without medical coverage, what does a person do..

[murray hill farm]

If they develop some scary symptoms and cannot go to a doctor..and has no money...not an all our emergency...but the definite symptoms of say lung cancer or prostrate cancer...breast cancer? What about the mild chest pain ...a signal...but not all out heart attack..but no insurance, no medicaid, no medicare..and no money.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

1. check out free clinics

also local healers. They might be able to help you out.

[Ladybast]

31. local free clinics are a good option

As a homeopath I would say first consult a homeopath--the treatment is gentler and addresses causes rather than symptoms, and is vastly cheaper.

Many homeopathic schools have student clinics at a third the cost of regular treatment. The students prescribe under the supervision of their clinical teacher. True for schools of oriental medicine, chiropractic, etc., as well.

Many homeopaths/doctors/accupuncturists/chiropracters/lawyers also do pro bono work at free clinics. I do this myself weekly at a local youth shelter. Our local women's shelter also has this type of free consultation, and women do not have to live there to use it, they just have to come in and say they can't afford regular treatment.

Find out where women's shelters or other shelters are maintained in your area.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

84. Homeopathy works for me

I had chronic bladder infections years ago, and the regular MD's antibotics just caused complications. So I went the homeopathic route, and have had only one flairup after I started-and that was over ten years ago!

[fluffernutter]

2. some hospitals have forms you can fill out

and they write it off or prorate your care, if you have no means to pay with.

[murray hill farm]

6. even if not an emergency?

where are free clinics..do all states have them? This is not for me that i ask..i am lucky enough to have insurance, but i got to wondering just what whould one do if they were sick and did not have any medical coverage and no money.

[Robbien]

8. Hospital clinics are not free, but they do deeply discount

Before using them always go to the hospital patient representative to have a financial need form filled out.

[juajen]

30. Free clinics in Lafayette are only available to people who work.

I am early-retired and on SS, but am not eligible for medicare until I am 65 yrs. 8 mos. In the meantime, I only go to hospital for emergency care. Had a stent put in/caused heart attack, bill was over 60,000 dollars. Had to declare bankruptcy. Last time I went was because of a stroke (small) where they discovered I had disbetes. I could not pay that bill, they are eating it, I think. I cannot afford any preventive care for my heart condition or diabetes. I do the best I can and just don't worry about it. When I go, I go. This is why I am not speaking to my best friend, who voted for *. She knew I was counting on Kerry to do something about health insurance, especially for those on SS who fall through the crack. She voted for him because of religion/abortion. That is their problem; they care more about fetuses than the living.

[FlaGranny]

44. Medicare is available as soon as you hit 65.

It is not on the same schedule as retirement benefits. You can get Medicare at 65 even if you don't take full SS benefits until 65 years, 8 months.

The following is from the Medicare Site:

"Although the retirement age is rising, 65 remains as the starting date for Medicare eligibility. You will be eligible to apply for Medicare if you have paid into Social Security for at least 10 years or you are eligible to receive Social Security benefits on your spouse’s earnings. If you do not meet these requirements, you can still get Medicare hospital insurance (Part A) by paying a monthly premium if you are a citizen or a lawfully admitted alien who has lived in the U.S. for at least five years.

Also, anyone who is age 65 and a citizen or a lawfully admitted alien with five years of residency in the United States can sign up for Medicare Part B. Medical Insurance and pay a monthly premium.

Be sure to sign up for Medicare about three months before you reach age 65. And remember, you do not have to be retired to enroll in Medicare."

[Robbien]

3. They wait until the symptom turns out to be a health catastrophe

and then show up in the nearest hospital's emergency room. Preventative medicine is not an option for them. Scary.

[Sugarbleus]

27. You are so right.... We NEED preventative medicine/access

FOR EVERYONE. Every state and each county operates differently, but on the whole, there is a crisis in healthcare for the un/underinsured citizens.

People who are underinsured or use medicare/medicaid are suffering. Some plans in Medicare don't cover everything...especially too many months in one year in hospital. No on-going drug coverage to be found in many plans (certainly not for the uninsured). People without healthcare coverage CANNOT get a routine x-ray/MRI (for example) unless they come up with the BUCK$$

Eyeglasses and dental work are hard to get as well. My sister is planning a trip to Mexico to find cheap dental...her teeth are rotten and falling out of her gums. She was refused an office visit at a local clinic because she wanted to use CASH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!??? WTF!

They told her she had to have either medicaid/medicare or a proper insurance carrier. NO CASH She had used this clinic over the years and did this same thing...always paid her bills. All of a sudden they refuse her! NO CREDIT, no payment plans...NOTHING. Both of her kneecaps are ruined from working in Hotels/motels cleaning rooms for years. She was loaned a couple old knee braces and scoots up and down her bedroom stairs instead of walking.... God damn!
My sister WAS going to a naturalist but when you need knee surgery..they can't help. Plus the naturalist couldn't treat her for a host of serious conditions; especially those related to life threatening diseases requiring DRUGS etc.

