Medical Bankruptcy? Try Co-Pay/Deductible Bankruptcy!

[winkosmosis]

Originally Posted by ncole1

Huh?? The study under discussion considers a bankruptcy medical if one's OOP exceeds even $5,000/year, which is less than the deductible of $6,000/year you just mentioned!

I was replying to the guy who had to pay as much as his yearly salary.

[charolastra00]

Originally Posted by winkosmosis

That's why the ACA requires a $6000 (or whatever it is) out of pocket maximum per year... If you had an insurance policy that meets the requirements of Obamacare, you wouldn't have had to pay close to your yearly take home.

Originally Posted by winkosmosis

I was replying to the guy who had to pay as much as his yearly salary.

I'm a girl and my insurance is and was ACA compliant, except that my plan could exclude prescription drugs from their OOP maximum prior to the ACA. There were also a huge number of over the counter medications, supplements, and supplies that I had to take that were not covered by insurance at all, even with ACA. I include the over the counter meds and parking in my out of pocket calculations because they are considered tax deductible.

The OOP limits are also by year. If your illness straddles two years, you can get hit by the OOP max twice. This KILLED my parents prior to the ACA because the only plan they could get was a $10,000 out of pocket for each, and my dad got seriously ill in November which required expensive testing through December and January. In 3 months, they owed 20K on just my mom's 25K salary. Thanks to ACA, they are not on a better plan that actually works for them.

[Hoonose]

Originally Posted by charolastra00

I'm a girl and my insurance is and was ACA compliant, except that my plan could exclude prescription drugs from their OOP maximum prior to the ACA. There were also a huge number of over the counter medications, supplements, and supplies that I had to take that were not covered by insurance at all, even with ACA. I include the over the counter meds and parking in my out of pocket calculations because they are considered tax deductible.

The OOP limits are also by year. If your illness straddles two years, you can get hit by the OOP max twice. This KILLED my parents prior to the ACA because the only plan they could get was a $10,000 out of pocket for each, and my dad got seriously ill in November which required expensive testing through December and January. In 3 months, they owed 20K on just my mom's 25K salary. Thanks to ACA, they are not on a better plan that actually works for them.

Our max yearly OOP dropped drastically with Obamacare. And that's good for us.

[bbnetworking]

Originally Posted by thrillobyte

Used to be if you didn't have medical insurance and a medical emergency struck the cost of being uninsured would bankrupt you.

You're going to start hearing of a new phenomenon real soon: even if you DO have medical insurance the cost of co-pays, deductibles, premiums, fees, etc. will also drive you to bankruptcy.

Case in point: my elderly mother was hospitalized for seven days. Cost $210/day co-pay. Total rounded: $1500. Ambulance transport (3 trips when all is over) $250 co-pays x3: $750. Rehabilitation $50/day up to a total of 100 days: 30 days estimate stay at facility: $1500. Various fees: $250. Total: (approx.) $4000.

Fortunately we have the funds to pay. But there many families out there living on the edge with part-time jobs that provide scant medical insurance for which the copays and deductibles are even higher. How do they meet an obligation that wipes out in one occurrence what little savings they've been able to put away. Even gap insurance won't completely cover the c's and d's.

Medical costs will bankrupt this country eventually as the population ages, more and more seniors drop into Medicaid territory and copays and deductibles rise higher and higher. Won't look pretty in 20-30 years.

Just be happy you have insurance, without it, you will probably lose a house.