Current Events > American Health insurance is such a scam

(+) Yeah! (+)

Ive never had health insurance since being an adult because I knew costs were always so high for something I never needed. Now in my 30s Im looking into it again just to educate myself and fuck this is such a scam.

So you pay monthly into something, but insurance wont cover a dime of it until you pay off the deductible. Then youre still stuck with a portion of the costs. Work insurance for a healthcare worker at my job is $200 a month for a mid tier plan, but the deductible is $3,800. Only 50% of the bill is covered after the deductible is paid off.

Then if you work enough after a few months or so to pay off that deductible and it turns out you dont need to use it for anything, youre still stuck paying off the deductible the next year again.

Why universal healthcare isnt a thing yet in America confused me greatly. People already pay $100s into their health insurance and more if youre wealthy enough, but when free health care comes up people lose their minds! Its like theyd rather pay the $100s plus a month for something they may or may not use instead of adding a health care tax to their paychecks. Why?

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Because, health insurance is insurance.

Questionmarktarius posted...

Because, health insurance is insurance.

The deductible shouldnt be so high and the worst part is it doesnt roll over if unused the next year.

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Always viewed this as more of a "if you get into a $100k medical emergency, hopefully it'll be covered and you aren't fucked! just don't go to the wrong hospital."

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--Zero- posted...

The deductible shouldnt be so high

thanks, Obama!

I turned 26 a week ago, so I'm off my parents' insurance now. I'm really not looking forward to this.
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Why would we need universal health when we already have Obamas AFFORDABLE health care act? Literally anybody can get insurance now at an affordable price

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The entire healthcare industry is fucked. No one should ever have to chose between dying or a lifetime of debt.

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It is. System needs an overhaul.

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5 years ago I went to the hospital for 30 days.

My bill was 100k. I paid nothing, aside from that year monthly insurance.

Sadly, after all the reforms my 2020 healthcare is more expensive and not as good. Maybe backlash from insurance companies due to Obamacare.

Nevertheless, it still exists so when you go to the hospital you don't go into debt.

That said, the problem is that 100k bill is honestly too high. If I didn't have insurance they would even try to charge more than 100k.
Hospitals are scammers and insurance knows how to negotiate with them, regular people don't.

darkphoenix181 posted...

5 years ago I went to the hospital for 30 days.

My bill was 100k. I paid nothing, aside from that year monthly insurance.

Sadly, after all the reforms my 2020 healthcare is more expensive and not as good. Maybe backlash from insurance companies due to Obamacare.

What reforms happened in the last 5 years? I know they eliminated the individual mandate.

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One good thing about being poor is that you don't get fined for not having health insurance

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MC_BatCommander posted...

The entire healthcare industry is fucked. No one should ever have to chose between dying or a lifetime of debt.

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MC_BatCommander posted...

The entire healthcare industry is fucked. No one should ever have to chose between dying or a lifetime of debt.

This.

But you know. All hail the almighty dollar.

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Honestly most aspects of American life are a scam. People are just complacent (and even cool) with getting ass-rammed by big business.

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Jabodie posted...

What reforms happened in the last 5 years? I know they eliminated the individual mandate.

They got upset about having to cover pre-existing conditions.

RchHomieQuanChi posted...

Honestly most aspects of American life are a scam. People are just complacent (and even cool) with getting ass-rammed by big business.

Basic necessities are fairly priced. Rent isn't bad if you don't live in a rich city. Bougie shit is expensive as they should be.

Cable internet is bullshit though

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Insurance companies actually like it when "costs" are bloated. If the bill is $500, and they know they'll only pay $250, then they can go, "Look! We are awesome. You saved 50% by having insurance."

If you remove the insurance BS and the administrative burden it causes the total cost of healthcare would go down.

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An insurance model for healthcare had always seemed..wrong
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darkphoenix181 posted...

5 years ago I went to the hospital for 30 days.

My bill was 100k. I paid nothing, aside from that year monthly insurance.

