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With Meghna Chakrabarti
High-deductible health care plans have transformed American health care and pushed millions of people to the brink of financial ruin and health.
Guests
Noam Levey, writes about the National Health Policy of Washington, DC, for the Los Angeles Times. ()
Dr. Yousuf Zafar, Associate Professor of Medicine and Public Policy at the Duke Cancer Institute (), where he studies the cost of cancer care. Member of the Health Disparities Committees and Clinical Practice Guidelines of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. ()
From the reading list
Los Angeles Times"The rise in insurance deductibles and high drug prices has hit sick Americans with a" double whammy "-" Wendy Matney has been reluctant to tell her family not to call 911.
"It seemed to me almost selfish to say," Please, do not call, we can not afford it, "said the 39-year-old home health badistant. years old, afflicted with a form of epilepsy that causes frequent, sometimes violent epileptic seizures. .
"Matney has been enough in the hospital to know that a trip is worth thousands of dollars in bills under the family's high-deductible health plan. In addition, she and her husband, struggling with a medical debt of over $ 20,000, can no longer afford.
"Struck by a lawsuit at the hospital regarding unpaid bills, the couple declares bankruptcy, thus giving up any hope of getting out of his caravan and buying a house.
"I lose everything for that reason," said Matney.
"The surge in health insurance franchises over the past decade has forced insured Americans, middle-clbad and working-clbad people to medical bills that they can not afford, according to a report. Los Angeles Times review of insurance exposures based on employment. "
Find other articles in the Los Angeles Times series on health care and franchises here.
The colorado sun: "How the residents of Summit County, tired of high health care prices, have come together and negotiated a better deal" – "From his office in one of the most picturesque communities in America Tamara Drangstveit has heard every day the horrors of life there.
"The monthly health insurance premiums in Summit County were higher than the mortgage payments. Residents made fun of illnesses and injuries at home rather than going to the doctor. Families packed their bags and moved to find more affordable coverage.
"But now, she and other Summit County leaders have led a one-of-a-kind effort in Colorado, which is on the verge of lowering health insurance prices for many people in the county – and could become a model for communities in the state to gain more weight. about a health system that often feels stuffy.
"In the heavier world of health policy, it's about as cinematic as that: a group of city-dwellers in small towns, fed up with high prices, fighting together to get a better deal from two powerful industries. And, despite these difficulties, they seem to have succeeded. Mr Drangstveit said that many people in Summit County would shop for health insurance next year. They could see the price increases lower by 20% – a saving of several hundred dollars a month for families. "
L & # 39; Atlantic"Americans go bankrupt after being sick" – "In April 2016, Venus Lockett was about to deliver a speech at an event she volunteered for near her home in Atlanta. She was already stressed. The previous night, she was awake late to make her presentation and then mistakenly deleted it. As she climbed onto the podium to comment, she noticed that her words were blurry. She tried to speak on the microphone, but the words that were uttered made no sense.
"A friend approached and grabbed Lockett by the arm. Some people, noticing something was wrong, took Lockett to another room and called an ambulance. Lockett, then 57 years old and uninsured, did not know if she could refuse the ambulance or decide which hospital to take her to.
"The paramedics took her a few miles to Emory University Hospital Midtown, where she was held overnight. It turned out that she had suffered a transient ischemic attack or a mini-cerebrovascular accident. The hospital performed tests and sent her home, where she recovered completely.
"In May, the bill from the hospital arrived. Lockett had been charged a total of $ 26,203.62 for "observation", which the bill had ordered him to pay within 20 days. Lockett has collapsed. "Dang, I knew I should not have gone to the hospital," she recalls thinking. "But at the same time, it made me very afraid of not being able to speak."
Allison Pohle has produced this program for broadcast.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
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