U.S. Healthcare is teh suck thread #1,985,272

So, my stupid mouth apparently decided "hey, know what would be fun? An abscess!" So, I should probably have a dentist look at it.

The way this should work is: 1) find emergency dentist, 2) make appointment, 3) go to appointment, 4) mouth fixed.

Instead, I went to my insurance provider's website and started calling dentists. I called three of them, and they told me the same thing: the earliest we can see you is early October. So, I googled emergency dentists, and called two of them. Both of them told me the same thing: they don't accept my insurance, and one suggested going to an emergency room because she was apparently offended that I thought they might accept my crappy poor people insurance. (Insurance stuff aside, why don't emergency rooms at least have a dentist on call? That seems like something that would make sense.) So, I went back to my insurance provider's website. Instead of calling places, I looked at their websites looking for one that specifically mentioned emergency dental care. After about ten tries I found one. So, I called them and set up an appointment, for Thursday morning. This was actually far easier than I expected it to be. I thought I'd be on the phone and computer all day trying to find a place that could get me in quick and take my insurance.

The places that don't take my insurance could see me today, but I'd have to pay them. While they don't take poor people insurance, they do offer poor people financing! However, I decided to just wait until Thursday. There was very little pain and, after accidentally purposefully lancing it, no pain at all. (Although, now the gums on the other side of my mouth are inflamed, and kind of hurt, but I regret nothing!) But, you know, I still have an infection in my face, and that's generally not good.

Anyway, if I suddenly stop posting it's probably not a big deal, just that the infection spread and I died from meningitis before getting to the dentist.

Also, from the time I determined I had an abscess instead of just normal mouth soreness, to the time I made an appointment, only a day had passed. I didn't wait until I'm dying like I did two years ago when I had a severe asthma attack and waited five days before doing anything about it. I think I've grown as a person.

Dental isn't considered healthcare. Neither is vision.

I don't think other countries are different, but I haven't searched.

I opted for cheap dental a few years ago and regretted it for similar reasons.

Which doesn't make any sense.

"You have an infection? Sure, we can take care of that. Oh, the infection is in your mouth? Sorry, mouth and eyes are out of bounds."

Here's a continuation of my healthcare story.

I think I mentioned my outty should be an inny. Umbilical hernia.

Quack has been nagging me to get it fixed for years. Finally said WTH and he referred me to an in-network surgical practice.

The cutter said simple outpatient procedure. When do you want to get it done? I chose September as he said I should refrain from heavy lifting for a few weeks after. Home projects gave me an excuse to procrastinate.

Got two letters almost simultaneously last week.

Letter 1 stated the estimate for surgery is $16,000. That this is on the low side. My out of pocket after the deductible and co-payment was $2,000.

Googled it. Umbilical hernia repair is 3 to 7 grand with the average in GA about $4,500.

WTF?

Letter 2. My insurance is in negotiation with the major (only) healthcare provider in my county, and these quacks might no longer be in network after 1 October.

WTF?

Free market healthcare for the win!

My bellybutton will stay the way it came.

Deductibles and co-pays... I've actually had health insurance most of my adult life, but I couldn't afford the co-pays and shit, so it ended up being $30-60 out of each pay check just to ensure if something bad happened I'd only owe $3000 instead of $30,000.

The state-funded not-medicaid poor people insurance I have now is pretty good on paper; my maximum out-of-pocket is $40. Yes, forty dollars. However, if it's not an emergency, I usually have to wait like a month. If it is an emergency, I have to wait two days apparently.

Also, from the asthma thing:
Three-days in the hospital: $950
Ten minute ambulance ride to the hospital: $12,500

This shit makes me mental. Anything other than routine cleaning or extraction, insurance considers "cosmetic" and won't pay for it. That's insane. That is literally a medical doctor telling you "we need to do this" and some retard counting beans at Kaiser saying "no we don't, it's cosmetic."

This is why we're going to wind up with government-provided universal health care. Because insurance is more about profit than preventive care.

Trust me, if that's the only step towards socialism you ever make it'll be worthwhile.

we've been fighting for it for years here. It's up to the provinces and has been one step forward, two back since the 90s.

Hot take that maybe things essential to life shouldn't be "for profit"? Also the reminder that even with our shitshow here we still spend about half per patient for frequently better care.

Having poor people insurance can be frustrating. A couple years back I was on Pennsylvania Medicaid. One week I had a problem and visited a couple urgent care clinics, both of which made me wait up to an hour just to tell me that they didn't take my insurance. Fortunately my in-network GP was able to take me on short notice, to my surprise.

Hey, you had to search though the pile, but you got what you needed, @Kommander!

I'm glad I have the VA* and no longer have to think about any of this

*At least in San Diego since our area is vet friend and CA doesn't actively sabotage medical infrastructure for the sake of winning votes. If I end up in Reno, who the fuck knows

For what it's worth, most health insurance in the United States is NOT "for profit".

Cite please?

Even if most health providers are non profit, they still have salaries and bonuses to pay.

Better to say essential services should not be market driven.

Buried in this report is the fact that in 2018 460K Americans died because they couldn't afford to see a doctor, regardless of if they had health insurance or not.

LOL

https://2124849888.com/non-profit-health-insurance/

I didn't believe it either at first but I heard it first from garamet.

FWIW, the Boise VA hospital has a reputation as one of the best in the country. In fact....

When I'm looking for reliable information, I turn to 2124849888.com. but not those lying bastards at 2124849887.com

Time to set up a website. Domain name? What the hell does that mean? I better put my phone number in there, see if that works.

Either way, it doesn't say most insurance is non-profit.

"about 63% of U.S. health plans with over 100,000 enrollees are nonprofit"

What about total policies?

63% of health plans is meaningless if the top 5 sell 90% of the insurance.

non profit must mean something different in 'merka...

buried in the list of those supposed NPOs is this name-Health Care Service Corporation

We'd better add them to the 'Victims of Communism" list, just like all the Covid deaths.

It's ridiculous that dental & optical AREN'T included with medical when it comes to insurance. And I agree, emergency rooms & urgent cares SHOULD have dentists & optometrists on hand as well, not to mention psychiatrists for psychiatric emergencies.

Did the dentist not prescribe you any antibiotics for the infection?

I won't see the dentist until tomorrow morning, so not yet.

Sorry forgot to include the time change between the USA and Canada

Yes. That’s exactly why liberals are pushing for a UHC.

As of this morning I have conformed that I have at least two abscesses, on opposite sides of my mouth: Left upper-jaw and right lower jaw.

This is going to be fun. Leaving for dentist now.