THIS IS INSANITY
82This is a short hub and I don't have a picture or anything aesthetic to add. I want to rant about the absurdity of our Health Care System and the events that lead up to this rant.
Just for the record, I don't have health insurance because we cannot afford it.
My husband has been blessed (you would think it is a blessing) with good health all year.
Being that he has had many hernias and needs a preventive colonoscopy every 2 years this was his year to get one. He has not been sick--other than the normal colds and flu, the whole entire year. So he did get sick and he found that he was long overdue for his colonoscopy and so he scheduled it for next week.
Tell me why a Health Insurance deductible is almost half of what the preventative procedure is?
For a single person, not a family policy his deductible is $1200.00. That about took my breath away when the lady from the hospital called me to tell us the procedure was fully covered. His deductible has NEVER been this high. I believe last year it was like just over $600.00.
Tell me why we should be penalized because we have not had the need to go to a Doctor to spend the deductible the entire year?
He has not gone to the doctor the entire year. You would think that was a good thing, wouldn't you. One has to pay the deductible through going to the Doctor several times a year.......even if one is not sick---for how else can the deductible be paid.
Shouldn't we be rewarded because we have such good health?
We have to cancel my husband's colonoscopy because we cannot afford the deductible at all. Several events that have happened since summer has us in such a tight bind and we are playing catchup with paying the major bills. It won't be remotely caught up until 6 months from now. We are doing everything that we can.
I can bet that there are many others in the same situation.
Thank you for allowing me to vent. This world is full of insane money hungry people the prey on those of us who are just trying to live. We don't have a new car or even a van or a big house. We only have a small two bedroom cabin in the woods that has been renovated (not done with that either--no money) into a small house. I am talking the biggest bedroom is only 9 1/2 x 10.
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CWB, Nice to see you again. Today has not been a good day for me. After I posted this I got a call from my dad about his condition. His arteries are block tp his brain. On one side they are blocked 100% and the other side is only 50%. The doctor's told him that he couldn't get an operation to clear the arteries until they were 75% blocked. Now I know of know about blocked veins and those that are going to the brain and that just doesn't sound right. He will be almost dead before they will operate. There has got to be something that they can do to fix the Insurance companies---right now, not 4 years from now. I am so sick of all this! I now know why people commit suicide in thinking that they can help their families. I am not saying that I will do something like that becasue I am too chicken and I don't want to come back to this life to do it all over again. It all just insane!!
Heh, LG, it is not better in the other parts of the world as well. I do not have medical insurance for last 14 years (my own choise) and this helped me to take more care about myself.
My bf went to the doctors because of his health disorders recently, but they drove him completely crazy with lack of basic knowledge and completely opposite advices 2 doctors were giving him. He came to conclusion that only HE IS RESPONSIBLE for hiw own health or lack of it, doctors did not make him ill, so they cannot heal him as well. That is my conclusion as well. Prevention is the most important part of healing, healing itself is always and everywhere expensive.
Love and hugs....
I hear so many stories like yours LG. Our healthcare system is truly broken and getting worse. It's about profit and greed. You simply cannot have a primary fiduciary responsibility to shareholders and employees and also put patient care first. Taking care of sick people just is not profitable. Period. So sorry. It is ridiculous that your husband has to go without a simple, preventative procedure because of money. It really sucks
Tatjana, I agree with most of what you said. See Dennis had a really bad car accident that nearly killed him way before I met him, so they need to check up on some things occasionally. In the past he has had 7 hernias, not by lifiting or anything of the sort, but from that accident. Most of them were taken out becasue they were dried up but there were three that weren't. This is the main reason he needs those colonoscopies to make sure that his pains that he had a week or so ago was not just another hernia and the make sure everything is going as it should. I think it is great that he hasn't had any sickness related to those issues in over a year. We can't afford the deductible and that is a shame.
Oh and I have already started eating more vegetables and such and so has Dennis. Oh, but that is not what caused his pain and bleeding because he had it the week prior to me changing the diet in this house.
