Have you delayed medical treatment more than 1 month, or gone...

...without treatment altogether because you couldn't afford medical care?

Just thought I'd do an unofficial poll on how bad the medical situation is in America.

some day soon...

I'm going thru this sort of problem right now. I've had some health problems thru the years, and have had some new ones recently pop up. It's got me worried that all of it taken together could be something serious. However, since I'm recently unemployed and overweight, I can't get an reasonable-priced individual healthcare plan.

I'm caught between spending what little money I have saved up on a pricey healthcare plan, like the state health insurance pool, which costs 300 bucks a month just for me...

Or buying a short-term health care insurance policy for very little, which would cover me for six months, then I'd be cut-off, and it wouldn't cover any pre-existing conditions. So if something serious were wrong with me, I'd have six months of coverage, then I could sign up for the state health insurance pool, but go six months without being insured due to their pre-existing condition clause...

Or just go and get checked out and pay out of pocket, knowing that if they do find something wrong, I could be denied treatment because I wouldn't have adequate healthcare insurance...

It's just awful. Democrats should make healthcare their number #1 issue. Everyone here is far more likely to die due to medical reasons than because of Al-Qaeda. Healthcare in this nation is a HUGE problem.

"Everyone here is far more likely to die due to medical reasons than because of Al-Qaeda."

When I was very poor I had a tooth problem for over 8 months before I saved up enough to have it fixed. No insurance means cash up front. I was in agony for so long it was unconscionable. The USA sucks the way it treats its citizens. That is why I left.

I asked if they took my insurance, and they said they didn't process insurance. You must pay for the procedure , and then they let you collect from your insurance co. yourself.

It was completely fucked but I was refusing to go to the ER because I couldn't afford it. I ended up going and getting it fixed, and not paying for it. That's my take on socialized health care, just take it and bills be damned. Of course my credit is completely screwed now, but it was worth it! I encourage everybody to screw their credit up. The sooner this happens the sooner credit will mean nothing.

to see a doctor for about a year. My credit is now hopelessly screwed.

Oh wait. I did go back once. When my Grandson tried to kill me by putting blood pressure meds in my Coke. Now, wouldn't you think that would be hard to forget? But I have the flu right now, a really bad one that my Mom's in the hospital for. Respiratory-type. I'm not exactly hitting on all cylinders right now.

be sick or get hurt.

program through my job.
But watching everything that is going on around me, it is just a matter of time before they take it away.
This year the introduced the Health Savings Accounts as a supplement but I am sure it is the first step to dropping group health insurance.

I also know many who have lost their insurance.

MANY times.

We're a barbaric country that allows its citizens to die for lack of medical care. Our govt. wastes our tax dollars on bullshit instead of wisely spending it on universal healthcare. Healthy citizens are more productive citizens, & the nazi party claims they like productive workers.

Gotta love growin up poor in the land where dreams are made, huh? :sarcasm:

Amerika, what a Country. Actually we do have national healthcare, to qualify, you merely have to join the military get hurt, survive, not make too much money, not go to jail, conform to whatever other regulations they deem appropriate, but it is available...

What other country punishes people for being sick? This government has made it more difficult on people who have had an injury or illness, to recover physically and financially. They destroy your credit, which makes it harder to obtain housing, get a job, and car insurance for years. I've seen statistics that state 50% of the people declaring bankruptcy, did so for medical reasons. They have even tightened the rules on that.

If a person suffers a serious setback, they are basically going to be an indentured servant. Working for the rest of their lives, to pay all the fees and interest imposed by businesses, incurred from medical problems.

We dropped our insurance when the bills started being $900 a month once my dh turned 50.

It drives me nuts that the righties tell us that socialized medicine is a bad thing because you might have to wait a couple of weeks to see a doctor and then you don't choose which one you see. Right now, if I were to want to see a doctor or send my kid to one, the fastest appt I could get would be in a month and longer still to see a specialist. My daughter's pediatrician is one of about 5 doctors and we don't decide which one we'll see this time. And even if I had insurance, I could only 'choose' a doctor already pre-picked by the insurance company.

So we've got all the problems of a socialized system (unless you are rich or a congressman, but I repeat myself) and none of the benefits. It still takes weeks to see a doctor, you don't get to pick one, you could die of what ails you before you'd ever see a specialist, and you pay extortionate amounts for the priviledge. Even if the socialized medicine system is every bit as bad as the rightwingers claim (which I don't buy), you are at least guaranteed a minumum of care.

couldn't afford it anymore, I had a severe gallbladder attack that led to pancreatitis. (Never had problems with anything before.) I was in pain 10 days, in bed with a heating pad over the sore spot, until I finally relented and went to the doctor. After explaining my situation (i.e. no gold mines in the family), the doctor ordered blood tests to determine if my vital organs were damaged. Luckily they were not, so we left it as a "wait and see" since I wasn't getting any worse. It took a couple of months, but I finally recovered on my own. Later I learned that even a mild case has a 40% mortality rate. Guess I hit the lottery in George Bush's America.

I am a member of the working poor. My wife had quadruple by-pass surgery a couple of years ago and requires three medications which we cannot pay for. I have had physical problems since 1995 and require five medications that we cannot pay for. The total cost of our meds would run over 600 dollars a month. It's all we can do to just pay our living expenses.

generate enough income to pay bills, am on the verge of losing everything. Living in constant pain is not fun.

I should be seeing a chiropractor regularly for the degenerating vertebrae in my neck, but that is out of the question since I can barely pay my bills.

Have also struggled with severe/debilitating case of food allergies in the early 2000's and ran up tons of bills on my credit cards, refinanced house to cover it, now stuck with too high of a mortgage that doesn't allow for any sick days. I will be selling my house shortly to get out of debt and downsize. This will also enable me to get the dentures I need, at a cost of a mere $7,000. I am seriously thinking of going to Mexico to have that done and at least get a vacation along with saving half the cost!

I also have remnents of CFS.

The only bright spots in all this are that I learned a lot about self-treating through diet and exercise on the internet.

The women's clinic is great for women's health issues. The are the ones that after gentle prodding from moi did a simple test and discovered my anemia. Still don't know the cause of it.

The local hospital used to include a basic blood panel for $20 at their annual health fair, but discontinued doing that a few years ago. That at least gave me some additional clues about my food allergies when it showed a low protein count and borderline hypoglycemia.

Having health issues when self-employed is just the beginning of a never ending downward spiral. Once you end up with a stack of bills in front of you and are working at a reduced rate you start to feel trapped which causes more stress which only aggrevates any health issues you may have.

If there was universal health care and people could be treated on a preventative/as needed basis they could continue being productive members of society. Instead, their health issues build up, sometimes past the point of no return.

Somehow we need to put a check on the outrageous profits being made in the pharmeceutical/medical industries. They are laughing all the way to the bank as more and more people are left to suffer when they can't afford treatment. There is a new health care claim processing center in town that must have cost $$$$$ to build. Someone is paying for that! People that sell prescription meds are some of the most overpaid salesmen around.

We need universal health care NOW!