The "Free Clinics" are a godsend in terms of a quick fix up, but they can't and won't send you to a specialist or to surgery FOR FREE. If a person owns more than one car...EVEN IF THAT CAR DOESN'T RUN, they CANNOT get medicaid, for example.

The whole medical system is screwed up.

[SharonAnn]

4. they go to an Emergency Room at a hospital which has to see them

and the bill gets passed to the County and the county taxpayer pays for it, usually in property taxes.

Then as the costs for this go up and up, and people protest about the rising property taxes, money gets cuts from schools to pay for Emergency Rooms.

[thecrow]

43. My nephew broke his leg in CO while skiing and

THEY WOULDN'T TREAT HIM IN THE EMERGENCY ROOM! WOULDN'T SET HIS LEG!
THEY WRAPPED IT IN AN *ACE BANDAGE* AND SENT HIM PACKING FOR HOME!
He had to fly to the east coast on a plane with a broken leg and when he got home he had to have surgery on it because it had been unset for too long! They had to REBREAK it and do the surgery!
So, no not every emergency room necessarly has to take care of you.

[proud2BlibKansan]

48. That's horrible

and I believe illegal where I live.

My son cut off part of his hand. He had no health insurance. The hospital was wonderful. They helped him find a charitable foundation to pay his bill and a plastic surgeon who donated most of his services. The hospital even told us not to pay any of the bill or we could be held liable for it.

[Nordic]

68. call a lawyer

I smell a lawsuit.

nobody should have to go through that kind of pain

[FM Arouet666]

69. Violation of the law

http://www.medlaw.com/regs.htm

The ER has to treat him, if he suffered an untoward effect, as you suggest, they are negligent under the law.

[otohara]

85. May I Ask Which Hospital

this is outrageous!

[classics]

5. Die

Thats America.

Sure you can show up at an emergency room if you really are dying, but for real medical care, the kind that finds problems and saves lives, forget it.

[murray hill farm]

9. and how many americans are without medical coverage?

how many children? Shit...are they all in this position?

[Robbien]

14. Edwards' campaign stump speech said 40 million uninsured

I also saw a PA spot which said for one out of five children, the family's choice is either food or medicine. Both are not an option.

[katinmn]

51. It's now 45 million

1.5 million more people went off insurance in 2003.
www.covertheuninsuredweek.org

This organization, now entering it's 3rd year, has two former presidents co-chairing it and things haven't gotten any better.

[tsuki]

52. 40 million working Americans. The poor have Medicaid, the

retired over 65 have Medicare and the rich have any care they want.

Working Americans are without.

I tried to talk to some Medicare recipients about the problem, and they said it was the person's fault if they didn't have insurance. When I told them how much medical insurance cost, they said gee, really, those people need to look for cheaper insurance. There was a lot of "moral caring" there.

Then their policies went up $17 a month, and it was catastrophic. It turned me off Medicare recipients.

[Robbien]

55. Isn't it awful how the victims victimize themselves?

As if no one else had anything to do with the plight they have to deal with on a day to day basis.

It is NOT their fault, not totally. Greed plays a big part.

[FlaGranny]

46. Yes, we are all in that postion.

I have enough money to see the doctor if I have to, but hospitalization or expensive tests are not an option for the next six months until I'm 65.

[Lizzie Borden]

56. Oh! You took the words right out...

of my mouth. And really, who will care? That's one more social security check that won't have to be sent out. You see where I'm going with this. And your government does'nt care. Hell if you're sick there are just more tax dollars to go around if you DIE!

[Lizzie Borden]

57. Oh! You took the words right out...

of my mouth. And really, who will care? That's one more social security check that won't have to be sent out. You see where I'm going with this. And your government does'nt care. Hell if you're sick there are just more tax dollars to go around if you DIE!

[genieroze]

72. I thought it, you posted it. lol

[RebelOne]

7. Or they can do what I had to before I had medical insurance.

I had to use credit cards and I am still in debt.

[Cleita]

10. They die.

There was a case in Idaho where I used to live. A man who got Lou Gherig's disease in his early forties. He had a wife and seven children. As his disease progressed, he became unable to work. When the money ran out, there was no more medical care. The wife took to drinking and the kids lived off the land and whatever they could get from the food bank.

As time progressed, the home they lived in started to deteriorate. She kept the kids from school and claimed to home school them because she couldn't afford decent clothes to send them to school. She couldn't pay the utilities so they were cooking food outdoors on a campfire. When her husband died, with no medical care, neighbors chipped in to help bury him.

The case got national attention when the kids held off sheriffs with hunting rifles when they arrested their mother for child neglect and squatting. It gets worse. The woman couldn't make the property tax payments so her $150,000 home was sold for a few thousand dollars to cover the taxes due.

