Health Insurance
Friends In Need
Last year I had a college friend who called me with grim news. He had just had emergency surgery done to remove an inflamed appendix. He waited until the last possible second and was lucky enough to get to an emergency room just in time. The bad news? He had just went off his health insurance plan 6 months prior. He was afraid and rightfully so. The medical expenses mounted and he is now $5000 in medical debt.
Another horrible accident happened yesterday to a coworker of mine. He was snowboarding and hit a tree. He fractured one of his ribs and separated his shoulder. Not only does he not have health insurance but now he will be out of work for several weeks. Even worse he waited overnight in agonizing pain before finally relenting to his wounds and seeking medical attention.
I hope that both of these individuals would have listened to my rants about how important it is to have an emergency savings account. Not only would they have been able to negotiate with the hospital, they would have been prepared to miss the weeks of work that ensued. These obviously were both catastrophic incidents that were hard to prevent. High deductible health insurance plans could have saved them both.
Exploring Options
If and when I do get health insurance I would most definitely seek a high deductible option. These plans can be as low as $50 a month in some cases. For all the other little stuff like prescriptions we can skirt our way around the system a little bit. I certainly don’t advocate anyone get prescriptions without consulting a medical professional. Therefore you have all been warned. That being said I have been buying my prescriptions online for the past several years. From antibiotics to antidepressants there are several websites that will ship prescription medication right to your door. I have no idea if this is even legal or not so again I will not recommend this. One of the websites I have used and have heard many good reviews is a small company based out of New Zealand called 4 corners pharmacy. The prescriptions they send are from other countries and are priced at substantial discounts compared to those in the United States.
Further Resources
In the event you do need to see a physician immediately, many areas have clinics that cater to low income families that can also be visited. My state has a special medical plan that caters to these individuals as well. My girlfriend has been harping on me for months to look into it. I have been undecided between the state plan, a plan from my work, and buying my own high deductible option. I will be looking into all of these options closely the next few weeks. Hopefully this information helps and I will post more information as I research these options. Personally I advocate getting a high deductible option for everyone and finding lower priced prescriptions when possible. If your place of employment does offer a cheap health insurance package, I would jump on it. In my state the income cap on state care is currently set at $58,000 for families. Research each option and decide what is best for you.
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