Health Care Issues

So many people blame insurance companies for the majority of health care problems.  They fail to see that people are to blame for much of what has transpired with health care.

Insurance companies used to be there for just the big things, and they very rarely denied anything.  Then some not-so-bright people decided that insurance should cover everything.  Why?  Why should insurance cover every doctor visit and every prescription?  We should be able to afford to see a doctor or buy a prescription.  Taking care of our health should be just as important as having shelter and food on the table and we should be responsible enough to provide those for ourselves and our families.  Insurance costs increased when they had to start covering everything.  And the costs of doctor visits and tests increased when they were being covered by insurance, since they have to wait for payment.

Back when my son was a baby, insurance didn't cover everything.  It didn't cover "well baby visits", for instance.  And, back then, each visit had to be paid by the patient (or parents) and they were responsible for submitting paperwork to insurance companies for reimbursement.  With that system, the patient could - and did - argue with doctors about what tests or treatments were necessary.

Today, people don't much care about what the costs are, as long as their insurance company is paying for them.  Doctors have had to raise their rates because they often have to wait as much as 6 months for payment from the insurance companies.  (The reasons for that length of time vary and are often the fault of the doctor's staff because of coding incorrectly, or even - something I've experienced - having the doctor's office staff submit to the wrong insurance company.)

I have rarely had an insurance company deny anything.  When my son was always so sick as a baby, I used to have to submit bills for repayment with long explanations about the fact that while the original appointment was for a well baby visit, it was also discovered that he had a fever again and needed medication.  With the explanation, they would agree to cover part of the visit.

More recently, I did have the insurance company try to deny a prescription.  But once I explained that the reason it was so soon since the last time I ordered that medication was that the dosage had been increased, they approved the expense.

I've had more problems with doctor's offices than with insurance companies.

Not long ago, my doctor's office denied a prescription that I take regularly.  At first, I figured it was because they thought I was due for a visit to the doc, although it hadn't been that long since I was there.  Instead, I discovered that they "had heard" that I had moved to another city 3+ hours away and figured I needed to find a doctor in that city.  I don't know where they got that erroneous information.  But once it was cleared up, they approved the prescription refill.

I've been battling with a collection agency about a bill that doesn't belong to me.  They claim that I need to talk to the doctor's office.  The doc's office claims that it's out of their hands.  Neither one is going to make me pay for service that was not rendered.  (It's for a bill that says I saw this doc in August of last year, when the last time I saw him was in February of last year.)

I don't need the government to help me with these problems.  And I have never needed the government to help me see a doctor either.

As I've shared before, I was raised to know that my health was important and that I should budget for both insurance and for seeing a doctor on a regular basis, right along with budgeting for paying rent/mortgage and for food.  Going into adulthood with that knowledge meant that when I sought a job, I always sought one with good insurance benefits.  And it meant that when insurance benefits were not available, I realized that I must set aside money from every pay check for "contingencies" - like seeing a doctor.  To me, that was just part of being a responsible adult.

I also knew that if something happened and I could not meet these adult responsibilities, that there were programs available to me.

I knew there were free clinics all over the country.  Yes, they are a pain in the butt to visit since you can wait for hours.  Yes, sometimes you're looked down upon by employees there.  And yes, sometimes they're a bit of a drive from where one lives.  But they exist.

I also knew that non-profits and churches offer assistance to people who need medical care.

And I knew that drug companies have always had programs to help people who cannot afford their prescriptions.

I also discovered that in some towns there are medical studies and drug trials going on that one can get in on.  In one town where my son and I lived, there was a research facility directly across the street from us.  When I had bronchitis, they were having a study.  When my son had the flu, they were having a flu study.  And when I entered menopause, they were having a study about that.  In each case, we received free medical care, free prescriptions, and we got paid for our visits as well.

I was talking about all of this to one of my online acquaintances, and she admitted that finding programs like this was just too much work.  She would much rather let the government take care of everything for her.

And so it is, I think with so many today.  The easiest solution to everything is to let the government take care of it.  Every time we give them that ability, we lose one more piece of our freedom.  People today are giving up more and more freedoms willingly.

Some of us want to remain free.  Some of us don't want the government to stick their noses in our health care.

Hopefully, there are more of us than of those who want to be chained to the government.