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My Sudden Trip to Hell

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Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#101

Post by stordoff »

corry wrote: post #48
corry wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's Canadian I believe; so while I'm not sure how his care in NYC would be billed, I think it would be still covered by OHIP (the public health insurance in Ontario Canada) or maybe travel insurance. Certainly all the care he received in Toronto would have been covered, assuming he's Canadian.

Don't want to spark a healthcare debate, but want to mention that I bet NONE of the non-US readers on HN would have given a single thought about the costs involved if this was happening in their countries. It's wild to me that the potential financial impact of this was part of the picture for many of the US people reading it (especially the startup founders who are probably without insurance right now, and this would…

> Don't want to spark a healthcare debate, but want to mention that I bet NONE of the non-US readers on HN would have given a single thought about the costs involved if this was happening in their countries.

UK, and I wouldn't think about it - it's just not a consideration.

I will caveat that by saying dental care is not free[1], but the prices are reasonable - maximum charge £270 (for a single course of treatment and anything within two months of it, for treatments such as bridges, crowns, and denatures), and "If you require urgent care, you'll pay a Band 1 charge of £22.70."/ "There's no dental charge [...] if your dentist has to stop blood loss".

[1] unless you receive certain benefits

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#102

Post by PhasmaFelis »

merpnderp wrote: post #75
10122018 wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spoken like somebody who has money. Do you have any idea how much pain and suffering a person can endure due to having no money? I don't think it's your place to say that person's life is worth living.

Spoken like someone who's never lost someone they love. Do you have any idea how much pain and suffering a person can endure due to having lost someone? I don't think it's your place to say that a person's life isn't worth the money.

You're attacking a strawman and being deliberately annoying.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#103

Post by 10122018 »

Raphmedia wrote: post #77
10122018 wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spoken like somebody who has money. Do you have any idea how much pain and suffering a person can endure due to having no money? I don't think it's your place to say that person's life is worth living.

Growing up in total poverty, raised by a single mother who fought cancers and died twice on operating tables let me tell you one thing. Money is nothing. Poverty won't make you unhappy. Humans are good at finding new baselines. Poverty will simply become your new normal and the little things of life will still bring you joy. Seeing a loved one will still make you a smile. Life is worth living even without any ressour…

> Money is nothing. Poverty won't make you unhappy.

I'm sure the millions of people living in poverty, dying of treatable diseases and starving to death right now are ecstatic about it. Or are we just pretending those people don't exist?

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#104

Post by epitrochoidal »

criddell wrote: post #96
jwr wrote: post #83

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not Europeans — while you might have to wait for non-emergency things (depending on the country), emergencies are treated immediately. And I've never heard of anyone from the EU going to the US for medical care, that actually sounds rather amusing :-)

> And I've never heard of anyone from the EU going to the US for medical care It definitely happens, especially for things like plastic and reconstructive surgery.

I don't know how it is in Europe, but those sorts of things are not typically covered by insurance in the US, except in cases where the reconstruction is related to a medical condition or accident (I got a nicer nose after breaking the original in a bicycling accident; the reconstruction was covered by health insurance). I assume those coming from EU to US for treatment would be self-pay for the treatment, yes?

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#105

Post by Balgair »

arisAlexis wrote: post #76
Ididntdothis wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the US the cost must have been in the millions. I know people who ran up several million dollar bills during cancer treatment.

do they deny you treatment if you don't have that kind of money?

No, they cannot deny essential treatment in the US due to financial issues. The type of treatment can be argued about and fiddled with (elective surgueries and whatnot, prisioners needing co-pay money they do not have, etc). But in a life-saving case like the one in the article, they cannot not deny treatment. As another example, if you need a C-section, you are getting a C-section.

That said, fiscally, it's a total gamble in the US these days. You may be saddled with a $20/mo debt that will likely never end ever, or you may be facing a bill for $1M that is due in 30 days. The range is essentially unbounded and unknowable in any real way.

US healthcare is shockingly cruel, financially speaking.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#106

Post by refurb »

corry wrote: post #46
twoquestions wrote: post #42

Considering the bills for a condition like this, I'd be wondering if it's even worth it to go to the doctor. My life isn't worth the destitution visited on everyone I know necessary to keep me alive, and I can't imagine the moral calculus his family had to go through. I'm glad this guy could get the care needed to survive, and I wish him the very best in his recovery.

He's Canadian I believe; so while I'm not sure how his care in NYC would be billed, I think it would be still covered by OHIP (the public health insurance in Ontario Canada) or maybe travel insurance. Certainly all the care he received in Toronto would have been covered, assuming he's Canadian.

Generally OHIP does not cover medical care outside of Canada.[1] Apparently they'll cover $400 CDN per day of US hospital stay, so probably less than 4%.

I sure hope he had travel insurance. Likely did as most companies offer it for employment travel.

[1] https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/windsor/medical-emergencies-i...

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#107

Post by AnIdiotOnTheNet »

twoquestions wrote: post #42

Considering the bills for a condition like this, I'd be wondering if it's even worth it to go to the doctor. My life isn't worth the destitution visited on everyone I know necessary to keep me alive, and I can't imagine the moral calculus his family had to go through. I'm glad this guy could get the care needed to survive, and I wish him the very best in his recovery.

I entertain similar thoughts, though less out of lack of value for my own life than sheer stubborn spitefulness for the predatory health care industry in the US. Sure, i could exhaust all my money and I might live, but I think I might actually rather die just to keep it out of their grubby hands.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#108

Post by merpnderp »

PhasmaFelis wrote: post #102
merpnderp wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Spoken like someone who's never lost someone they love. Do you have any idea how much pain and suffering a person can endure due to having lost someone? I don't think it's your place to say that a person's life isn't worth the money.

You're attacking a strawman and being deliberately annoying.

I like to think of it as demonstrating why this type of argument is useless and counterproductive.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#109

Post by criddell »

epitrochoidal wrote: post #104
criddell wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> And I've never heard of anyone from the EU going to the US for medical care It definitely happens, especially for things like plastic and reconstructive surgery.

I don't know how it is in Europe, but those sorts of things are not typically covered by insurance in the US, except in cases where the reconstruction is related to a medical condition or accident (I got a nicer nose after breaking the original in a bicycling accident; the reconstruction was covered by health insurance). I assume those coming from EU to US for treatment would be self-pay for the treatment, yes?

I have no idea how payment would be arranged. It's possible that if a country's national plan covers something but no providers are in-country, they would cover the cost.

Some hospitals in the US are free for everybody (some research hospitals and hospitals for sick kids) and I assume that would extend to Europeans.

Re: My Sudden Trip to Hell

#110

Post by [deleted] »

corry wrote: post #48
corry wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's Canadian I believe; so while I'm not sure how his care in NYC would be billed, I think it would be still covered by OHIP (the public health insurance in Ontario Canada) or maybe travel insurance. Certainly all the care he received in Toronto would have been covered, assuming he's Canadian.

Don't want to spark a healthcare debate, but want to mention that I bet NONE of the non-US readers on HN would have given a single thought about the costs involved if this was happening in their countries. It's wild to me that the potential financial impact of this was part of the picture for many of the US people reading it (especially the startup founders who are probably without insurance right now, and this would…

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