They took her kids away and put them in foster homes. She sat in jail for eight days while there was a public cry of outrage over her treatment. To this day, I don't know what happened to her except that a neighbor took her in so she wouldn't have to live under a bridge.

I really think our country can do better than this shameful episode.

[Tracer]

11. You call up a local doctor and make an appointment.

I have no health insurance either, but am not prepared to take major risks.

A few months ago I had some odd and disturbing symptoms. Made an appointment and got thoroughly checked out ... and it turned out to be nothing.

Yes, it cost me $500, but it was well worth the price.

[murray hill farm]

13. $500 might as well be a million if..

u dont have it or any way to get it....what do these people do?

[eleonora]

15. yes but had you had something

you couldn't afford the treatment, so what's the use?

[SharonAnn]

32. Many doctors won't see new patients without insurance.

[thecrow]

42. Many doctors won't see new patients WITH health insurance!

[eleonora]

12. Good question

You'll probably get no medical service unless you're at death's door...we live in a medieval country, didn't you know?

[outraged2]

16. "...unless you're at death's door"

even then, its questionable. grrr

[nannah]

17. options vary from state to state

In the state of WA, people with limited resources who are unable to work for more than 90 days, (meeting a legal/medical criteria for disabled) may qualify for a monthly stipend and medical coupons through a program called GA.

Another program in WA to help people with medical expenses provides medical coupons to people with totally disabling conditions who have income above SSI standard, but no insurance and not enough money to cover medical expenses.

Throughout the US, people who are totally disabled for a year or more may qualify for a federal program called SSI. People on SSI get medicaid coupons which pay for a full spectrum of care.

Pharmeceuticals are available through networks that distribute donations of drugs from drug companies. As I understand it, these donations are somehow mandated so networks coordinate the availability of medication with local need. In WA, we have a network called CHOICE.

I work as a social worker in WA working in the programs I described above.

Perhaps we could provide a state by state resource for ways to access medical care and supplies by gathering information through DU.

[murray hill farm]

19. great idea..list of state by state

with 40 million americans without medical coverage...and no access of medical help..and no idea how to get it..means 40 million have no care unless it is an emergency..and no idea how to get help if they need it other than the emergency room....and then it may well be too late. The thought of children going without basic health care is heartbreaking...and what hell to be a parent that must see their children go without care...and not be able to do a thing about it.

[ebayfool]

38. I don't know @ WA, but in CA it's next to impossible to qualify for SSI.

They have raised the bar so high, many give up or die before getting any kind of help. I personally know one cancer victim who died before it was approved (yeah, that helped!), his last 2 years of life were a misery trying to fight the system. SSI for handicapped children is were it's gotten really ridiculous. My grandson was born w/Hirschsprung's Disease (his colon, large intestine & portion of his small intestine were removed @ 4days old. He was granted SSI till the GOP congress decided to 'review' ALL SSI cases & the nightmare began. They decided that he was no longer handicapped by the 'new' criteria (which, BTW, also meant he no longer qualified for medical coverage), along w/many others. Once when I was pleading w/the social worker handling his case, she said their orders from on high were to review ALL children, She said she was having to cull children w/heart conditions & in wheelchairs. I asked her why was it coming down on kids & not as much on adults & her response was chilling. 'Kids can't vote, their caregivers are usually too tired & busy to vote or be politically active, & it gives them a flag to wave & show the country how much $$$$ is saved when you cut the 'fraud' out. That makes it easier to go after the adults & seniors next, you have the public backing because you can show them it's cost efficient.' She was crying when she said this. As far as myself, I am his only provider, so I do what I have to do when i get sick. I buy antibiotics from the pet supply store (cheaper than a drugstore & no office visit). I haven't seen a free clinic in many a moon, & E.R. visits are sent to collection agencies, not what I can deal with - life is hard enough without them.

[sandnsea]

58. That's just annoying

I cannot stand people who act as if there's solutions for people who are working and have no insurance. Well no duh there's programs for the disabled, called SSD, if you can manage to wait the 2-3 years it takes to get qualified. And drug company donations only last a year or so. There's nothing for low and moderate income working people, not a thing. And I'm fed up with people who think there are magical programs out there to treat sick people, I can't tell you how many times I've had wealthy people say there's all kinds of free places for people to get medical care. There aren't. So don't add to the bullshit, kay?

[ebayfool]

75. Thank you - said it better than I did!

I really am tired of hearing there are so many options. I live it, I've looked around & they are not as commonplace as people that aren't in the boat think. I'm not ignorant, I've applied for the programs - they rarely help. But so many people just seem to think that saying it's covered by all these programs makes it a fact. I don't swallow fish antibiotics because I'm making a choice, I have no choice.

