38am PDT

  Something is very wrong with our entire system. We, as Americans, pay more money into health care, health research, hospitals, nursing homes, etc. than any other country, and the care we receive in return is very sh*tty.

  I am a nurse and I hear hospitals complaining all the time about not having enough money. That's a load of bull, especially since an ER visit can make you $3,000 poorer. Hospitals buy all of their supplies in bulk, at dirt cheap prices. The state gov't reimburses them when their patients won't pay the hospital bill. They get cheaper electricity, water, and gas rates, and they charge every patient full price for everything.

  On the flip side, insurance companies are a bunch of greedy con artists with business degrees that only care about making money, not the well being of people.

  If they want real health care reform, they should first start out with the insurance companies, then drug companies, then hospitals.

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  Posted by Katie B Wed Jun 24, 2009 9:01am PDT

  Cranberry, I agree... True reform will only happen if they get to the root of the problem and not just cover it up...

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  Posted by Angela Wed Jun 24, 2009 9:13am PDT

  This has been the story of my life and everyone I know. It's not just because of the recession.

  I don't know a lot of people who have eye or dental insurance. I actually have both, but it doesn't really matter. They're both an extra cost to the huge monthly payment my husband and I make to keep our insurance, and as a result, we wind up putting off going for either of these things as long as possible. I couldn't see this screen without my glasses and neither could my husband. My mother also has terrible eyesight, and her glasses are very expensive.

  Dental care is outrageous. I have horrible dental problems and my coverage only allows for $1000 worth of care/year. I need well over that amount. It only covers 25% of crowns, which are almost $1000 each, and I currently need 6. I won't be getting those any time soon. My parents couldn't afford to take me to the dentist as a child. They worked all their lives. I've had a job since I was 11. And I know I'm not alone.

  It's ridiculous that dental care and eye care aren't covered by regular health insurance. How are the health of a person's eyes and teeth not related to their overall health? If I don't have glasses, I can't do anything, because I can't see. Poor dental health can kill people.

  We need a new way.

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  Posted by CK Wed Jun 24, 2009 10:57am PDT

  Most countries cover health care through personal taxes. However, most in the US do not want that approach. If we leave it to businesses to pay and provide to employees, costs will go up and not everyone will have access to Healthcare. When on unemployment, I paid $350 for my own care...that was over 20% of my total to live on...

  We need to develop a better system, but to do so, we need to accept that it will take higher taxes and less reliance on our companies to provide. Maybe fewer services will be available in some hospitals as they specialize in areas, but that is an opportunity cost we need to consider.

  Also, a great read is below...

  Study: Majority of bankruptcies tied to medical billsBy Dory Devlin, Shine staff, on Thu Jun 4, 2009 3:09pm PDT

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  Posted by WilliamM Thu Jun 25, 2009 12:58am PDT

  I have pretty good insurance. I seldom use it. I could easily afford to pay for what services I have used out of pocket, just as I did for the 20 odd years before I took my present job. Then, I had no insurance at all. When I got sick enough to need medical care, I went to a private doctor and paid the whole freight, and as I can recall even that was never onerous.

  Why is my experience different from that of "everyone" else? Maybe it's because I worked at keeping myself healthy? Didn't smoke, didn't drink, didn't use drugs, didn't overeat, didn't engage in risky or foolish behaviors, exercised and generally took good preventive care of myself.

  Could I come down with some ghastly disease tomorrow? Sure. Could I be injured accidentally? Yes. Am I worrying about it? No. Worrying about everything can make you sick, too.

  And most of all, do I think that society or the government or my employer or anyone OWES me health care? No. But I seem to be alone in wondering whatever became of personal responsibility.

  Let me ask this: When were this country's most halcyon years? When were we at our most powerful and prosperous? The 19th century? The decades fter WWII?

  And how many people had health insurance in those times?

  Then, you got sick, you went to a doctor, and you paid your bills yourself...or maybe your family helped out. And medical care was actually affordable then. Why? Maybe because government had yet to shove its finger up to the elbow into every aspect of the industry, with intrusive and burdensome mandates and paperwork and artificially low-cost competitors like Medicare?

  But let's not think about that. Let's just whine about how the government owes us everything we need, because we want our disposal incomes to spend on home entertainment systems and Beemers and iPhones...

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  Posted by CK Thu Jun 25, 2009 10:29am PDT

  I think the venom is a bit condescending and puts an unfair and inappropriate generalization on so many who you do not know. Happy to hear you've maintained great health and hope you never go through some things that others have. You may see things differently as Ebeneezer did when he opened his eyes to the world beyond his own...

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  Posted by Angela Thu Jun 25, 2009 10:40am PDT

  Yes, William M. Let's get in a time machine and go back to the 19th century, when poverty was at an all time high and the government had no idea what to do about it. When women had no rights, couldn't vote, and couldn't own property. I'm sure life before child labor laws was a wonderful time to grow up.

  And if you had been alive during WWII, you would have been off fighting in the war, and may not have even made it back to be posting here. You also likely would have smoked, since it wasn't only the cool thing to do, it was the sociable thing to do, and people were ENCOURAGED to smoke.

  I don't see anyone here whining about wanting disposable income AT ALL. When patients call my office crying because they can't afford a breathing medicine that costs $500, they're trying to figure out how they breathe AND eat. I'm glad I and many other people are not as selfish as you are to think that people deserve to die of their poverty.

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