Robie2, Thanks for stopping by. Back before insurance came on the scene it was all about the people and that they came first. The person who devised the medical insurance should have had his head examined and down the line.
It is all about MONEY!
Yes Lady G. It is insane. Pathologically insane. And that's an accurate diagnosis for the people who are currently in control of just about everything.
And yes, it is all about money. And debt. And usury.
I'm very sorry to hear about your dad and equally sorry to say that I can't think of any useful advice to offer.
I can only say my thoughts are with you and my hope for a good outcome.
CWB, Thank you very much for sharing your caring thoughts
You and yours are part of my family. We are all children of the same "mom" and "dad".
Whether you believe those parents were adam and eve or the first hominid nuclear family in prehistoric africa is irrelevant.
All living persons on Earth are direct descendants of the same parents.
I care for all as I care for myself. All my brothers and sisters share in my love, whether they want it or not.
I fear ColdWarBaby is all too correct on this LG. It hurts no doubt.
Ralwus, so nice to see you stop by one of my hubs and thanks for leaving a comment too. Yes this all sucks and I fear nothing is going to get done anytime soon.
Interesting to hear about health care over the pond. It is insane. Insurance companies just want one thing -your money- but with our NHS things can also be difficult. We have a government organization called NICE which tells people what they can and cannot have. For example, the breast cancer drug Herceptin is generally not allowed, even though it is life-saving for some people. NICE feel it is too expensive for general use. Plus, if you say OK I'll pay for the drug, then NICE forces you to pay for all treatment thereafter - you cannot use the NHS. I guess whatever system you have, money is involved somewhere and it becomes an unfair system. You have had a hard time. Helth care should, as you say be about people, not profit.
Georgina, Thanks for stopping by. I know someone who lives in England and his problems getting treatment and such. I think the Health care bill passed here in the states. I really wish they would do something about all those insurance companies and put a cap on them. That was in the bill, but I lost track of what and whom is doing what and whom to whatever. At the same time I don't want to be FORCED to have Health Insurance. That makes it more obvious that it is a money game and I don't want to play it. People keep telling me What If you HAVE to or ever NEED it---well that is exactly what those money mongers want you to think. FEAR them into it. That doesn't work with me. Just What IF I don't ever need it. See they won't get my money. People pay into it every single paycheck, but if they end up never needing it---then--they never get all that hard earned money back. A Scam, big-time!
Gosh, I didn't know all this was going on. I will be thinking of you guys.
It's not fair, it does make more sense to be rewarded for good health but they just want your money. Of course it is not right to take advantage or cause us regular folks to suffer because we don't have money.
I certainly cannot understand from any other point then they just want more money. Money, money, money, money...
I read that they do that a few years back when I was looking into health plans. It didn't make any sense to me to have to pay a certain amount in deductible before your insurance would actually cover anything serious.
Sandra, thanks for your concerns. Like I said it is a preventative procedure and I think those whold me covered no matter what. It really is outrageous to be paying your insurance premium and on top of that a deductible too. So what are we paying for..again? It really doesn't make sense. We pay premiums to get the insurance that pays who? and then we also have to pay a deductible to pay who? Double Dipping sounds more like it.
This is outrageous. Big insurance corporations should not be able to dictate what medical care people receive. Nor should it be based on how much money you have. Period.
I am going without any health care whatsoever and without all my medications - because I have applied for Disability (over a year now and still waiting....) and have no income whatsoever. No doctors will take you if you have no money and no insurance. So you can't get your meds, either, nor can you get the diagnostic procedures you need. You just do without.
I wonder how much your husband's surgery would cost if you just paid cash?
And I wonder how much it would cost in Mexico or Canada? (Don't be put off by my saying Mexico, dear - I lived there for 12 years and their medical and surgical care is many times better than what we have here.) You might be able to afford it better.
I wonder if there is anything he can take (herbal or alternative) to help clear his arteries. It looks to me like he is a prime candidate for a stroke and a heart attack.