[eShirl]

18. the Hill-Burton Act (if you're 'low-income')

http://www.hrsa.gov/osp/dfcr/obtain/Freecare.htm

FREE HOSPITAL CARE
NURSING HOME CARE
AND CARE PROVIDED IN OTHER TYPES OF HEALTH FACILITIES UNDER THE HILL-BURTON PROGRAM
What’s Hill-Burton Free Health Care About?

In 1946, Congress passed a law which gave hospitals and other health facilities money for construction and modernization. In return, the facilities that received these Hill-Burton funds agreed to (1) provide a reasonable volume of services to persons unable to pay, and (2) make their services available to all persons residing in the facility’s area. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is responsible for the administration of this program.

The following is a simplified explanation of the Hill-Burton program at most health facilities. Some Hill-Burton facilities may use different eligibility standards and procedures. For additional information, call the HOTLINE. Toll Free at 1-800-638-0742 or for Maryland Residents 1-800-492-0359.

Our internet website at continually updates the list of obligated facilities and provides other information about this program.

Hill-Burton facilities must provide services without discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, or creed. They also may not discriminate against Medicare or Medicaid patients. For more information about the Community Service Assurance, you may call the Office for Civil Rights. Their Toll Free number is: 1-800-368-1019.

WHAT’S AVAILABLE?

Free or low cost health care. Many health facilities must give health care to some people who cannot afford to pay. Hill-Burton facilities must post a sign that says "NOTICE - Medical Care for Those Who Cannot Afford to Pay" in the health facility's Admissions Office Business Office and Emergency Room.

Who Can Get It?

You may qualify if your income falls within the Poverty Guidelines, published annually by the Department of Health and Human Services. You may also qualify at some facilities if your income is up to double the Poverty Guidelines (or triple the Guidelines for nursing homes).

Where Can You Get It?

At Hill-Burton assisted facilities including hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, etc. Apply at the Admissions Office or Business Office.

When Can You Apply?

At any time---before or after you receive care; even after a bill has been sent to a collection agency.

How Can You Receive It?

Ask for Hill-Burton assistance.

SERVICES AVAILABLE

Each Hill-Burton facility can choose which types of services to provide at no charge or reduced charge. They do this in an ALLOCATION PLAN published in the newspaper.
The facility must give you a written INDIVIDUAL NOTICE which will tell you what types of Hill-Burton free or reduced charge services it provides.
Only facility costs are covered, not your private doctor’s bills.
Hill-Burton facilities must provide a specific amount of free or reduced charge care each year, but can stop once they have given that amount.
To obtain a list of Hill-Burton facilities in your area, call the HOTLINE telephone number.
ELIGIBILITY

If your income is less than the current Poverty Guidelines, facility services may be free.

If your income is greater than, but not more than double the Poverty Guidelines (or triple the Guidelines for nursing homes), Hill-Burton facilities may provide services at full charge, reduced charge, or free. The INDIVIDUAL NOTICE will tell you what income levels qualify for free care.

The facility may ask you to provide information to verify eligibility, such as proof of income.

Hill-Burton facilities must make a determination of your eligibility within a set time frame. Time frames depend on when a request is made and on whether the facility is a hospital, nursing home, or other type of facility. See the Facility’s INDIVIDUAL NOTICE for the time frame in place at the facility.

The facility must provide you with a written statement which says either when you can get free or reduced charge services or why you have been denied.

Follow these steps:

1. Ask facility personnel for a copy of the INDIVIDUAL NOTICE. (This notice will tell you exactly where in the facility to apply.)

2. Ask how to apply for Hill-Burton free care. The facility may request that you fill out an application.

3. If you are asked to furnish proof of income eligibility, give this information to the facility (a pay stub may be requested).

4. If you are asked to apply for Medicaid, Medicare, or some other financial assistance program, you must do so.

5. When you return the completed application, ask for a DETERMINATION OF ELIGIBILITY.

(snip)

[sandnsea]

59. Not so much anymore

I don't know if they are still using Hill-Burton funds to help hospitals and clinics. Used to be low-interest loans would be given through Hill-Burton, then hospitals/clinics would provide free services. But alot of hospitals and clinics paid these back when the federal govt required abortion services. So alot of places don't have Hill-Burton anymore, for that reason alone.

[Princess Turandot]

77. Hill Burton long predates Medicaid and was intended to encourage..

not for profit hospitals to see 'charity cases'. Hospitals received funding for construction programs generally, and depending on the amount of the loan, had to work off a specific dollar amount of their HB obligations by seeing uninsured poor patients. The Medicaid program effectively supplanted Hill Burton as a mechanism of care for the poor. I think the largest Hill Burton grants occurred in the 1960's, so many hospitals have already paid down their required obligations and no longer have a 'Hill Burton' account to write off free care to. It doesn't hurt to ask, but I don't think many hospitals still have these obligations anymore. The only new requests for proposals from Hill Burton which I saw when working in the hospital field in the '90's were very small ones intended to construct specialty programs like a dental suite for caring for HIV+ patients. Those grants were much less than $100,000, as opposed to the original prgram grants which paid out millions of dollars.

