Welcome Community

I really never have had a problem providing health care for myself. I have been fortunate to have employer group options and that has continued into my retirement.

It is expensive, but well worth it.

David

Money. Money, money, money! Having insurance is OK (and better than having nothing), but most insurance plans are going with these High Deductible Health Plans. Dr.'s visits and anything you have done would apply to the deductible. Even prescriptions apply to the deductible. So if you have a prescription that is $80 a month, that goes to the deductible. And the deductible are over $1000 a year.

Also, many insurance plans have visit limits. Mine has a limit of 20 visits per calendar year for outpatient mental health therapy. So if you go over that 20 visits, further visits will not be covered. 20 visits doesn't even cover 2 visits a month. Not enough visits if you ask me if you're dealing with severe mental health issues.

Thanks for asking!

My Hubby allways had coverage for us through employment and continues into our retirement as well rather expensive but worth it

My biggest health care story was
I had asthma macular degeneration and I was aging poorly
I overcame 2 out of the 3
with healthy eating I removed almost 100 pounds of excess weight by eating as helathy as I could and continued to walk nearlly every day
after 3 years on my Nutrition Quest the asthma went away no more need for medications I am ageing better much healthier
the macular degeneration is still a concern but it is being treated .. I can still see thats a miracle on it;s own .. I was kinda hopeing it would go away but maybe my body thought the breathing was more important if I stay on my life style change forever I may see that get better too ...I have high hopes
Hugs Judy:)

Hi,

I have a decent plan through my school, from which I am out on disability leave until retirement age. Thank heavens, at this point we have had a good teachers contract. I doubt this clause will ever be taken out. this district has been very good to the teacher's.

My problem is now the insurance companies in our area are banning together and making it difficult to obtain pain management procedures. After 15 years of S-I joint injections, they are now considering them experimental. I had one given last year which has been very beneficial for left buttock pain as well as leg weakness. Now, i have even greater R buttock pain and I need to fight for this. My union is willing to back me as they feel we are paying for procedures that now are being taken away.

I am livid as I am not one to tolerate strong pain meds. I also have many allergies and sensitivities to them as well. procedures are my only options. Right now I feel like I am only existing due to my pain from degenerative disc disease as well as S-I joint dysfunction. I also have fibromyalgia and Lupus. Life has been a definite challenge and my mental health is going down the toilet.

My saving grace is that my youngest daughter just graduated from college and decided to come back home to earn money to go to graduate school locally. She put herself through the U of Rhode Island on an academic as well as rowing scholarship. She worked very hard to cover over $130,000 in college expenses and only came out with about $4,000 in loans. Those resources will not be available for her masters. Instead of continuing at URI, she will go to an excellent local university after a year of work. For the time being, I have her company while she works. She was able to quickly land a job in her field and rapidly move up the ladder. Her company has helped me keep my sanity.

I fought for health care reform and wish there had been more cooperation for a better bill. I know I can turn to my congressman and get help. Part of the legislation is for an advocate outside of the insurance bill and that may happen starting this September.

Posted on the Lupus exchange was the fact that people who have been denied coverage for chronic illnesses can be eligible for temporary insurance starting possibly in September. Go to the Lupus Exchange and see under the Expert column and the info is posted under the Lupus Foundation website. This is critical information that needs to get out. The squabbling in Congress prevents this sort of info from getting out because the Republicans just want to talk about repealling the law. Let's get the facts out,PLEASE!

Marilyn

http://forums.webmd.com/3/cold-and-flu-exchange/forum/3547/0

is Dr Moser's reply (from the Ear, Nose, and Throat Community board).

CatWoman,

Agreed. Mental health is generally poorly covered and it is as holistic an illness as any other.

Beth

A long time I was overweight. i started with crunches and walks gradually more of them, and eat more nutritious foods. It's been a long time but I keep it up everyday. From 180 to 120. This may be off a little just wanted to share how easy it is.

http://forums.webmd.com/3/cold-and-flu-exchange/forum/3547

More discussion replies to this topic from the ENT Community board.

Linking a reply from the the Digestive Disorders Community board:

http://forums.webmd.com/3/digestive-disorders-exchange/forum/2810/0

In a few months' time, I will lose my health care. I won't be able to work full-time because of school, and I won't be able to afford to buy my own on part-time earnings (which won't even cover RENT), and I run the very real risk of not being accepted to any plan I would dare to apply for because I have a pre-existing condition, and the government will not help me yet because adults don't matter unless they have children and/or a diagnosed disability. So my biggest challenge, basically, is that I am being DISCRIMINATED AGAINST for being a non-disabled, childless adult who wants to better herself through education.

I would never, ever rant like this under my username, because the statement I made about being a victim of discrimination would get called bigoted, hateful and cruel by a lot of people, and I want to keep the respect that a couple of people have for me. But it's true - if I had a child, or if I had a diagnosed disability, someone would help me... and no one will help me the way things are. It's UNFAIR, it makes me SO ANGRY, and I lose sleep and have nightmares and panic attacks because of it.

Where do you live? I think in the US you can't discriminate according to a pre-existing condition. You could some years ago, as I got stuck with a $6,000 hospital bill for this very reason.

Beth

Anonymous,
I can totally relate to your situation as I was in the same one for about 20 years; no health insurance. A year ago last January someone tried to take my life in my home.My medical bills were mounting and I didn't have insurance to cover anything. I thought I was going to lose everything. My sister works for a large company that oversees some of the smaller ones. She came and spent three days with me and I was finally accepted into a high risk insurance company; HIRSP/WPS in Wisconsin. Because I am on disability and that's my only income I was given a subsidized rate, which was another wonderful gift. Check out what is available at your state level. There has to be something because I have many pre-existing conditions and was accepted. If you know of anybody who works for the government contact them and see if they can help you. I called my Assembly Woman for our district and she was a huge help. Good luck and keep posting to let us know how you are doing. I wish you the very best because I know the stress you are living with.

Auntiec56

Hi, I find this disgusting they would do this to you just because you aren't disabled...I am so glad you aren't! You can live a great life with no worries of getting sick like me.
I am in a wheelchair because of a bone disease and i fall constantly and break bones in my wrist and hips. It is September 30 my birthday and i just turned 37. Guess what i don't get disability monthly because they say my hubby makes too much money before taxes. But once taxes is taken off we are just above the poverty line, sure sucks!

If I was working, I would probably say time....I can remember a few times leaving work early for a routine appointment (made weeks in advance), then waiting for HOURS past the appointment time to be seen. Since I'm not working now, I'd have to say money...and that is even with health insurance. I have an individual plan that I am paying for myself since I am not employed. I've had the same exact plan in the past, but in name only, as they have dramatically changed the terms of the plan (something I found out only after signing up, of course). For one thing, pre-existing condition limitations apply for an entire year, not 6 months. I've had most of my doctor's visits denied, even if they weren't related to my (minor) pre-existing conditions. I also found this plan has $500 yearly limitations on nearly everything, including MRI's, which cost over $2,000...and I've had to have 2 this year. So I am paying over $300 a month and still having to pay huge amounts out-of-pocket. I realize I am lucky...my mother, who had diabetes and many problems related to it, was paying over $800 a month for a somewhat better plan, and they still denied many of her claims. I can't even imagine what would happen if I didn't have any kind of insurance.