Sadly, after all the reforms my 2020 healthcare is more expensive and not as good. Maybe backlash from insurance companies due to Obamacare.

Nevertheless, it still exists so when you go to the hospital you don't go into debt.

That said, the problem is that 100k bill is honestly too high. If I didn't have insurance they would even try to charge more than 100k.
Hospitals are scammers and insurance knows how to negotiate with them, regular people don't.

Then if the bill is too high the quick way out is bankruptcy which ruins your credit to the point where you can't afford a vehicle, house, apartment that does credit checks, loans including student, and more for about a good 7 years last I looked.

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dolomedes posted...

america sucks

If you don't like it you can GIT OUT

... What's that, no other countries are accepting American travelers right now?

Well, if you don't like it, you can STAY WHERE YOU ARE AND DIE OF COVID

Holy shit that medical plan sucks.

I pay $34/month, and have a $1000 deductible at my job.

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How accurate is this statement

America's med costs go directly into R&D which subsidizes the rest of the world's cheap nat'l healthcare since they can just buy the stuff we paid for- if the US goes full UHC, medical costs will go up worldwide

-something a buddy of mine said

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--Zero- posted...

Ive never had health insurance since being an adult because I knew costs were always so high for something I never needed. Now in my 30s Im looking into it again just to educate myself and fuck this is such a scam.

So you pay monthly into something, but insurance wont cover a dime of it until you pay off the deductible. Then youre still stuck with a portion of the costs. Work insurance for a healthcare worker at my job is $200 a month for a mid tier plan, but the deductible is $3,800. Only 50% of the bill is covered after the deductible is paid off.

Then if you work enough after a few months or so to pay off that deductible and it turns out you dont need to use it for anything, youre still stuck paying off the deductible the next year again.

Why universal healthcare isnt a thing yet in America confused me greatly. People already pay $100s into their health insurance and more if youre wealthy enough, but when free health care comes up people lose their minds! Its like theyd rather pay the $100s plus a month for something they may or may not use instead of adding a health care tax to their paychecks. Why?

Are there any services that the deductible doesn't apply to? Normally things like a yearly physical, or preventive procedures aren't subject the deductible.
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pogo_rabid posted...

How accurate is this statement

America's med costs go directly into R&D which subsidizes the rest of the world's cheap nat'l healthcare since they can just buy the stuff we paid for- if the US goes full UHC, medical costs will go up worldwide

-something a buddy of mine said

As an actual insurance agent. That's fucking stupid.
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pogo_rabid posted...

How accurate is this statement

America's med costs go directly into R&D which subsidizes the rest of the world's cheap nat'l healthcare since they can just buy the stuff we paid for- if the US goes full UHC, medical costs will go up worldwide

-something a buddy of mine said

A) Insurance companies are still making record profits, so not all money is going into R&D
B) Most of the research into pharmaceuticals actually begin at universities etc where a new chemical interaction is found - pharmaceutical companies then refine the findings to identify a medical application
C) A lot of medical research is conducted outside the US in other first world countries with socialized health care?

understatement of the century

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cool, thanks. I knew it sounded fishy

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Jabodie posted...

Always viewed this as more of a "if you get into a $100k medical emergency, hopefully it'll be covered and you aren't fucked! just don't go to the wrong hospital."

Sometimes that doesn't even matter. Went to a hospital that was in-network once but the doctor I saw was out-of-network and the lab they sent my blood work to was also out-of-network. Hello, extra several hundred dollars I didn't budget for. How the fuck can a hospital can be in network but a specific doctor in that hospital is out of network? If I had seen a different doctor who would have done the exact same shit it would have been covered.

Then there's the times where my wife has had two identical appointments except for one extra thing done at a second appointment that cost $30, but that one thing wasn't covered by insurance so the insurance company denied the entire fucking $500 visit like holy shit why can't I just pay the doctor $30 for the uncovered expense

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Healthcare is the most corrupt industry in America.