My God, what is wrong with people, anyway? I sometimes think the whole world has been taken over by evil.
I will look up alternative remedies. In the meantime, do not give up. Keep looking & find a doctor who will do it. Maybe one will agree to do it on payments. There are some doctors around here who will do that. Your husband needs that surgery desperately, and don't you give up until he gets it.
I will pray for you.
I lost count of the many friends I've seen perish because of deadly conditions which no insurance company would cover. They died simply because of lack of care, and they received no care because they could not work, and they could not work because of their dangerous medical conditions. Vicious cylce, that.
Is this America? Is this what the "best country in the world" has to offer? Do we really think "We're number one!"????
Right now I'm visiting family in Spain. I'm not a citizen here, but I got a quick check up for blood pressure, diabetes, etc., all of which I have, and it cost me nothing. Nada. The worst thing Spain suffers from right now is lack of medical doctors. Seems they want higher pay that other countries offer, so even doctors are getting sucked in by the money thing. Nurses are also in short supply, same reason.
Private insurance exists and thrives here but it has bounds, cost containments, controls, which we in the U.S. do not have. So watch as U.S. insurance companies raise their prices as the "threat" of health care reform goes on. That I believe is one reason so many Republicans and even some Democrats are against health care reform. They're in bed with the medical, pharmaceutical & insurance companies.
Chef Jeff
MagicStarER, You are absolutley correct. It would cost us from $1200 to $3500 depending on what they had to do. All they are supposed to do is check him out and find where the bleeding was occuring. His bleeding has stopped for the most part. We don't have any extra money to pay a little each month. It is all going into the Health Insurance Premiums. Something just doesn't sound right about all that. Paying into the premiums and then also paying into deductions......we are not benefitting from any of that and it isn't right.
Yes, we have and are in the process of changing our diets to lots less sugar and more fresh vegetables and fruits. I cannot believe the amount of e-mails that I am getting for Health Insurance, and Pharmaceuticals. I have never gotten this much. Now we are starting to get phone calls about them too. It's not just the drugs and Insurance but also Interest Rates and just about everything. I don't have Health Insurance at all and never really did. It's all a scam to get money and not help the people. I won't play their games and no fear is going to get me to change.
Chef Jeff, Thanks for stopping by. You are correct too. It isn't Health Care Reform they need or it is all about....It's more of who and how much can we suck from the Middle and lower class.
I talked with a person who is all in for Health Care Reform and I asked him why and if he had a good paying job and Health Insurance with his job. He said yes that he did. I asked him what he thought about those who don't have it and he didn't know what to say. Those who have good health care are the ones that are driving the Health Care Reform while us who don't see the other side and also have our eyes open.
Lady G: I came back to re-read this article and after doing a bunch of research - thinking I would try to help your husband, realized that I had confused your article (about the colonoscopy) with somebody else's article about blocked arteries (had them both opened at the same time in different tabs) So, I did lots of research on blocked arteries and found some great solutions that would even let you avoid surgery. (Oral chelation, that is)
But that doesn't help you, does it? (Oops - guess I need that oral chelation therapy I came up with, for my incipient Alzheimer's ? disease? to get the heavy metals out of my brain!) LOL - I am losing it... :)
But I did go back and look up something for your husband:
In your husband's case, I would just guess that the best thing you can probably do is work on diet, and if it gets bad, go to the ER, where they will HAVE to treat the emergency instead of do the proper diagnostics and preventive care, like they should have been able to do in the first place. (Yes, you are right, that is insane - to keep people from getting diagnostic and preventive care, then have to get ER care or hospitalization, which is outrageously expensive, not to mention the extra suffering and grief it makes people go through...)
And the bad thing about this, let me tell you, is that even if it gets bad and he has to have surgery, this will not CURE him. And he could get the herniations AGAIN! Because they are not curing the CAUSE!