[patdem]

20. I can tell you exactly, by experience, what happens

I had had pains for years in my side..when I had insurance they said..well it is either a spastic colon or gall stones..nothing done for years I was in pain from something...my first pains were at 17...I am now 50. Till the last 5 years I had insurance. So I end up without insurance and the pain comes and does not go away...ever..so I take asprin and aleve and tylenol and even my friends prescription drugs for anxiety, cause it was calmative...so I go on like this for about two weeks...very little sleep...much pain. I end up having a siezure and taken to the emergency room by ambulance. When they took out the IV the bleeding did not stop because of all the asprin I had taken over the past two weeks.

Then two days later..as the pain started to subside but remained in my side, I thought maybe it really was an appendicitis attack so I went back to the emergency room...and come to find out I had a gall stone the size of a golf ball! Really..the size of a golf ball (or ping pong ball)...Cost me 2,500 for the seizure and 17,000 to remove the gall stone plus all the doctors who attented. And unless you are truly poverty stricken they do not give you a break!!!!

You know what happened to Asscroft...well that happened to me...and I even asked..what if I don't have the operation? Of course it was possible death from infection etc...

The insurance company who would have clout probably would have paid about $700 for the first visit and about $8,000 - $10,000 for the operation...:grr:

[girl gone mad]

74. This may not have been an option in your case,

but often times hospitals are willing to negotiate when you are scheduling surgery. You can haggle over everything you will be billed for, right down to the $20 tylenol. It's best if you have a choice of hospitals, and it's also important to get any agreements in writing and pay as much as you can in advance (Using home equity or savings would be better than paying with a credit card). Also, have a family member keep a detailed journal of the care you recieve while in the hospital - that way they cannot bill you later you for care you never received.

Doctors are also usually willing to offer lower rates to the uninsured. You should always ask for a discount because no insurance means significantly less paperwork for their office.

The uninsured need to be proactive about their medical care, but unfortunately they are often too overwhelmed.

[Lady Effingbroke]

21. If you're rich in America, you can buy the best medical care in the world.

If you are poor, buy a shovel (if you can afford one) and start digging.

I have no health insurance. I have thought about this situation before and I know that if I were to develop a disease such as cancer, I would die from that disease as I cannot afford treatment of any kind. More than likely I wouldn't really know what killed me, since I could not even afford a visit to the doctor for the initial diagnosis. I would just feel sick until I dropped dead without knowing why.

Welcome to the 18th century, peasants!

[murray hill farm]

24. very scary scenario

what is wrong with our country? Looking at the face of this..may be the scariest thing i have seen about what has happened in the USA.

[RPM]

22. die a long slow death

or, if one is lucky, a quick death. If one is unable to buy healthcare, he is unfit; As the only fittest survive, the person unable to buy healthcare must die.

Welcome to compassionate conservatism - prolife my ass.

[Lady Effingbroke]

23. pro-life =cult of the holy fetus

[FizzFuzz]

64. and for anti-evolutionists, they sure do believe in social Darwinism.

disgusting. The values they tout are so twisted I can't even stand to think about it. :mad: :nuke: :nuke: :nuke:

[AngryOldDem]

25. We get this all the time at the homeless shelter I work at

We send our clients to the hospital, which has to see them. Most often, they are looked at, kept overnight if warranted, and then released with some medicine or other treatment plan.

It is not the best of care, but since the local charity hospital was shut down because of corporate greed a few years back, this is the best we can do.

[shesemsmom]

26. If a hospital accepts government funds

they have to provide so much charity care. But requires much paper work and you have to fall in the guide lines of course. Its best to be without work entirely if you plan to use it. And then of course you would find yourself homeless. But does the hospital care, hell no

[smirkymonkey]

28. I honestly believe that "thinning out" the "less desireable"

portions of the population is an integral part of their plan. This is one of the many ways in which they are carrying it out.

It's a slightly less obvious version of "Kill The Poor."

[murray hill farm]

29. Yikes!!

even more scary is that i know u are right...that i believe this to be true.

[diplomats]

33. If you cannot afford health care and are treated at a hospital,

they will treat you but add the cost on to those who are insured. It's called cost-shifting and Hillary Clinton talked about it when she was trying to set up a health care plan.

Remember all the ballyhoo when President Clinton set up that committee on health care with Hillary as chairman? How I wish they could have established a plan - the situation just keeps getting worse. And the Repugs couldn't care less if most of the people are without health care. :grr:

[FlaGranny]

49. On the other hand, if you

are uninsured and go to the hospital, they WILL try to collect from you, and not at the rates insurance companies pay, but TOP DOLLAR rates and they'll try to take anything and everything you have to pay the bill.

