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GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

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Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#121

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In universal care you dont get access to 'clinical trials and research and things like that, where people need access to leading-edge potential treatments' You are also not eliminated the need to get funds, you are changing who you are asking them from. And let me tell you that government officials are seldom generous.

Clinical trials are mostly free for the patients who are chosen for them. But I think what you’re saying is government healthcare won’t pay for experimental treatment (currently in a trial stage). However, that is true even for private insurance here in the US. My regular insurance doesn’t cover experimental treatments. I have a separate add on that pays for some experimental treatments.

Its a direct quote from the article, not delving deep into clinical trials.

Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The US healthcare market is not a free market. I know this well enough to commit to a challenge: name me any two actors in the space and I can name you how each one is screwing the other one thanks to a law or regulation.

Maybe the problem there is multiple actors rather than regulations.

Sorry? could you rephrase this sentence, I didn't quite get it.

Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#123
post #102

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you know what else affects people in a practical way, and not purely in the world of ideas? Having to choose between medicine and the rest of life's necessities. "Can I afford both my kid's insulin and my rent this month?" That's a real-world consequence which, offhand, only the US healthcare system offers.

I disagree, I think this is the real-world consequence of the US regulatory environment.

How, exactly, has regulation driven the price of a drug we've had for decades up hundreds, even thousands, of percent, most of which increase happened after it was out of patent protection?

Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#124

>Or the Tennessee couple who want to get pregnant, but whose insurance doesn’t cover the $20,000 worth of “medications, surgeries, scans, lab monitoring, and appointments [that] will need to be paid for upfront and out-of-pocket” for in vitro fertilization. Would an ideal healthcare system cover in vitro for anyone, full stop? Took a buzz through the NHS requirements[0] and there are definitely restrictions. And in v…

The Israeli system covers IVF with almost no restrictions, mostly around no longer funding IVF when it no longer makes medical sense.

https://www.health.gov.il/English/Topics/fertility/Pages/ivf...

Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#125

I'm on insurance, and to be very real I have gotten bills in the past from providers that I never ended up paying. The reality is that this is more common than not...providers only collect some small % of the part of the bill the patient (and not insurance company) is responsible for. They usually end up selling this debt for pennies on the dollar to collections agencies. Do I feel guilty? Not really. But the lesson…

I had an outpatient procedure a few years ago and called to question the bill. It seemed like balance billing at the time and I straight-out said it to the office admin. Apparently that's all it takes, the thought of litigation and bad publicity? I haven't received another bill.

Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#126

>Or the Tennessee couple who want to get pregnant, but whose insurance doesn’t cover the $20,000 worth of “medications, surgeries, scans, lab monitoring, and appointments [that] will need to be paid for upfront and out-of-pocket” for in vitro fertilization. Would an ideal healthcare system cover in vitro for anyone, full stop? Took a buzz through the NHS requirements[0] and there are definitely restrictions. And in v…

NHS coverage is a mixed bag. Other countries that offer full coverage of at least one cycle would be Sweden, France, and Belgium. A good like, half of Europe has some kind of at least partial public coverage of IVF.

Compare to the US where only a dozen(ish) states have requirements that group insurers offer infertility coverage, and those dozen are all over the place. California doesn't require IVF coverage while Illinois does. If you buy a Marketplace plan, I guess... sucks to be you, zero coverage.

Anyway, I will say that literally all of my reproductive health issues that were causing issues elsewhere in life were uncovered in the process of being diagnosed with infertility after literally 15 years of a dozen doctors that had no fucking clue, and that it's a big shame that not even that is covered for a lot of people in large parts of the US - which is a far cry from covering a $20k+ IVF cycle.

Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Could you not argue that it is a mental health issue?

I feel like people go more crazy as a result of having kids than as a result of not having them.

Speaking as someone with infertility working on kid #2 via IVF right now, nothing positive comes out of wanting kids but not being able to have them. (Also with the big disclaimer that adopting children costs just as much if not more, in some way or another...)

There's parent nights out and dates with my partner to rant about toddlers being shits that are nice to have, but my fertility clinic has an MFT on staff and my old fertility clinic had referrals out for therapy and support groups facilitated by therapists. After almost 18 months the first time, too, I worked out a lot of depression and anger through 1:1 therapy weekly for months. I'm heavily relying on those old coping mechanisms, this time around.

Just. does. not. compare.

Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#128
post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In universal care you dont get access to 'clinical trials and research and things like that, where people need access to leading-edge potential treatments' You are also not eliminated the need to get funds, you are changing who you are asking them from. And let me tell you that government officials are seldom generous.

> where people need access to leading-edge potential treatments' Those leading edge potential treatments tend to be both very expensive and ineffective, and often cause additional harm on top. That's from the analysis of a leading oncologist in the UK. https://www.bmj.com/content/357/bmj.j2097

I'm not making a judgement on the clinical validity of experimental treatments. That was a direct quote from the article.

Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#129

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In universal care you dont get access to 'clinical trials and research and things like that, where people need access to leading-edge potential treatments' You are also not eliminated the need to get funds, you are changing who you are asking them from. And let me tell you that government officials are seldom generous.

Access to leading-edge potential treatments is a minor concern in health care: few need it, fewer qualify, and fewer are helped. Even then, your statement is false: leading edge medical research is carried out in all countries with universal health care. The U.S. has an infant mortality rate worse than 43 other countries because large numbers of pregnant women can't access routine prenatal care. That's but one exampl…

Its a quote from the article.

Re: GoFundMe CEO: ‘Gigantic Gaps’ in Health System Showing Up in Crowdfunding

#130
post #123

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I disagree, I think this is the real-world consequence of the US regulatory environment.

How, exactly, has regulation driven the price of a drug we've had for decades up hundreds, even thousands, of percent, most of which increase happened after it was out of patent protection?

Who stops you from buying insulin outside the US and re-selling it in the domestic market?
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