Getting Sick: The Most Expensive Thing You Can Do In America

Chelsea sits down with Olivia Leow, whose life as a young mother was turned upside down by a brain cancer diagnosis. They talk about health, illness, and what it actually costs to get very sick in America.

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[powellpicc]

$20k out of pocket, a battle for coverage for an MRI, and this is "good insurance." Absolutely criminal.

[sashastanton]

I’m an oncologist and this is true. One of the biggest jokes in America is our healthcare is tied to employment so when you can’t work you lose what’s healthcare you have….. I’ve had metastatic patients go back to work because otherwise they don’t have healthcare to continue care. It breaks my heart and makes me a card carrying member of nationalized healthcare.

[wandat]

America: Bring me your sick & poor, yearning to be free. So they can remain sick & poor, yearning to be free.

[surlespasdondine]

I almost died last year and spent a week in the hospital. So glad I live in Europe and did not have to give it any thought financially. Yes we pay taxes but it covers everything. And there is no limit on sick days. "sick days" are just days where you are sick.

[AM.A]

This is so on point. I live in fear of getting sick, not because I could potentially pass away but because of how much it’ll cost me.

[BobSure_AKA_PotatoSmasher]

My wife had spinal surgery. We are fortunate to be "well" insured. We had not met our deductible at the time of surgery so a good portion of the procedure was paid out of pocket. My wife's procedure was more expensive than our home. my wife's procedure was MORE EXPENSIVE THAN OUR HOME.

[pholliez]

And my American family asks why I was thrilled to become an Australian citizen. True freedom is not worrying about anyone in your family getting really sick AND being able to change your job at any time without thinking about how that affects your health insurance.

[Jesslovescoffee]

People in Canada love love love to complain about our "broken health care system" but all we have to do is watch a story like this realize how good we have it. My dad was in the hospital for 7 days due to a COPD crisis and we paid $0. Single payer health care man...

My father was just diagnosed with brain cancer after he had a sudden seizure. He’s almost done 36 rounds of treatment to see if we can prolong his life. We are still in shock. When we were visiting him at the hospital we kept saying we’re so lucky to be living in Canada and have free healthcare. ♥️ What the U.S. does wrong is privatize everything, everything is about profit.

[cindymora]

I admire so much that she decided to pause the treatment until she got an answer from the insurance company about the cost, you have to survive at any cost but also have a cool head to think if I am going to leave the family in extreme poverty, Olivia you are a very brave woman.

[soapaddict]

I didn't have cancer, but I had 2 rounds of brain surgery, too. What this guest said, spot on. The anesthesiologist that was selected for my procedure wasn't in my network. Tried to charge me almost 10k. Fought it for a year. I had no choice as I was asleep for the surgery. Insurance was like, why didn't you get pre approved??? Me, my doctor, and others jumped through hoops. Our system is ridiculous.

[amymorrison]

I remember looking at the hospital bill from my nephrectomy in 2018 after kidney cancer diagnosis. The robotic assisted surgery and 3-days in the hospital was about $140, 000. The ER visit in which I was diagnosed was over $80k. Out of pocket that cancer cost me about $10k. All of these are numbers that would easily bankrupt someone. This system is a nightmare that this country desperately needs to wake up from.

[rachelmikulinsky]

This sounds like a nightmare. I don't live in the US and my mom went through cancer, and paid only for a private second opinion. Even the transportation to the hospital was covered by the government.
It's crazy that people in such a wealthy country need to deal with it on top of the illness itself.

[AlexaVonSuess]

It took me 6 years to get diagnosed with a rare form of chronic pancreatitis. I was in and out of hospitals and specialists and nearly died twice. I remember sobbing in my bed in the hospital so badly that they sent psych to come in and talk to me. I wasn't upset about my diagnosis. I was terrified of the debt and the pysch just recommended medical bankruptcy. It took me 10 years to pay off.

[catherinecroteau-pinney]

This is so true. I always feel like most Americans are just one major medical catastrophe away from homelessness. It's horrible :(

[Emilymargaret]

My daughter was hospitalized in the cardiac icu for 5 months and our initial pre-insurance bill was over 4 million, it’s so wild

[animeaddict]

Thank you for covering this - chronic illnesses are something that are rarely talked about in terms of finances. I see too many financial professionals/experts frame saving and expenses as a choice and something within your control, when that’s not the case when you have health issues. I’m almost 32 and would be a lot further ahead financially if I didn’t have so many health issues from a young age. My medical bills can cost anywhere from 15-40% of my income.

[ljohnson]

This is so timely. I recently had a mammogram, and they asked me to come back for further imaging. They advised me the follow-up was $400.00. I have it on my HSA, but I couldn't help but think of people who needed didn't have it. It's stressful enough to need to follow up and now add financial stress. I'm glad your guest is ok.

[michaelhegwood]

My aunt actually has cancer and it’s bad to the point they forego treatment and she is just going on some fun trips with her family while she still has the time

[gabbylon]

Thank you for making a video on this . I was in my early 20s when I was diagnosed with breast cancer .The most hurtful thing was having "financial counselors" who I thought were friends reach out or use what happened to me as a reason sign up for their financial counseling . I've seen wealthy couples in the cancer community go broke .not just me and my partner who were both working full time, in college, and had a savings .fuck cancer