Insurance? US vs Denmark - Page 2

Courtney9501 · 11-26-2007, 04:57 PM

I was told through my prev job not to mention TTC or I would be denied...wth is that about? If I am paying for it, and it is my life why have criteria??? The US claims to be a happy free country..I think it's all a crock!

VivC · 11-26-2007, 08:46 PM

Courtney, TTC wouldn't get you denied, but it might get you a pre-existing clause, which would mean they wouldn't cover any TTC for 1-2 years. Don't LIE on the application, but don't volunteer anything, either.

guineapig · 11-27-2007, 01:36 AM

I had "perfect" lab values, average weight, no medications, and I was still denied by every company in California & Utah for just putting "PCOS" on the application. This was in 2002. 'S what you get for being honest I guess. I even wrote letters to beg them to insure me and exclude the PCOS treatment, but I couldn't even get insurance for the flu.

Last month I tried to get an earlier derm appointment than the usual 6 month wait. I saw the PA instead, with still a 3-week wait, who looked at my ringworm and told me I had a rare and unusual virus and that I was contagious. I went home and used athlete's foot cream on the ringworm (since she wouldn't prescribe anything) and wholia! The ringworm is gone. So that is what I have to choose from around here when I don't want to wait 6 months. IT SUCKS! Also makes me want to be a PA LOL If they can do it so can I. Idiots.

guineapig · 11-27-2007, 01:38 AM

Note: usually on applications it asks specifically what medications you have been on and what conditions you have been treated for, in the previous time period (usually 6 months to 2 years). That's where it gets tricky. If you lie and they find out, your insurance will be canned. If you tell the truth, as I did, they often just stop at the health condition and stamp denied on it--without even reading the weight and forget examining blood labs. I would have KILLED for insurance with a pre-existing clause. I couldn't even get that. De-nied.

jlucy · 11-28-2007, 12:22 AM

guineapig, I was denied a couple of times too for PCOS. Now I'm thinking I want to try to to get on the state high-risk insurance even though it's so much money for such a high deductible because it is scary having nothing! But in order to do that I'm going to have to go apply for two policies and let them refuse me. I just cringe at the thought of going through all of that. It's a friggin' joke.

Oh, and I knew someone in Florida who got on Medicaid. She was able to because she got pregnant. She got GREAT care and it was CHEAP! And Florida has like five different programs for kids. Regardless of income level you can get affordable coverage. But once you hit 18 they could care less.

What peeves me is that if you are living in poverty you can get something and if you are employed by any big company, regardless of income you can get some coverage. But people like me, self employed but doing well financially, well, we get screwed. And just because I make a good living doesn't mean I could pay some $100,000+ hospital bill if I got injured.

singingdiva · 11-28-2007, 12:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Miyania

Hi everybody

Just got a quick question about health insurance

I've noticed some of you are talking about that you can't get the help you need because you don't have an insurance? I always (and excuse me for being so blonde *lol* I'm from denmark) thought even though you didn't have insuranc, you could get the help you needed to get well in the U.S. or other western countries?

But it doesn't work like that in the U.S.? because in denmark it's free... we have higher taxes, but free healthcare, or what you call it...

So people, enlighten me

How much does a health insurance cost, and how does it work?

Luv Miyania

hello Miyania,

I'm in a major city in the USA and its hard to get the help you need in this country without insurance.........the health insurance I had was $153 per mnnth just for one person and I had to pay co-insurance (which is a $20 fee for every doctors office visit) now add the prescriptions in there and it gets very expensive.......ooh and this insurance is a HMO or Health Maintenance Organization........in this area we have what is known as FREE CLINIC but its not really free and the medical care is SUB-standard

guineapig · 11-28-2007, 01:52 AM

Yeah. I wish I'd had the option of a high-risk pool. And we were poor at the time, I had lost my job and could not even get a job at a grocery place and DH couldn't get a job either. It took a long time for that to change, but b/c I had "so much money" on last year's tax return we wouldn't qualify for state help either.

Yeah, the self-employed and small employed really fall through the cracks. I guess that's why DH ended up as a "lowly"

teacher. And sometimes the big corps, like "Y"-Mart (KWIM) will employ people just enough to do their job but not enough hours to qualify for benefits. It's disgusting!!!

Georgia has insurance for kids, I believe, but there are strict guidelines for them, and the docs won't all take it either, particularly the specialists. There is no high-risk pool, but they do take pregnant women automatically on Medicaid too I think. But still, this leaves out a lot of hardworking people!!!

Jashobeam · 11-28-2007, 06:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Courtney9501

I was told through my prev job not to mention TTC or I would be denied...wth is that about? If I am paying for it, and it is my life why have criteria??? The US claims to be a happy free country..I think it's all a crock!

You are free to earn cash to pay your own bills. That's freedom. No one said the US is happy, but you have the right to pursue your own happiness. You don't have a right to force others to make you happy, not even insurance companies. Insurance is not understood in today's world it seems. Originally it was for tragic cases so people would not be hit hard if they got cancer. Now it's for every day things from daily meds to doctor visits. If the insurance company is paying more for people to see doctors and pay for medications, they have to get that money from somewhere. If you are getting a lot more from the system than paying in that leaves less money for the rest of the people in your plan. That's why some people are taking out high deductible plans and paying for their own day to day care. It leads to better health insurance in the long run. We pay quite a bit for our insurance and use it as needed. But, we were in our 20s before either of us were insured. My parents didn't get health insurance until I graduated high school. It took them years to pay off debts including hospital stays, but they did. We were pretty much dirt poor, but I had good medical care paid as we could. Now that's a great country.

