This morning I had a mammogram and a bone density test. I have no reason to suspect any problem, but this is part of the early warning system for a lot of women. If I still used the thing, I have my vagina looked into to too, but sadly, it no longer exists. It is true, if you don't use certain things they just close up shop, so to speak. Anyway, whether you use it or not, get your vagina checked out and you boobs squished and if you're old enough to be concerned about bone loss, or have had eating issues, get a bone density test. It's called preventative medicine. If your health insurance doesn't cover preventative tests, it's worthless.
I have medicare, so all this yearly checking, is part of how we keep healthcare costs down. Private insurance companies are all about making money on your healthcare. They know they're going to dump you when you get really really sick and finally need them, so why do preventative tests to catch costly illnesses early? You need to start thinking about this industry whose primary duty is to shareholders, so you can assess how good a job they do taking care of you. You need to examine the books. How much do they pay top executives? How do they come up with record profits year after year? How much do you pay them to deny coverage for your medical needs? Is it worth it?
Medicare does a very good job taking care of me. I've never had better healthcare coverage, and my last experience was with United HealthCare. I was paying them $1,000 a month so they could refuse to cover the specialists I needed to see to stay out of the hospital. Insurance companies don't like the sick.
Showing posts with label Medicare. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Medicare. Show all posts
Thursday, September 24, 2009
Monday, June 8, 2009
Medicare Explained By One Who Knows
You may not realize this but fashion models are considered contract labor. We have agents to promote us and manage our bookings for a hefty 15% of our earnings. But all the rest is up to us. And in order to get the best possible tax help a model needs a tax accountant who specializes in Entertainment Industry tax rules. Then we have to provide for our own insurance.
While I was healthy and working I bought my medical insurance from United Healthcare, the only large insurance company providing coverage for individuals in Utah at the time. In the beginning my monthly premium was $325 a month. I thought that was pretty high, but it was the only option. Then I started getting hefty premium raises every six months or so. It was not that I was sick, it was just "a little adjustment for the rate of inflation" according to the billings person at United Health Care.
I ran into a rough patch. In a six months check-up with my internist, where urinalysis and blood work were done, I seemed to be having a "sugar spill" in my urine. This required further tests and a visit with an endocrinologist. More tests were done. And in the end, it turned out to be one of the many strange permutations of stress and depression. Then I got a notice that my insurance had gone up to $500 a month. But the drugs for depression were very expensive, so I kept the insurance. But I also kept getting more and more depressed. I was referred to a good psychiatrist who diagnosed me with bipolar disorder and put me on a good mood stabilizer (another very expensive drug) which made it possible for me to keep working so I could afford my insurance. I was chasing my tail.
Within a month of getting that Bipolar diagnosis Untied Health Care doubled my monthly premium. At $1,000 a month for just me, I had to drop private coverage. Then I couldn't afford to pay for my therapist, get my drugs filled, or pay for follow-up care. No psychiatrist will prescribe without follow-up care.
As I grew more stressed by the depression and the rising bills, I was able to work less and less. Finally I was bankrupt. Fortunately I filed before the rules were changed for individuals filing for bankruptcy. So medical bills and the cost of private health insurance ruined me economically. Not having insurance made it impossible for me to pay for my drugs and this led to a lengthy hospitalization for psychosis. Which was the result of untreated bipolar disorder.
I was advised to apply for disability. I applied with all the documentation they required and they turned me down after a three month wait while they decided my fate. A friend of mine who's a social worker told me that all first-time applications for disability are turned down, no matter what. Proforma. I reapplied and was turned down again. After further conversation with my friend I discovered that there were attorneys whose specialty was disability law. So I got a disability attorney. They assess your case and if they're pretty sure they can prevail they take your case for a percentage of the lump sum award. If you finally get on disability they reimburse you for the time from your first rejection to a successful outcome. This whole process took over two years, so even though my monthly disability stipend is the minimum possible, three years worth is a tidy sum. The payout is based on your earnings at the time of your award and for the three previous years. These are the lowest earning years for most people who end up on disability. So I got roughly $700 a month to live on and Medicare. It is Medicare that saved my life. And that is not hyperbole. Once I was on Social Security Disability and Medicare parts A, B, and D (the only good thing G W Bush did in his entire presidency) have saved my life. Once on Medicare I was eligible for the fabulous care by Valley Mental Health and the Master's Program for bipolar patients over 50. They saved my life, and that is not hyperbole.
