The high cost of being healthy is enough to make me sick.
The high cost of being healthy is enough to make me sick. The cost of medical care has gone beyond reason when a prescription drug costs more than your take-home pay.
Remember the saying, “No news is good news”? It used to be that anytime blood was drawn you’d get a phone call from the clinic or physician telling you the results. After talking to other people in the medical field, that’s still the case.
However, someone dropped the ball when I went to a clinic in August and had the usual blood work done – cholesterol, sugar, etc. I came in for a follow-up, but not all the results were in. I was told if there was anything out of the ordinary I’d get a call. I never did until I went to my gynecologist for a routine check-up two months later. My doctor sent for my blood results, and when they arrived she immediately called and told me that I needed to see another doctor because something was wrong.
Because people in the medical field and junkies are usually the ones who contract hepatitis C, the doctor I went to see asked if I worked in a hospital. What was I to think when he asked me, “Have you been around dirty needles or contaminated blood?”
“Excuse me?” I gasped. “What are you talking about? The only people that have been poking me have been you people – doctors.”
Each time a person goes to the doctor, they should consider it a risk factor. These days every doctor is a specialist, and rarely do you find one that can take care of your total health needs. Too many doctors taking care of one patient is a recipe for disaster.
I have been to three different dentists for three different reasons in the last year. This complicates my problem because how do I prove where I contracted hepatitis C? I’m sure the Novocain syringe that was used on me has since been sterilized, or so I hope. But that’s not much comfort since I have at least six months of therapy ahead of me.
The prescription drugs that I need to cure this condition are another story. I’m still waiting for the insurance company to authorize the medicine I need. Meanwhile, I feel poorly and I ache all the time, but when I found out how much the medication will cost I nearly had a heart attack.
“It’s going to be $3,000 for a month’s supply,” the pharmacy clerk told me.
“But I need this for six months! That’s $18,000!” It’s unconscionable that the prescriptions I need would cost more than what I make in a month.
“I’m going to need a loan for the co-payment,” I thought. “What about the person who doesn’t have any insurance? What happens to them?”
It’s unfair and asinine to have a society in which people who can afford medical treatment are the ones who receive the most health care. Yet determining the level of health care depends on how much insurance you can afford, and that ultimately decides how much money the insurance companies are willing to spend on you.
Doctors claim the high price of malpractice insurance is the driving force of rising health care costs. Granted, there are people who look to sue for the sake of making a quick buck. Unfortunately, the insurance companies would rather settle out of court and cut their losses because it’s cheaper than paying attorney fees to defend the doctor in question. But what if the doctor was wrong? What about the patients who suffer because someone in the medical profession was careless and not doing their job responsibly?
People need to believe that doctors set the highest level of safety procedures to protect their patients’ health and well-being. They go in with all the confidence in the world that doctors do things right. I always believed the medical profession knew what they were doing, but when simple, basic procedures were not followed my peace of mind was violated. Not only did I get stuck with a syringe, I got stuck with the bill and a bad dose of medicine to go with a vial of contempt.
Governor Davis’ proposal to drastically cut Medi-Cal reimbursements is a major mistake because now hospitals, doctors and other medical personnel will adjust their budgets. The question is, who will suffer from these cutbacks? You? Me? All of us.
The health and well-being of our society should always be the number-one priority because a healthy nation will prosper and prevail.
