Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

How could any rational person defend US healthcare system ? First it is expensive and inefficient- if UK spends 10% of GDP on health care, which covers all. and US spends 17% but doesn't cover all, and for many a financial burden, what defense is there ? This fantasy that everyone can get medical care because they can go to emergency room is rather bizarre, and if someone making hundreds of thousands of dollars spouts such nonsense truly they didn't learn basic humanity from their parents or education.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

Now that one won't be able to deduct student loans interest as a federal tax deductible, I wonder how much of a baring that will have in the future.

Big loans, lot of interest, lot that the public picked the tab for.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

That provision didn’t make it into the final bill.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

The main benefit of the US healthcare system is that it provides secure jobs for hundreds of thousands (millions?) of bureaucrats. Their salaries to a large extent explain the gap between the 10% and the 17%.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

And very good salaries for those at the top, and fancy furnishings. I was in Midwest area with crumbling infrastructure, low wage temporary jobs more available than decent full time jobs, opiod epidemic, growing percentage of population on food stamps ( in a word heavy Trump country)- yet hospitals and doctors officers had furnishings that one would expect in a top CEO's office.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

The World Bank has worked it all out in painful detail: https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.XPD.OOPC.TO.ZS

It is more expensive in the US. I assume the drop was caused by the ACA.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

I have Waldenstroms disease, it's a rare blood cancer, I doubt many of you have every heard of it, I was on chemo for a short while then put on a trial drug which costs $16k a month, obviously I can't afford this and I get help from the charity with my co pay, this week my insurance company refused to renew my prescription ..... Thanks you very much you b***ards.
This drug basically keeps me alive.
The health care system here is a dam disgrace.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

Would a trial drug such as this be covered in the UK?

Just curious as even up in Canada where we have basic universal healthcare, it's not likely a trial drug would be covered at all, even approved drugs for rare diseases may not be covered as they cost too much.

I do agree overall though the US system isn't grand.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

From dim memory my Mum was asked if she would take a trial drug , which she accepted to do. That was through the NHS . So in a way , yes, that was funded .


edit... I just had a bit of a google as I am so certain Mum was given a trial medicine (drug). I wonder if the specialist consultant - who haled from the USA - fronted what is called in the UK a clinical trial.

So yes is the answer. If Pat was in the UK and there was a clinical trial in process for the drug and Pat agreed to take part it would be fully funded.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

I am really sorry to hear about your situation Pat. That stinks.

This business of having your co-pay paid for and therefore forcing the insurers to pay the very considerable bulk of the cost of the medicine is an area that should be looked into imo. The only recourse for the insurance company is to not cover it at all for anyone when perhaps there may have been some discretion in there before.

Re: An example of unexpected medical bills
 

I had an eye op in the UK under private insurance but done in an NHS facility. I got copies of all the bills. I don't recall the exact cost but for the 2 hour op with surgeon, tiny custom made eye parts from Germany, an assistant, anaesthetist, his assistant, another nurse, meds, overnight bed and breakfast, and check-up in the same place the following day was billed at £1,200 roughly to the insurance. Three bills I think, one from the NHS, one from the surgeon, one from somewhere else. The surgeon said the NHS rents the operating theatres out to private patients as there is more income than NHS patients alone (pros and cons to that) - and the NHS facilities were better than the private hospital's!

I certainly hope I don't have the ability to compare the exact same operation in the US. But I do know that last year having "ass cam" and another down the throat certainly cost more than that (20 minutes, mild sedation, one doc and one nurse, home an hour later).