How much????????

[expat]

For the first time in 20 plus years of coming to the USA on holiday I had the need to visit a doctor. I got/have a rather nasty throat infection. So I took myself of to the local walking in clinic. I have to say my (first) experience of American health care was very good, though I am not sure if this was linked to the credit card I had in my hand The service was out standing and the wait was, well it was long enough to fill in some paperwork and then reach for a magazine in the waiting room before I was called in. Saw the doc, he confirmed what I already knew, but he was the only one of us who could medicate the problem and then went out to pay. I expected a weighty bill, but....when I looked at the breakdown, just to walk into his examination room......$165 before he even said, "say arrrrrr". The total bill was $218, so the "work" part was quite cheap I will get this all back via my insurance, but when talking to the ladies at the front desk, they told me that there are people without insurance and who cannot pay. So my question to our American members is; What happens if you turn up and cannot pay but need medical help. Is there for a national health plan for those who cannot afford medical care? I know Obama was trying to do something, but all the talking and arguing covered the basic subject, it was just about impossible to understand what was in plan.

Matt

[Theis]

Uninsured Americans are less likely to have regular health care and use preventive services. They are more likely to delay seeking care, resulting in more medical crises, which are more expensive than ongoing treatment for such conditions as diabetes and high blood pressure. A 2007 study published in JAMA concluded that uninsured people were less likely than the insured to receive any medical care after an accidental injury or the onset of a new chronic condition. The uninsured with an injury were also twice as likely as those with insurance to have received none of the recommended follow-up care, and a similar pattern held for those with a new chronic condition.[125]  Uninsured patients are twice as likely to visit hospital emergency rooms as those with insurance; burdening a system meant for true emergencies with less-urgent care needs.



From Wiki

[machineman9]

I remember when I broke my arm and had to go to a British hospital... I was waiting around for hours to get seen at all.

Then I broke my collar and went to an American hospital and I was out incredibly quickly. Thankfully I had travel insurance.


I really don't see the issue with Obama's plans. This country has a national 'free' health service, so does Canada if I remember correctly. If they are able to preserve the quality that I've witnessed in the American hospitals, but provide for everyone, I think that's for the better. Then some people go and beat down Obama for doing a smart thing. 

[Apex]

www.healthcare.gov

It is important to sort the facts from the fiction on this issue; this website may help.  I say "may" because I've only heard about it recently and have not had time to fully check it out; therefore cannot render an opinion about the website. 

www.ehealthinsurance.com

Enables an easy comparison of plans.  I recently used this site to locate a new company (for private health insurance), very easy to do.

[ShaneG_old]

I haven't been to a doctor in over 10 years.

When I get sick, I allow my immune system to take care of it.

If I get a bad cut, I bandage it up, and deal with the fact that I'll have a nasty scar.

When I broke my finger, I put a splint on it, and kept it immobile for 3 months, it still 'clicks' when I bend it, but it works.

Insurance has never been within my financial reach, and neither has doctor care.   :P

[Hagar]

[quote]Insurance has never been within my financial reach, and neither has doctor care.

[ShaneG_old]

[quote][quote]Insurance has never been within my financial reach, and neither has doctor care.

[Hagar]

[quote] I've been bed ridden sick for a weeks time a couple of times...

You'd be amazed at what the immune system will conquer if it's given the chance.

[ShaneG_old]

Emergency room visit, with several thousand dollars worth of bills that I can't pay.

[edit]
I had a rather lengthy explanation typed up, but every word of it violated forum rules.    [/edit]

[Hagar]

I'm glad I don't live in the US. People can run it down as much as they like but I still think our NHS takes a lot of beating.

[ShaneG_old]

Insurance is what killed our health care system.

These days, you're not paying for the care, you're paying for the lawsuit protection. 

[machineman9]

I'm glad I don't live in the US. People can run it down as much as they like but I still think our NHS takes a lot of beating.

Hmm, the NHS. When they're good, they're great. When they're bad, they're awful. Either way, the newspapers will knock them down. I've never had an experience with the NHS that has been 'alright', it always seems to be really bad or really good.

I was watching a program on first responders who go on their motorcycles, and they were top notch, but at times when I've been to hospital it has felt like I'd get better on my own before I get seen by a doctor

[Hagar]

[quote]Insurance is what killed our health care system.

These days, you're not paying for the care, you're paying for the lawsuit protection.

[Brett_Henderson]

Forum rules prevent frank conversations

[ShaneG_old]

Healthcare was never an issue in this country,
until Insurance companies and Lawsuits stepped into the game,
and raised the price of every aspect of medical care beyond the reach of normal people.

The fact that several million people are now without jobs
makes obtaining that coverage that much more impossible.

Do you have a link to that forum ? 

I see where this is going... I think we're on the same page, but to compare further notes would require that I step down as a mod.