We are forced to learn how to use alternative remedies to take charge of our own health. While this is very sad, it is also good, because the health care industry nowadays does not "cure" disease, but only treats the symptoms so they can keep you in the system and make MORE money off you. If we can learn how to make ourselves healthy, then we don't have to rely on this broken system, and in the bargain, we will have also learned how to cure ourselves instead of just temporarily treat symptoms, but not cure.
I myself, have irritable bowel syndrome, and there are certain foods that wreak havoc on my digestive system and cause horrible cramping that wakes me up in the middle of the night. These things are CORN and PEAS. Believe it or not. NUTS cause it, too.
I know your husband does not have IBS, but some of the same things that help me, will help him, too.
In your husband's case, I would think that drinking lots of water, and eating a high-fiber diet (more than 25 g daily) with no refined flours or sugars (Kroger's sells a good unrefined sugar that I really like), no processed foods, no or little meat, and lots of fruits, vegetables (preferably raw), and whole grains, would help keep him out of the ER. (This diet helps everything, not just digestive system!)
Everybody is different. For me the triggers are corn and peas. For somebody else it might be something else. He probably knows which foods bother him and should avoid those foods.
But high-fiber is key in keeping a low pressure within the intestinal lumen and moving things through quickly and smoothly, carrying inflammation-causing bacteria with it. Increase fiber by leaving the peel on fruits and vegetables, eating oat bran, flaxseed, brown rice, and wheat bran (you can add it to foods, like add wheat bran to meatloaf, or substitute 1/3 of flour in a recipe with oat bran, etc...) If you don't already juice, then maybe you can get a juicer - leafy greens is the thing for him. Alfalfa greens are really good for this, you can mix it with something like pineapple or guayaba and it's delicious.
Avoiding "hard" foods like popcorn, crunchy chips, sunflower seeds, nuts, stuff like that, will keep irritation down. (and whatever else triggers trouble for him)
Walking & swimming, other activities that keep you moving.
Herbal support I highly recommend:
Colon support and general cleansing (sensible herbal, not the crazy colon cleansing crap you see all over on the internet)
http://www.kalyx.com/store/proddetail.cfm/ItemID/7
Support to keep colon and digestive system healthy (It says for IBS here, but these herbs are all excellent for anything colon and digestive system health - I really like this one:)
http://www.kalyx.com/store/proddetail.cfm/ItemID/7
Either one of these or both have excellent ingredients for general support of the colon and digestive system and your whole body in general. I am a great believer in herbal treatments, I use them myself, and yes, they DO WORK, providing you know how to use them.
Even if he does have some hernia problems in his colon, these things will all help it, support and enable his own body to rectify it, and strengthen his digestive system so it can repair itself, and lessen symptoms.
Either one of the above preparations will help him immeasurably and are very inexpensive. So simple, but so effective. (I am an affiliate for Kalyx, but I am making nothing from recommending this to you, my affiliate ID not even on it, I just want you to look at it, I think it will help him, don't care if I earn or not...)
For anybody else with other health issues, I highly recommend Kalyx.com. Like I said, I am an affiliate, but I throw this out as a freebie at no benefit to myself. Their herbs are pure and organic, the explanations of the ingredients, actions, and side effects are excellent, and the products very effective. Also, I do order from them myself, and delivery is fast and reliable. Their staff is friendly, helpful, and very polite.
I ordered herbs from Kalyx to help my friend who has end-stage liver cirrhosis. He was told 2 1/2 yrs ago that he would only live 6 more weeks maximum. Thanks to Kalyx and their herbs, he is still around, just as ornery as ever.
Yes, herbs DO work, and the results were measurable in his liver function blood tests.
I hope any of this has helped you. I know how it feels to go through this, and this is why I learned to find other options. I hope what I have learned can help someone else - if anybody has a question about how to use herbs for a condition they have, ask me, and I will try to find out the answer.
Love! :)
MagicStarER, You weren't wrong in your helping when you read the wrong hub or had both open. Things happen for reasons and my father has blocked arteries in his neck. One is blocked 100% and the other only 50% AND they will not operate until the lesser one is 75%. Well he will be almost dead then so why bother! Pi***es me off to no end.
