A Snapperup of Unconsidered Blogposts

I’ve been off insurance for the last three or so years and have been working around through channel I can to continue to obtain insulin and supplies for my insulin pump (of which is currently a problem, fun) for free or at reduced costs.

The Lilly Cares program is one I heavily endorse if your insulin is a Lilly product. They’ve been incredibly helpful to me.

These days one bottle of insulin costs me approx $600 (before insurance) and lasts 2-3 weeks, tops. Less than ten years ago the cost was closer to $200/bottle. The insulin manufacturers keep “tweaking” insulins like Humalog so the patents can be extended(*), so we don’t even have access to a generic option.

The price gouging on insulin in this country is cruel and damn disgusting.

Please, please boost this info. It WILL save lives.

“Oh but people are so lazy!”

If you have an emergency and have to go to the hospital, you’ll owe the hospital a lot of money. (I got into a car wreck and broke my ankle and my arm. My hospital bill was around $20,000)

You’ll also owe the ambulance provider, if you need one. (My ambulance bill was about $800)

You may get separate bills from the anesthesiologist or surgeon. (My anesthesiologist bill was $1,700)

You may need follow-up appointments. (My orthopedic surgeon billed me for the appointments and his surgery together and it was about $1,000)

You’ve also got to pay for medical equipment you need afterward, like crutches or a walking boot. (Mine cost about $75)

Altogether, I ended up with almost $24,000 in medical debt from one car accident. That’s a really scary number for someone like me who makes $10/hr at a 12 hour a week job.

I got my debt down to $1075 by making some phone calls and submitting some paperwork.

The first thing I did was contact the hospital. They don’t make it easy to find, but many hospitals (perhaps most hospitals?) have financial assistance programs for people who can’t afford medical bills. I don’t make a lot of money, and I have bills to pay, so they were able to help me. I called the billing department and asked if they had any assistance programs for low income people who can’t pay their bills. I had to call multiple times, and I got transferred in circles by people who didn’t know what I was talking about. Finally, I got an appointment with someone in “Eligibility Services” (I don’t know what other hospitals call it, if it’s something different). I had to bring my pay stubs and copies of all of my bills. When I got to the hospital for the appointment, nobody knew what I was talking about so I had to wander a little to find where I needed to go. I spoke with the guy in Eligibility Services, and I waited for a decision on how much of the bill they would forgive. A month later, I got a call telling me it was totally forgiven.

I did the same thing for my ambulance bill and my anesthesiologist, but the process was a LOT easier. I just had to mail some paperwork and it was totally forgiven.

I didn’t bother with the medical equipment suppliers, since the bills came from separate companies and I didn’t feel like going through the process twice for $75. I was assured at the hospital that they had similar programs for debt forgiveness, so I could have probably avoided paying that too.

The only thing I couldn’t get taken care of was the surgeon/follow-up appointment cost, but they were able to put me on a no-interest payment plan.

3. Essexshire polka-stripe

2. Delaware Red-pointed plaid 

1. Split jest broiler

JetBlue is reducing their fares. Remaining seats will be between $99 - $159. 

American Airlines is capping the prices at $99. This is for standard cabin fare and means that prices will not exceed this cost. 

Delta is capping their prices at $399. This also means that prices will not exceed this cost, however this also includes first class so standard prices will be lower than $399.

Airlines like American and Delta have also added flights and brought in larger planes and waived change fees for passengers who need to cancel or rebook their flights. 

If you still need to get out or were worried about these prices then I hope this clears everything up. Note that flights will start cancelling once it becomes too dangerous for planes to fly so make sure to call ahead and keep checking for updates at your airport. 

自主制作アニメーション「水族館の夢」 Roeka18 animation

youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcz3PWG-zhY