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littlebro07 posted...

Jabodie posted...

Always viewed this as more of a "if you get into a $100k medical emergency, hopefully it'll be covered and you aren't fucked! just don't go to the wrong hospital."

Sometimes that doesn't even matter. Went to a hospital that was in-network once but the doctor I saw was out-of-network and the lab they sent my blood work to was also out-of-network. Hello, extra several hundred dollars I didn't budget for. How the fuck can a hospital can be in network but a specific doctor in that hospital is out of network? If I had seen a different doctor who would have done the exact same shit it would have been covered.

Then there's the times where my wife has had two identical appointments except for one extra thing done at a second appointment that cost $30, but that one thing wasn't covered by insurance so the insurance company denied the entire fucking $500 visit like holy shit why can't I just pay the doctor $30 for the uncovered expense

A lot of times anesthesiologist won't be in network with any insurer. Nobody picks their anesthesiologist. It's such bullshit.

I think their should be a public and private option, but there needs to be more regulation about that BS.
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littlebro07 posted...

Then there's the times where my wife has had two identical appointments except for one extra thing done at a second appointment that cost $30, but that one thing wasn't covered by insurance so the insurance company denied the entire fucking $500 visit like holy shit why can't I just pay the doctor $30 for the uncovered expense

That's actually on your doctor. He could resubmit the claim minus the not covered service, and charge you the difference.
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harley2280 posted...

That's actually on your doctor. He could resubmit the claim minus the not covered service, and charge you the difference.

I tried that and they wouldn't do it :(

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littlebro07 posted...

harley2280 posted...

That's actually on your doctor. He could resubmit the claim minus the not covered service, and charge you the difference.

I tried that and they wouldn't do it :(

Your doctor wouldn't?
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harley2280 posted...

Your doctor wouldn't?

Well I called the billing office and talked to them about it but they wouldn't do shit.

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tell me about it. i work for an insurance company.

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littlebro07 posted...

harley2280 posted...

Your doctor wouldn't?

Well I called the billing office and talked to them about it but they wouldn't do shit.

What a buncha dicks.
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Of course privatized insurance is a scam. They are, by design, for profit and not for the welfare of people.

https://stanmed.stanford.edu/2017spring/how-health-insurance-changed-from-protecting-patients-to-seeking-profit.html

It is an idea that started out with good intentions (though still about manual labor costs) and worked better than the complete lack of any kind of care previously but it got corrupted by uncontrolled greed once those at the top realized how much money they could squeeze from it.

Yeah, for-profit insurance and for-profit healthcare are things we need to get rid of.

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mandatory:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kll-yYQwmuM

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I went to the hospital years ago because I woke up with breathing problems. They never figured out what the problem was, but they kept me overnight for monitoring.

My health insurance company tried to charge me as if I went to the hospital on the 1st day, went home, then went back on the 2nd day. They also tried to charge me for multiple doctor visits while I was in the room because some of the doctors were out of network. Like I had a choice of who walked through the door.

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Very job dependent

My health insurance:
free
amazing
gives $10,000/year for HSA. After 21k it can roll over into 401K (rolls over each year).

Obviously your opinion of health insurance will vary based off of what you have. Myself, obviously, I'm a fan. TC is in a different situation.

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AP3Brain posted...

Of course privatized insurance is a scam. They are, by design, for profit and not for the welfare of people.

https://stanmed.stanford.edu/2017spring/how-health-insurance-changed-from-protecting-patients-to-seeking-profit.html

It is an idea that started out with good intentions (though still about manual labor costs) and worked better than the complete lack of any kind of care previously but it got corrupted by uncontrolled greed once those at the top realized how much money they could squeeze from it.

That's a really interesting article especially the bit about medical loss care..

NightingaleMD posted...

Obviously your opinion of health insurance will vary based off of what you have.

Nah I have great insurance and I still think Insurance is fucked up. Everybody should have access to medical care without the threat of bankruptcy.
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