[FizzFuzz]

65. god help us, this sounds pretty credible. n/t

[DarbyUSMC]

34. If you stick with the application process, Medicaid is there for those

with low or no income. It is a pain in the neck but it covers you for hospitalization and doctor's appts. Some doctors, dentists and eye doctors don't take Medicaid patients but there are many who do. The qualifications vary from state to state. I have the feeling that a lot more people are eligible for it but due to the amount of paper work required, do not apply for it. Also, if you own your home, some people think that "they" will take your house. Long term care in a nursing home may mean that a lien will be put on the house (in the event it is ever sold, the state will get their money first). Also as posted in this thread, Hill Burton hospitals have to take those unable to pay. Unfortunately, the ER's are misused by people who use it as a doctor's office because they don't have a doctor. Some states have walk in clinics that are reasonable or use a sliding scale to determine how much the charge will be to the patient. If you owe Doctor's and/or hospitals, remember that they can't repossess the services given. Don't pay them rather than the rent and utilities. People get frazzled if they get phone calls or threatening letters and send the little money they have which should be used to keep a roof over their heads.


Former worker Dept. of Social Services in NY,

[ebayfool]

41. Doesn't take long for Hill Burton to not apply.

Hill Burton hospitals have to take those unable to pay but can stop once they have given the amount that they are required to do. With a growing (& aging) population w/out insurance, it doesn't take long to use up. There is only 1 in my area, they are well known for this.

[FlaGranny]

50. There is no way that you can get

Medicaid if you are making enough money to live on. The earnings cap was ridiculously low last time I checked (for my niece).

[sandnsea]

60. Here's another one

Are all social workers this delusional? Seriously. Do you really think anybody who needs help can get help? If social workers don't even get the scope of the problem, no wonder we aren't getting anywhere with fixing the health care services in this country.

[Princess Turandot]

76. Most hospitals who got money thru Hill Burton have long since..

worked off their obligations to provide free care. I guess it is worth inquiring about but I don't think many hospitals have remaining obligations. Hill Burton was in effect a program to provide some level of care for the poor. It was created before the Medicaid program was, which does the same thing more comprehensively. As you probably know, with Medicaid, available services vary by state. There is a core of basic services that the state is supposed to provide under federal guidelines. They also can offer additional forms of coverage and NYS was always among the most generous in that regard. (The 'Home Relief" program catgeory for example, was a NYS program, although it no longer exists.) In addition, a few years back, states were allowed to request waivers from the federal Medicaid system by presenting plans of their own, which largely revolved around mandatory HMO participation by Medicaid recipients.
The waiver states also had the ability to change provided services at that point.

The only 'new' Hill Burton applications which came across my desk in the 1990's related to certain specialty care for AIDS patients.

Some states will take away your home if you apply for Medicaid/Welfare services and then go back to work. They have some sort of a restitution provision. I know this because a cousin of mine was on public assistance for awhile in Pennsylvania, and they had to sign a lien on their home. When he went back to work, he had to pay back a certain amount of the money which they received.

Former NYC hospital fiscal person

[cloud75]

35. county health clinic

go to a county health clinic don't be shy tax payers money supports them and we all pay taxes despite what some on the right say sales taxs is for everyone

[sandnsea]

61. All counties don't have them

And sometimes they're only for children or seniors. I guess people really do believe the old "nobody lacks health care in America" line.

[amazona]

36. what I did

For 15 years I had no medical insurance. When I had scary symptoms, I just ignored them as best I could. Mild chest pain? Even with insurance coverage, I ignore that one. Maybe you just over-exercised or something. But I'm hesitant to say that anyone should do as I did. At one point, my doctor did find some lumps, and I was able to have them removed by a crystal healer before I went back for further testing and surgery, so the surgery was cancelled. How likely is it that this will work for someone else? It might have just been coincidence. And benign growths can come and go, at least in women (fibroids would be an example).

People do die without medicine so I would urge you to find some way to get the money or to put the money on a charge card even if you can't pay it. Get well now and worry about the money later if you can. Alternative treatments are no longer all that cheap, either. So you're kind of screwed either way these days.

[wabeewoman]

37. One thing that can be done

is to become healthier. Most of the diseases Americans get are due to lifestyle so stop smoking, drink in moderation, maintain a healthy weight, exercise and eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains and less junk food, sugar and fat. That said, I think medical care is a basic human need and should be affordable for everyone. The WORST thing is being a parent with a sick child and not being able to afford a doctor. It is a crime that this can occur in what once was the richest nation in the world.

[amazona]

40. it doesn't work of course

I was born with an illness. SO I can safely say that my problems were not caused by smoking, eating, or drinking, or lack of exercise. Well, maybe lack of exercise. It is hard to get many leg lifts in when you're in the womb.

