Oh my God, does newFNP ever love the holidays. Know why?
A) Time off.
B) Go shorty, it's newFNP's birthday! Not today, but ’tis the M-F-ing season. For her birthday, newFNP bought herself a cashmere sweater on sale. And an Audi. (Hey, it's diesel and newFNP loves herself some leather seats and dual moonroof.) And she even got a cake and a song at clinic today!
But you know what can put a damper on newFNP's holiday/birthday cheer? A $24,000 medical bill from her grandmother's 24-hour hospitalization. Bear in mind, this does not include one cent of physician services. Those are still to come. Of course, newFNP's sweetheart of a grandma won't have to pay this size XXL bill thanks to Medicare. The Medicare discount is a cool $22,000.
Guess what an EKG ran? $494!! NewFNP did 10 EKGs today and she's pretty sure that her clinic won't be billing any insurance $494 per test performed for the frigging things!
So again, why are we not supporting a public option in healthcare reform? Is there a reason that anyone should receive a $24000+ bill for 24 hours of care? Who in the hell can pay for that?
And if there is someone, is he married?
******
If there was ever a time newFNP wanted a hospital to do its job, it's now. NewFNP is thinking nothing but positive thoughts for Pudge and mature lungs and closed cervices. BostonFNP, keep safe. Love you.
6 comments:
First happy birthday! And the gifts you got yourself - I am sure you totally deserve.
And let me preface, I am a nurse in a mainly rural state - one of the poorest, I might add. And just finished my first year of FNP school.
And I also take care of my mother - often paying her multiple medical bills. So I can also relate to that.
I definitely think there needs to be health care reform. I just don't think the approach that is being taken to it is exactly the right one. I am concerned about how we're going to pay for it. If we extend medicare where is the money going to come from? Not to mention, what happens in a few years when social security goes broke? That's my mother's sole income of $776/month. If there is no funding for SS how will I support her - not just medically but her housing and living expenses?
I certainly don't have the answer but I am not comfortable with the current proposed plan until someone tells me exactly how we're going to pay for all these trillions of dollars in reforms and stimulus packages. When there is a good plan in place for paying for it, then I will support it.
In the current proposed plan, a state like Nebraska will not have to pay for any increased medicare costs which means, other states, like my very poor state, will be picking up those costs. These kind of "amendments" just don't bode well with me.
I hope we can get some reform so that you and I don't go broke paying for our parents as well as our own medical expenses. But, already 50% of my household income goes toward taxes mostly geared toward social programs that don't seem to be working. How much more can the middle class be asked to give?
I do hope you have a wonderful holiday and maybe someday we will see health care reform that truly does work. And then you can I can be apart of it!
T Rex Mom might want to check out the 12.14.09 New Yorker article that drew parallels between the proposed health care overhaul and the incredible changes in U.S. agriculture during the past century. Really quite compelling.
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/12/14/091214fa_fact_gawande
We're human and the likelihood that we'll ever develop an approach - to anything! - that "is exactly the right one" is remote. Reading Gawande's article gave me hope.
Ooops, the URL didn't come through. If you are interested in the article that Anonymous suggested, cut & paste these two lines into one line and you'll get it:
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/
2009/12/14/091214fa_fact_gawande
Thank you so much for writing this blog! I'm a health educator in Boston and am hoping to be accepted to NP school this spring. I just found your blog and it has made my day. Thank you, again!
XxOo to Auntie NewFNP from Avie. Cervices stayed closed as long as they needed to and lungs are mature! Love to you always.
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