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FWIW --- in my opinion it is more of a pharmaceutical gouging. Doctors have to pay for malpractice insurance. I don't think pharmaceuticals do anything like that.
OMG, meo, you had to pay that much? I think the total medical expense was unbelievable.
Bless your heart for facing this and taking care of it.
Actually I never saw the.money. My attorney took care of all that. He got his share, which was hefty, & there's still 1/3 in escrow while we wait to see if some more bills need to be paid. So far I've received 1/4 of the settlement. I'm not going to say what I think of the lawyer I chose, but I had to get one because the insurance company was not working with me. He did a lot better than I could have.
This is my goal, to come as close to zero as possible as I can't take any of it with me anyway
All one has to do is accurately predict one's expiration date. Miss that and one could reach zero $'s, years before they are ready to check-out. I guess that would qualify as screwing-up 'after' retirement!
Definitely. My son broke his arm when he was still under my insurance a few years ago (2 years I think). Typical broken arm though..nothing odd about it. They did the X-ray and then recommended an MRI "just in case". I asked about what the X-ray showed and they said it was a typical break so I declined the MRI. Then after he got the cast put on they wanted him to come back weekly for the next 6 weeks. I asked why and they said "to check the cast". I declined that as well and said we'd be back in 6 weeks.
I grew up in a family of 5 and we had a fair share of broken bones. X-ray, cast and back in 6 weeks to get it removed. Since it was a typical normal break I followed that same path for my son.
Then the bills started coming in. I kept them and matched them to the insurance statements.
Then a month later duplicate bills started coming for services already paid for. I called the insurance about that and they said not to worry about it. I also then got statements of "declined" payments for those duplicate bills stating they were already paid.
For 3 trips..xray and temp cast til swelling went down, cast and then 6 weeks later removal and I had a folder full of bills and statements.
Health CARE has totally gotten out of hand.
I do agree, some doctors keep you coming back even when you don't want to. I had to change Primary Care doctor this year as old doctor moved. New doctor will not refill any prescriptions without you coming back in. They will not give lab results over the phone. You must make another appointment to come in just to get your results. My previous doctor would have his nurse call after my labs and tell me to continue with my dosage or adjust it if needed. Not this doctor. Requires another office visit with him. Pain in the neck and unnecessary expense.
I have also refused services as you mentioned. I had a Radiologist suggest another expensive test for my neuropathy. I asked him, "Why, would it do anything to improve my neurapothy?" He answered no, and I said then why bare the expense. He said to me, and I quote. "Why, your not paying for it, medicare is."
I explained (ever so politely - while gritting my teeth) that I did not see the point in unnecessarily adding to Medicare's already burdened costs.
......................... Plus, if you had read the whole thread, you would see that the thread was not really my idea. Just picked up on someone else's idea.
...............................
That's not quite accurate. The idea for the thread was yours, but I came along and said I thought it was a good idea for a thread and that you should go ahead with it.
That's not quite accurate. The idea for the thread was yours, but I came along and said I thought it was a good idea for a thread and that you should go ahead with it.
Are you familiar with the Silver Sneakers program? For people 65+ it covers YMCA fees at some locations. It's not income restricted.
I have heard about it. My current WA based insurance doesn't provide this. I'm hoping when I change to Blue Cross in Texas we can get in free. That would be totally wonderful! And save us $66 a month!
Are you kidding me? 5k a month is ONLY what you and hubby will be getting? I would live like a queen if I had that much a month! Hubby and I didn't make that much combined when we both were working! You assume he will go before you and you'll have again, ONLY 2K a month? If I got 2K a month life would be fine, I could pay my expenses on time. Believe me, at 2K a month you will not be eligible for Government Housing. Know what I was eligible for in food stamps? $10 a month!! After all the rigamarole of applying, I was told $10 a month. I politely declined. Thanks but no thanks. It was laughable.
I read some of these figures here, and wonder what kind of a lifestyle people are accustomed to, that a retired couple is concerned about surviving on $60K a year. Maybe they should rephrase to say, "concerned about downsizing to live on $60K a year", but surviving? And they also seem to think subsidized housing and food stamps kick in at an unrealistically high income level.
I laughed when they offered me the same $10 in food stamps. They were astonished that I wouldn't take it. The reason I wasn't interested was because my insurance payment is finally coming in & my brother, who is an investment counselor will be investing it for me. I do not want to have to spend down my monies.
The bureaucratic junk and belittlement one has to go through to get food stamps, isn't worth it for $10 a month. I wouldn't go through the process for $100 a month.
I read some of these figures here, and wonder what kind of a lifestyle people are accustomed to, that a retired couple is concerned about surviving on $60K a year. Maybe they should rephrase to say, "concerned about downsizing to live on $60K a year", but surviving? And they also seem to think subsidized housing and food stamps kick in at an unrealistically high income level.
Well, I do have to agree, it makes more sense that one should say something like "seriously changing the lifestyle they are accustomed to", but in many parts of the country, if you are used to living and saving etc. on $120k a year, 60k seems like a scary reduction. A lot of people feel that they didn't work their whole life, saved, and raised a family, etc, to be forced to move someplace they don't want to live just to maintain a reasonable version of the lifestyle they are used to. As hoity toity as it sounds, while you will never starve on $60k of income a year, if it is all SS (not saying the persons above is), it means the couple worked at well paying jobs for their whole life in order to get that amount, and if that is all they have to show, then they most likely lived WAY above their means, and are now "forced" to pay the piper, so I have zero sympathy for them. But the adjustment, is real, and in their mind is quite scary. They just have a different version of what they think they deserve and are used to. On the plus side, $60k of just SS as your only income is more like $80k of regular preretirement income, with cost of living raises, due to tax eliminations. Not a bad place to be, and well ahead of probably 75% of retirees.
I honestly think there is a huge disconnect in what people that are used to living on say $60k a year today, think that people that make $120k live like. While it is double on paper, it sure isn't in real income. And it takes immense determination to live the same as someone on $60k a year and save the difference. Those are your successful early retirees, and we see how many of them there are compared to the more typical good saver retiree. It is very natural to want to live "better" but still "below your means" as you successfully save for retirement. Its a balancing act, and honestly somewhat of a gamble. As shallow as it sounds, you usually work hard for that money and want some more of an immediate recognition of that besides a huge savings balance, that you may lose to an ex spouse, or never use because of death. I've lived far below my means compared to most of my relatives whom seem to take expensive vacations 2 or 3 times a year, buy new cars every few years. I take a nice vacation every few years, and stay home ones normally, and only bought a brand new car once in my whole life, one year out of college because I was making more money than I thought possible, more even than my parents! It was a great lesson as I quickly learned about depreciation and insurance rates and car payments. I know quite a few that live further below their means than I do, and not surprisingly they have more money saved. But I prefer to think that my lifestyle is a better compromise between enjoyment and practicality. My goal has always been to maintain or live a better life in retirement. Then if it turns out I was wrong about how much it takes to do so, I have someplace to adjust to, and not suffer (mentally).
Last edited by Perryinva; 07-23-2015 at 06:47 AM..
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5k a month is ONLY what you and hubby will be getting? 
I would live like a queen if I had that much a month! Hubby and I didn't make that much combined when we both were working! 
You assume he will go before you and you'll have again, ONLY 2K a month? If I got 2K a month life would be fine, I could pay my expenses on time. 