People don't choose to be ill. I know lots of thin non-smokers who eat all the right foods, and it is not a substitute for medical care. They still get sick. Some of them have died. In their 50s! Mother Nature didn't intend for us to live much past age 40, so after that, even people who do everything right are going to need to make some use of technology unless they are very, very lucky.

[hfojvt]

79. mother nature's intentions

You think it requires modern medicine for most people to live "much past 40"?
Check your facts. In the file on my ancestors, a quick search finds Matthew Grant (1601-1681) (80); Josiah Hull (1616-1675) (59); George Hull (1590-1659) (69); Elizabeth Loomis (1619-1675) (56); Thamzen Mitchell (1592-1659) (62); Joseph Loomis (1590-1658) (68); Mary White (1590-1652) (62); Georg Honer (1676-1750) (74); Johann Merkt (1672-1739( (67); Magdalena Keller (1677-1731) (59); Mathias Bihler (1652-1734) (82); Maria Hagen (1685-1757) (72), etc.
I find plenty of people in the 17th century living way past 40, and they did it without health insurance.
What we have today is the ability to allow people with serious birth and childhood illnesses to live well past the age of 10, and also to keep people alive in a semi-vegetative state well past their 90s.

[leftofthedial]

39. very expensive (to the rest of us) emergency room visits

suffering

death

[classics]

45. America is building a better slave.

Its a form of eugenics. Just like old slave owners would breed the biggest man with the fattest slave woman to get the biggest strongest 'stock', then sell the runts.

America simple wants to build a better slave by 'letting' those who cant afford insurance to die. Those who are more willing to say, work 20 hours a day for minimal coverage will survive and breed, making a better more compliant lower class working slave in the next generation.

Some people call it 'passive eugenics'. Not as fast as using a gun but it ends the same way.

[ElsewheresDaughter]

47. don't get sick! and if you do go to the ER

[HeeBGBz]

53. We die.

I've put off appointments time and time again for things I suspect are wrong with me because I have to pay cash as I go. I was set up for a free mammogram, but got notified they were no longer funded.

Just a few days ago I found out I need $3000 worth of dental work for things that have kept me feeling ill for the last year or so. It will not get better until I have it done. When I mentioned how finances were a problem, the dentist left the room and left me to talk to the nurse/assistant to decide what to do.

It was like "Whoops, no money, don't waste my time."

I have several things eating away at my health. One or the other will probably kill me. I can't spend $250 here or $1000 there and find out that I still haven't located the right medical problem to tackle. It's a lot of money to waste in the hunt to find out why I feel like shit all the time.

Perhaps it's better not to know.

[sandnsea]

54. This would be the answer

Wait until things get so bad the doctor knows right away what's wrong with you. I can't afford thousands of dollars of tests to be told we need more test either. Or to find out I can't afford the medicine anyway.

[bhikkhu]

62. Hope for the best.

Chest pain? Hope it will go away. No point in diagnoses where either it is nothing, and the doctor soaks you for an office visit and labs, or it is something, and then you are screwed and know it.

[stavka]

63. Head to the ER

Emergency rooms have no choice but to treat them...that's how we are all paying for universal health care ANYWAY.....

[knitter4democracy]

67. and hopefully you'll get good care

Not to rip on all ER docs, but they really aren't trained in general care, and it shows. It used to be that ERs were staffed by family practitioners, internists, and pediatricians with some trauma training, but now there's a separate specialty.

You know what I would do? I'd call the closest residency program and see if they could see me. I know the one my husband just finished is the only one in town that even takes some insurances, and they are very used to seeing people in really bad shape (financially and physically). They either would treat you or know where you can go for help. Otherwise, I'd tell you to come see my husband (who's seeing all the new patients in his practice) who'd figure out a way to treat you.

David can't even talk about how angry he is most days about this. He's severely pissed off we don't have a national health care plan, and yes, he is working for one. He's not the only one, either.

[wantkerryin]

66. I am in a similar position

I don't know if it helps or not but there is a Yahoo group(it is free-you don't have to be a yahoo member) called CUH- Citizens For Universal Healthcare.

[FM Arouet666]

70. If you are sick, the hospital must treat you

http://www.medlaw.com/regs.htm

It is a violation of this law to turn away those that cannot pay. I see patients all the time that have no means to pay, I don't even look at insurance information anymore. Those that have no insurance are accepted, treated and enrolled in the states health insurance plan. I live in Arizona, and those who cannot afford insurance, are enrolled in the states health care plan, called Access.

This is just a patch, however, since those that have a moderate income, don't qualify for state assistance. They are stuck with huge bills. The U.S. health care system is broken, patients and doctors agree, the politicians and insurance companies apparently don't.

