Life in Post Health Insurance America

Filed in National by on April 5, 2018

Forced to choose between paying bills and having health coverage, many Americans are risking it and going without.

Last week Bloomberg News asked its readers to share their own stories of “risking it” without health insurance coverge. The response was overwhelming. More than 3,000 people from across the U.S. shared their challenges, giving us a possible preview of what life may soon be like for the lazy 93% of Americans who are not millionaires.

Whitney Whitman waited until her 7-year-old daughter had been sick for almost two weeks before taking her to the pediatrician for a visit that ended up costing $275. Her family of four in Bird Creek, Alaska, outside Anchorage, last had insurance in 2016.

When she looked for coverage last fall, the cheapest plan Whitman could find was $1,734 per month, with a deductible of $10,500 for the family. She splits her time between mental health counseling and mediating legal disputes, such as divorces. She made about $110,000 before taxes in 2016.

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Jason330 is a deep cover double agent working for the GOP. Don't tell anybody.

Comments (4)

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  1. Mike Dinsmore says:

    I’m sorry, but I have a really hard time sympathizing with someone making $110,000.00 a year having a hard time meeting a $275.00 pediatrician’s bill. Surely there must be better examples of people who are suffering without health coverage.

  2. Alby says:

    @Mike: Remember, these are people who wrote in with their stories. What they all have in common is people who feel sorry for themselves.

    I went without insurance for four months last year not because I wanted to, but because Highmark wouldn’t let me sign up when my COBRA benefits expired mid-year. I saved $8,800 by not having insurance for those four months.

  3. Mike Dinsmore says:

    @Alby: I’m as empathetic as most liberals, but I still think that out of the 2,999 or so remaining responses to Bloomberg, one could have been chosen that more represented the average worker who has lost or is about to lose their insurance.

    i suppose that I’ve been lucky over the years. I’ve had employer shared coverage, albeit expensive, for most of my life, and for the years that I didn’t, I paid the medical bills off with monthly payments. Even though I’m now on Medicare, I can’t afford the supplement, and I had to drop part D because the monthly cost was killing me.

    I hope that you’ve been able to find coverage at a reasonable cost this year. I still find it unconscionable that this country does not provide access to affordable medical care for all of its inhabitants.

    Best wishes,

    Mike

  4. mouse says:

    I thought 45 and Republicans were going to fix healthcare? Maybe they’re busy