Anyway your advice is good and we are already doing such things as you are stating. He knows nothing of whyhis body soes what it does and that is sad. Society is teaching people that, just as you state. I do believe in herbs too. I have Ulcerative Colitis and I know whyat sets mine off too, but have been taking Prilosec for years and have not had one relapse.....BUT milk will bind me up and give me all pain in the gut for a day or two. So I know all about what I can and cannot eat. Getting him to eat better foods is a bit trying, but I will do it becaseu that is all I will serve.......so he has no choice and he cannot afford to go out for lunch/dinner every day.
I tried your links and they all came up with errors. I will try the main link in a bit and THANKS much for your help.
This is the error that I got and the same when I went to the main site:
Error Diagnostic Information
ODBC Error Code = 22001 (String data right truncation)
[Microsoft][ODBC SQL Server Driver][SQL Server]String or binary data would be truncated.
The error occurred while processing an element with a general identifier of (CFQUERY), occupying document position (67:4) to (67:42).
Date/Time: 11/18/09 10:16:40
Browser: Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 8.0; Windows NT 6.0; WOW64; Trident/4.0; GTB6; Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.1; SV1) ; SLCC1; .NET CLR 2.0.50727; Media Center PC 5.0; OfficeLiveConnector.1.3; OfficeLivePatch.0.0; .NET CLR 3.5.30729; .NET CLR 3.0.30729)
Remote Address: 96.239.155.205
Wow. Looks like some sort of add-on on your browser causing incompatibility with the server. Somehow a browser hook got downloaded onto your browser. Some servers are programmed to not let you access their servers if you have this. This happened to me one time. You have the Mozilla/4.0 etc. listed twice. One of those should be deleted. You can do this by going into your registry and deleting it. You can download Reg Seeker for free to get to it. That WOW64 doesn't look like it belongs there either. There is a place you can go to fix this. Let me see if I can find it. I am not sure where I put it (Jeez, I need to clean the heavy metals out of my brain! I lose everything! )
In the meantime, see if you can just go to kalyx.com and paste the product name or SKU number into their search box, and get to the page that way.
This is the one for support (says for IBS but good for ANY colon support, not just IBS!)
kalyx.com
Irritable Bowel 90 vegicap bottle: HE
SKU: P-1440-90
http://www.kalyx.com/store/proddetail.cfm/ItemID/7
Here is the other one:
Colon Cleansing 90 vegicap bottle: HE
SKU: P-1200-90
http://www.kalyx.com/store/proddetail.cfm/ItemID/7
By the herbs that are in each of these herbal preparations, I can tell you that they are good for much more than just what their names tell you. They are good for digestive support, strengthening, and better function of the colon and digestive system. These will help you, too, with your ulcerative colitis problem.
(it's hell getting old, isn't it? nothing wants to work right anymore... can't even poop right! LOL!)
I will try to find the web address where you can go to check your browser. See if you can get on there by just going to kalyx.com - let me know if you can't, ok? That's crazy!
love!
ok
I don't know anything aobut browsers. The computer is only a year old and it already has things on it. I tried several times to go to the main site and got the same error code. I don't get this with anything else on the internet.
Ok. I THOUGHT I read something about the artery blockages, got mixed up somewhere...
Here is that:
The most serious concern for heart disease is calcium plaque blocking your arteries and leading to a heart attack.
Surgery for blocked arteries is only a temporary fix, and should actually be your last resort.
Here's why:
When a Doctor does Angioplasty, a balloon on the end of a catheter is inserted into your artery to squash the offending plaque against the wall of your artery, it is then held captive with a metal wire stent. The catheter passing through the arteries often damage the arteries and cause plaque to be scraped off in large chunks, that plaque is flushed through your body and may end up in the brain causing paralysis, mental deficiencies, or a stroke. After surgery you will still have Heart disease, because the plaque buildup under the stent and in other areas of your body has not been removed. The catheter cannot get to and clean the small arteries and arterioles that cause congestive heart disease.