[ebayfool]

80. Wrong - all of them in my area shunt you off to county hospital ...

& there have many many instances where people have died in transit. (You wouldn't want county here either, roaches in full view day & night & frigging filthy - & notorious for the piss poor medical service they 'provide'.) People spout this 'medical is available for all' garbage because they don't have to live it.

[Yupster]

71. Why no medicaid?

I thought that was based on pverty rather than age?

Also, my state has a high risk insurance pool for people who can't get insurance. Do you not have that option? It's heavily subsidized according to income.

[OhioChick]

73. God.....

I can't even fathom thinking about this, having a chronically ill child......I'd lose my house and everything....

[hfojvt]

78. have you seen "The Last Starfighter"?

The first officer says: "Guidance out, auxilary steering out. We're locked into the moon's gravitational pull - what do we do?"

The Captain answers - "We die!"

However, I believe that you goto L'Hospital, they give you treatment, and they send you a bill. You either make payments, or declare bankruptcy. I believe that in most states they cannot refuse to treat you.

[porkrind]

81. Die.

It's the kinder, gentler conservatism. This is how the republicans "practice their love."

Besides, by republican thinking, if you can't afford health care, you must be poor, and therefore lazy. Lazy poor people don't need help, they need a kick to help them "pull themselves up by their own bootstraps."

[brook]

82. take two aspirin.

A couple of weeks ago I had a painful and disruptive night. Thought I might be having a heart attack - but then again wondered if it was only indigestion (which I have never had in my life - but know the symptoms are similar). I took two aspirin about 3 am and went back to bed. My thought was that if it was a heart attack, maybe I'd pass away - which would be good, considering my lack of decent insurance and the toll financially and emotionally on my kids...

My hope is that by the time I am sick enough for a doctor, it'll be quite terminal.

[madison2000]

83. Suffer and die

My best friend died of ovarian cancer three years ago. She lost her insurance due to divorce- she went through a long and terrible year. She wasn't feeling well but the symptoms were pretty generic- abdominal pain and bloating, fatigue, etc. She would have gone to a doctor if she'd had a way to pay for it. By the time she got to a doctor she had stage 4 ovarian cancer and was dead 2 months later. She was 42.

I have migraines. The notion that you can just go to the emergency room is a Republcan myth. Most ERs will not treat you if you cannot at least put up a fee of $75 (unless your illness is life-threatening). To be treated for a migraine costs about $1000 or more. It seems silly, as I've had them for over 20 years, and I can tell them exactly what I need, but they have to do their thing, and it costs.

If I can't pay the bill it goes against my credit history, and eventually the hospital shifts the cost of uncompensated care to other charges. The hospital raise its costs, which in turn raises everyone elses premiums. So instead of dealing with the migraine by going to an ER, I have often laid in bed clutching a bottle of Aleve for 5 days and vomiting my guts out. Just wasted days of life.

The ER will tell you to seek appropriate care- but a new doctors appt is expensive. The drugs for migraine are REALLY EXPENSIVE as they are all under patent. One month I spent $140 for two shots 3 times so I would not miss work. Never mind that all the money I earned at work was already spent on the shots. Never mind that I couldn't pay my rent.

I've had no health or dental insurance for 3 out of the last 4 years, and I could have lot of things wrong but not know it. Same goes for the rest of the 45 million of us. And the longer we are without insurance, the more it will cost to take care of us when we end up with something really serious that could have been prevented. It sucks.

All of the other industrialized nations have figured this out and they think we are barbaric. They're right. You can get American meds cheaper in Australia or Canada than you can get them here.

[murray hill farm]

86. This needs a Michael Moore attack!

It needs a face to it...or 45 million faces..shit..it is a crime agains humanity. Did I not read somewhere recently, that the plan is for national health care for Iraq..paid for by our taxes...and nothing for our own people who are dying here for lack of even basic health care?

[BonjourUSA]

87. I hesitated to post.

Because it seems to me "arrogant" of saying that you live in the wrong place for being sick.

[BonjourUSA]

88. Just for information

I live in France. If I was illness, a cancer for instance (I hope it'll never happen), I could choose any hospital anywhere in France. I wouldn't have to pay any cents for anything (doc, surgery, single room....). I'd continue to get 100% of my wage and my boss would have to keep my job till the day the medic says I'm inapt for working (then I would earn 80% of my wage).

[Glenda]

89. Wow! That is so awesome!

Your country does it right!

:hi:

[vetwife]

90. Many die..I have known a few ! And we are what democracy represents?

I am so ashamed of what has happened in this country. Its been vile and ugly since we ran off the Native Americans and Spanish and made slaves out of the Africans,,,its just gone global now ! Who would want to be like us? Have our healthcare? Have our Leaders? Who?
I have an answer to all illegal immigrants. You better research what you are coming to and leaving behind.....Don't jump from the frying pan to the fire. That would stop a lot of folks from coming here to be used and abused !