30 Days of US Healthcare: Deductibles

Day 2 - Deductible

[teslaromans]

First time I understand what a deductible is. Man you guys are screwed left and right by healthcare insurances

[jochenau]

The trouble is...the system isn't broken. It's doing _exactly_ what it's meant to do.

[someguyontheinternet]

between copay and deductibles, it’s clear that some of the most brilliant minds in finance have put their best foot out to screw us

[mattnutt]

Not going to lie, these parody videos do a better job of explaining US healthcare companies than US healthcare companies themselves do.

[KyleRayner]

It really says something about the complexity and lack of sense in US healthcare that I had more trouble with this concept than the glycolytic pathway.

[veevee]

American healthcare: I had day surgery back in May due to complications of sexual assault. After my surgeon diagnosed me, just to reserve my spot in the OR I had to pay $945 cash on the spot. I have strong insurance as I work for another hospital, but my own hospital did not offer this procedure so I was out of network. My insurance "only" paid $15, 000 for a procedure that required 90 minutes of OR time, 45 minutes of PACU time, and no hospital admission. I recovered at home with a Tylenol prescription.

I just received a bill for $5, 500 from the hospital for all the costs insurance did not pay for. And the hospital has every right to tank my credit score if I can't pay as they can claim I haven't paid for my care despite the above costs I have already satisfied.

And just to be clear: The care was excellent and compassionate from the beginning and I don't regret the procedure. Every person involved was wonderful. It was the system that failed me, not my healthcare team.

[mindassassin]

This is the kind of thing that you get when the people making the laws make a law that says they're allowed to openly accept bribes as long as they call it "lobbying" instead of bribery.

[LinA-tvqy]

Oof, Jimothy is stronger than me, still believing health insurance will do good eventually - right?

[atallguynh]

I can't believe he's actually going to get through even the basics of US health insurance in just 30 days.

[DeathMetalFatCat]

You forgot that if youre low income your premium is is less but the deductible is higher. Which incentivises people to not get healthcare, and not getting healthcare means you wont hit the deductible so the insurance companies wont pay for anything so youre paying them money for no reason at that point.
Isnt it a great system

[ConstantlyDamaged]

Sounds a little like the Safety Net system we have in Australia.

Basically, if you're on a low-income healthcare card or a pension card, you get all your prescribed medications at a set value (~$6 each). When you reach your safety net value, the rest of your medications are free. This costs you nothing.

Okay, so it's nothing like that—since the safety net actually works.

[johngriffin]

I work in healthcare and I hate how accurate this series represents the medical system. Insurance companies make trillions and the USA has the worst health outcomes of any 1st world nation. End private insurance!

[GamblingTimeKaraoke]

There have been times when it's actually cost me less just to claim I have no insurance and get their sliding scale out of pocket than to use the insurance a not insignificant portion of my pay goes toward. All of this BS in US healthcare should straight up be illegal...

[DoctorFeuer]

Best part is, the deductible system forces patients delay expensive treatments towards the end of the year, a time when many practices have limited hours due to holidays, so the already slim chances of them getting an appointment is even lower. It's a win win!

[PerfeckPT]

These needs to be national educational videos for Americans and politicians about our current health system.

[kaOxtaR]

And then patients will have something called, “Maximum OUT OF POCKET”, that they need to meet before the insurance covers them fully. BUT, before the insurance actually “release their money”, they may refuse the claim because the claim is UNAUTHORIZED (by the insurance themselves) so they will NOT pay for the service. Basically, the patient has to somehow get the money to pay for their service (either in physician office or hospital or other facility). Not to mention, the process of getting a hold of a customer representative in the insurance takes so long that you might already forget why you came to the place in the first place. :) Welcome to the US Healthcare system!

[steve.schaeffer]

I predict we're gonna see "right... right?" a LOT this month. What a delightful system we've got ourselves.

[davidthompson]

I can already tell that poor Jimothy is going to go through it this month

[justynas]

On the second day of September,
Dr. Glaucomflecken taught,

Deductibles are scams,
And how monthly Premiums make us distraught

[jennrodriguezdaluz]

ah yes the deductible dance, where you strategically delay care so your deductible doesn't reset and you can take full advantage of your insurance possibly paying for some of your healthcare, maybe. flawless system! 👍✨