Doctors providing Angioplasty or Bypass Surgery offer only a one time stopgap, this partial treatment often leads to further heart problems and on going treatment. Surgery leaves your body a physical wreck and it takes many months, just to be able to breathe without pain. You will have to take expensive Plavix daily to prevent blood clots.
A healthy diet and exercise program, along with a safe and effective chelation therapy program can help clear the calcium deposits from the arteries. Chelation (pronounced key-LAY-shun) is the use of EDTA to bind molecules, such as metals or minerals, and "chelate", or remove, them from the body.
Liquid EDTA (Ethylene Diamine Tetra-acetic Acid) is absorbed into the bloodstream within minutes. It then begins to chelate toxic and heavy metals, along with excessive mineral deposits. When metals and minerals remain in the bloodstream, they accumulate and harden, causing poor circulation. By cleansing the body’s arteries and veins, the blood flow is increased.
EDTA that will chelate calcium as well as other minerals and heavy metals out of your body resulting in clean arteries. By cleansing the veins and arteries, this increases blood flow. Blood provides your body (tissues, organs, nerves, etc.) with oxygen and nutrients. If your blood flow is restricted due to blockage, your body is not receiving the proper nourishment, which causes poor health conditions. Now, if you reduce the blockage and increase circulation, your body receives the proper blood rich in oxygen and nutrients which can allow it to recuperate, regenerate and operate normally once again.
Here are some links to learn more:
http://www.cardiorenew.com/ (you can order the stuff here)
About cardiac surgery
http://www.yourticker.com/shorterm.htm
This article for what to do:
http://www.squidoo.com/ReverseAtherosclerosis
This treatment:
Angioprim (EDTA) Oral Chelation
http://www.squidoo.com/ReverseAtherosclerosis
http://www.cardiorenew.com/?gclid=CP62oIfZkp4CFQ_x
Consuming garlic is known to clear arteries, improve circulation and remove toxins from the blood. (3-4 cloves of raw garlic daily)
garlic - 3/4 cloves daily
cayenne pepper - 1 tsp in 1 cup boiling water (don't know how often...)
Turmeric - lowers cholesterol and blood sugar levels
Green Tea - drinking more than one cup daily prevents heart disease, helps with blocked arteries.
Carrot juice, orange juice, apple cider vinegar with garlic.
Sorry - I repeated a couple things... Guess you will find it ok anyway. I don't know if this will help you or not - but it might. Can't hurt.
I can't understand why you are having trouble getting to kalyx.com.
One time I had something like this happen to me where I could not get onto devhub.com. The administrator there told me I had a malicious browser add-on. I knew for certain that I had never put it on there. I found a place where you can go and it will tell you if you have this on your browser and tell you how to get it off. Some servers are programmed to not allow connections with browsers with certain add-ons. I had a heck of a time getting rid of the thing - finally after about 3 days of trying to figure it out, found a place that told how to do it, and it worked. It made me angry because I was trying to build my web site on DevHub at the time, and could not log in and work on it.
I will see if I can find it, I'm looking right now.
I did a virus scan in safe mode after you wrote your last comment. Then I went and did the same to my desktop and there were 4 viruses and 4 warnings on it and they were cleaned off. So I might have better luck this time today----ONLY I can't get into my hotmail to see my messages. They have done this before so I just have to wait it out. It is raining here all day today and it seems like this is the reason why I get computer communication problems. It has been this way since we moved here 120 years ago. I don't know why and the companies don't know why it does these things.
ColdWarBaby says:
2 months ago
You have my deepest sympathy LG.
You must always remember that the insurance industry in no way wishes to provide care or service to anyone paying into their coffers.
They exist for only one purpose, profit.
Unless and until a universal, single payer plan is initiated, health care will become more and more exclusively a privilege of the wealthy and less a basic human right.
Those who control the worlds economy do not believe in human rights. They care only for their presumed right to supremacy.
The prime directive of capitalism, Buy or Die.