Any body worried about the money?

Here comes stupid question number three: Is anybody else worried about the cost of this whole thing? Both my DH and I work full time. I work for a wonderful company and they tell me that they will pay for some of the time off but I am not sure how much yet. We have good insurance but there is still the deductible to be met and then the co-payments. Any suggestions on not stressing over this too? I tell ya the questions just keep popping into my head. Wish they would stop for awhile.

If the deductable is hard for you to fork out all at once, talk to the hospital. They can usually set you up on a payment plan. We have a 450 deductable. 303 has been met with just one dr. visit. The hospital sent me a letter stating that a payment plan was available if the balance of the deductable could not be paid up front. So, that may be something you might want to check into.


Karen a.k.a. WildChild

A lot of hospitals, including mine, now take credit cards, so if you don't like the terms the hospital offers for payments you can charge it and pay it off that way. I charged my portion to the hospital so I could get frequent flyer miles. One day I'm going to ready to travel!

maxiedoodle, that is such a great idea...trade in your stinkin' uterus for a trip to the bahamas!

Just about all hospitals offer a payment plan. I think they assume that you will need one and are used to being asked about it.

I have also found that most providers are good about giving a discount if you can pay that day...even if its a credit card. It's a little extra math to do, but, sometimes, it works out better for me to pay for a lab test with a discount, rather than my co-pay plus deductible.

I have paid for a lot of stuff on credit cards, back a few months ago when interest rates were 0% for 12 months. It gave me time to get some money together. Just be careful...when the promotional rate is over, the interest will shoot up right away to 15% or more, so you might want to put some stuff on a promotional rate card for a few months, and work out a discount deal on some other stuff.

Think of it as a game...everyone is out to get your money, and you are out to get your money's worth! I have seen so many people (having worked both in finance and health care, among other things) who have gone into foreclosure over medical bills, and they NEVER even asked up front for a payment plan. Just about everyone will work with you, if you ask up front, be smart about it, and are kind.

best of luck
akita

ps...personally, I used the 0% credit cards until I sold my house....bittersweet, yes, but not the end of the world...I can always buy another house, don't have a second chance at being healthy.

I am lucky to have great insurance but single, make very little money and work full time. My off time pay is 100. per week so I have to go back to work in four weeks, and even that is going to be difficult to be off that long.
It's hard to be sick and poor at the same time. Thank God at least you will have a roof over your head and food since you have a hubby.
As long as you have the basics covered, try not to worry. Some of us aren't so sure.
Take care and good luck

Very worried,I am a single mom and will only get paid for three weeks...then have no cushion at all,I have a great family so I will make it I guesse.As for my co-pay I will pay untill I die.

Funny you should ask...I had a major breakdown today because I was uninsured during my chemo/rad treatments, and it finally hit me today. The total came to $67,000. All I can do is work out payments with the hospital, *maybe* get a home equity loan. I've had doctors tell me if you're uninsured you can negotiate the amount you owe, but I've got to come up with the magic number to start. I've got surgery next week, and this is the last thing I want to be stressing about. I have four weeks of paid time off for post-op recovery, and I do have insurance now, so at least I've got that going for me. (I figure what's another couple thousand for my deductible when I'm already looking at 67k?!) Now I just have to hope that I don't need any further treatment after surgery.

Wow, I feel really bad for you guys. I have a government job (law enforcement) and have 4 months of sick leave saved up (I'll only use what I need for now) and also have full medical benefits. My co-pay for the "birth of the octuplets" is only going to be $10.

I really feel bad for you all.

Leslie

After my heart stopped beating briefly while reading your post, I pulled out my insurance book to check on the deductible (I was somewhat prepared for the 20 percent but couldn't remember seeing a deductibe). My insurance doesn't charge a deductible for hospital (thank God). I set aside $400 from our income tax return to use for the 20%, was planning on $500 but couldn't do that. Already have the $400 reduced to less than $300 (I really need to stop spending money). Don't know what the actual cost will be.

I am lucky in that I work in a government office where other employees can donate leave time, as I only have about 2 1/2 weeks combined vacation and sick leave. If I can get a few attorneys to donate leave time, one day at their salary will be a good couple of days when transferred to my rate of pay. I picked up the donation forms today and plan on getting people to "sign up" before I take off next Friday.

Hope all goes well for you.

My deductible is $250, the couple thousand will be the copay (20%). I've never had insurance before now, so this is all new to me! But boy, does it feel good paying just $15 copays when I see the doc! My DH keeps reminding me, yeah, it seems cheap, but you're still paying $600/month for insurance! True...