KatCarney · 03-12-2008, 08:37 PM

MAGAZINE INTERVIEW REQUEST: Had trouble getting health insurance due to PCOS??

AngelaGrace · 03-12-2008, 08:48 PM

Thank goodness the company my husband works for pay his insurance fully. Nothing comes out of his check or anything. And since we got married, I am included in that with no charge. And all of our future dependents will be covered free of charge. It's pretty decent insurance, too. Very reasonable copays, Rx plan, etc., etc. But I believe this is pretty rare for a company to do. They are a small, successful company so that must be why.

Anyway, I count my lucky stars!!!

Leah97229 · 03-25-2008, 02:48 PM

We live in Oregon. My husband has a full-time (50+ hours a week) and gets his insurance for free (it's not the greatest though, $500 deductable and $2000 out-of-pocket max). To add me and our son, it would cost an extra $500 per month. Therefore, I have a part-time job working the minimum hours (24 hours per week) for a hospital to get me and my son insurance. It doesn't give my husband and I a lot of time together. As soon as he comes home from work, I go to work. I guess it's the way we have to live if we want to live in America.

JosieFB · 03-25-2008, 04:58 PM

Miyania,
I'd be interested to know what percentage of your income goes to taxes? I did a study on Finland for a Masters class, and I was shocked at the tax rate. For a person making $57K (Euro) which is equivalent to about $38K (U.S) the tax rates were like this:
Federal / National - 33.5%
Local / Municipal - 15 - 20%
VAT - 22%
Church tax - 1%

So the tax that is taken directly from the paycheck of a person who makes equivalent to $38K in the U.S. would be about 1/2 of their income. They would take home only $19K.

Most of us from the US are not familiar with VAT, but its similar to a sales tax except the seller adds it into the cost of the goods. My state probably has the highest sales tax in the U.S. at 9.25%. I'm not sure what all the 22% is added to in the Euro countries, so I can't make a comparison.

It may not be this bad in all Euro countries, but I just want people to understand what adding national healthcare will cost. People making $38K in the US today only pay about 20 - 25% of their gross income in taxes and maybe less than that. Would those of you who make around $38K be willing to give half your income to the government?

Tiffers1984 · 03-25-2008, 05:54 PM

What most people don't understand is that these insurance companies don't pay the sticker price for procedures. I am pulling out some Medicare EOB's that I've just finished working.

Office Visit billed: $76.00 Mcare paid $44.90 left $11.23 as copayment

Coronary artery bypass grafting Billed $6250 Mcare paid $1379.06 Copayment 344.76. Wrote off 4526.18.

People without insurance, high deductibles and copays get hit by this. I am all for health insurance reform. I have insurance through my employer but I know that they are a profit business by denying or not insuring people. Healthcare should not be a luxury but a right. If we can have public education, police departments, fire departments, libraries, etc why can't we have a public healthcare system?

There's a good video on youtube.com called R 676 - The Single Payer Solution, Part 1 of 4 that is worth watching if you'd lke to understand more about universal health care. (I would have posted video here but unsure about board rules on this

) You'd be suprised at the amount of doctors and nurses behind this. My twin sister is the manager of a group anesthesia doctors and CRNA's and they are all for Universal Health Care

Tiffers1984 · 03-25-2008, 06:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JosieFB

It may not be this bad in all Euro countries, but I just want people to understand what adding national healthcare will cost. People making $38K in the US today only pay about 20 - 25% of their gross income in taxes and maybe less than that. Would those of you who make around $38K be willing to give half your income to the government?

How much do you pay for premiums for insurance? For 1 person at $250 a month is $3000 a year. Now include in medication, doctors visits, possible emergencies. "In 2007, total national health expenditures were expected to rise 6.9 percent — two times the rate of inflation. Total spending was $2.3 TRILLION in 2007, or $7600 per person..," reported the NCHC. Now if you are married with 2.5 kids

that's $31500 a year at $7000 per person. That's $10,000 more than what I make. Try doing that as a single mother that makes enough money to make her ineligible for government assistance. Should she quit working and get on government assistance? Which we pay out of taxes? What usually happens is they don't go get preventative care or wait till it's life threatening. And preventative medicine is a whole lot cheaper than emergency medicine. And I don't want to get in to infant mortality rates....

There are many different plans about how they are going to pay for this. Most people are for the idea that Bush's tax cuts for the rich is going bye bye. Many different politicians have plans on this. It's worth researching to see who you want to stand behind.

But to answer your question

Yes, I would. If it meant I didn't have to worry about a bill. If someone I loved became seriously ill then they were treated no matter how much money they had. If their quality of care was not based on how much money they made and they got the same treatment as any other person. If people didn't go bankrupt over medical bills then yes. If it meant that I may be paying to provide a fellow American with healthcare that they couldn't otherwise afford then yes. Because one day I may need help and I would want my fellow countrymen to do the same for me. But that's just me

sue_trask · 03-25-2008, 07:33 PM

i think what we need to do is fix what we have before we even think of changing it. yes ins cost is high but i love it cause it pays for alot of my bills for stays and surgeries i had to get.