Medicare is far better coverage than my $1,000 a month private insurance. Every referral from my internist had to be okayed by some bean counter at United Health Care. Under Medicare I have never had to wait while a bureaucrat has weighed whether or not my well being was worth the cost. And if I needed help finding the part D private piece of the pie that Bush gave the private sector, a "bureaucrat" at Medicare patiently helped me find the one that would cover all my drugs at the lowest cost. In my case that's Etna. Since my income is so low, I get extra help with drug costs, so there is no "doughnut hole" for me. If the public sector were picking up the cost of the part D coverage it would be simpler and therefore less expensive for taxpayers. It was giving part D to the private sector including the drug companies, that has made part D a problem for so many. It is the drug companies and the private insurance companies who lobbied so hard for their hand out from the Bush Administration that has driven up the cost of that program and made it a bureaucratic nightmare for so many senior citizens and their families to negotiate.
I have the experience of both options--private and public. I'll take the simplicity of the public option over the bean counters in the private sector any day.
While I was healthy and working I bought my medical insurance from United Healthcare, the only large insurance company providing coverage for individuals in Utah at the time. In the beginning my monthly premium was $325 a month. I thought that was pretty high, but it was the only option. Then I started getting hefty premium raises every six months or so. It was not that I was sick, it was just "a little adjustment for the rate of inflation" according to the billings person at United Health Care.
I ran into a rough patch. In a six months check-up with my internist, where urinalysis and blood work were done, I seemed to be having a "sugar spill" in my urine. This required further tests and a visit with an endocrinologist. More tests were done. And in the end, it turned out to be one of the many strange permutations of stress and depression. Then I got a notice that my insurance had gone up to $500 a month. But the drugs for depression were very expensive, so I kept the insurance. But I also kept getting more and more depressed. I was referred to a good psychiatrist who diagnosed me with bipolar disorder and put me on a good mood stabilizer (another very expensive drug) which made it possible for me to keep working so I could afford my insurance. I was chasing my tail.
Within a month of getting that Bipolar diagnosis Untied Health Care doubled my monthly premium. At $1,000 a month for just me, I had to drop private coverage. Then I couldn't afford to pay for my therapist, get my drugs filled, or pay for follow-up care. No psychiatrist will prescribe without follow-up care.
As I grew more stressed by the depression and the rising bills, I was able to work less and less. Finally I was bankrupt. Fortunately I filed before the rules were changed for individuals filing for bankruptcy. So medical bills and the cost of private health insurance ruined me economically. Not having insurance made it impossible for me to pay for my drugs and this led to a lengthy hospitalization for psychosis. Which was the result of untreated bipolar disorder.
I was advised to apply for disability. I applied with all the documentation they required and they turned me down after a three month wait while they decided my fate. A friend of mine who's a social worker told me that all first-time applications for disability are turned down, no matter what. Proforma. I reapplied and was turned down again. After further conversation with my friend I discovered that there were attorneys whose specialty was disability law. So I got a disability attorney. They assess your case and if they're pretty sure they can prevail they take your case for a percentage of the lump sum award. If you finally get on disability they reimburse you for the time from your first rejection to a successful outcome. This whole process took over two years, so even though my monthly disability stipend is the minimum possible, three years worth is a tidy sum. The payout is based on your earnings at the time of your award and for the three previous years. These are the lowest earning years for most people who end up on disability. So I got roughly $700 a month to live on and Medicare. It is Medicare that saved my life. And that is not hyperbole. Once I was on Social Security Disability and Medicare parts A, B, and D (the only good thing G W Bush did in his entire presidency) have saved my life. Once on Medicare I was eligible for the fabulous care by Valley Mental Health and the Master's Program for bipolar patients over 50. They saved my life, and that is not hyperbole.
Medicare is far better coverage than my $1,000 a month private insurance. Every referral from my internist had to be okayed by some bean counter at United Health Care. Under Medicare I have never had to wait while a bureaucrat has weighed whether or not my well being was worth the cost. And if I needed help finding the part D private piece of the pie that Bush gave the private sector, a "bureaucrat" at Medicare patiently helped me find the one that would cover all my drugs at the lowest cost. In my case that's Etna. Since my income is so low, I get extra help with drug costs, so there is no "doughnut hole" for me. If the public sector were picking up the cost of the part D coverage it would be simpler and therefore less expensive for taxpayers. It was giving part D to the private sector including the drug companies, that has made part D a problem for so many. It is the drug companies and the private insurance companies who lobbied so hard for their hand out from the Bush Administration that has driven up the cost of that program and made it a bureaucratic nightmare for so many senior citizens and their families to negotiate.
I have the experience of both options--private and public. I'll take the simplicity of the public option over the bean counters in the private sector any day.
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