wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 I have no idea what a trip to an emergency room might be for someone without insurance. I am having an issue with my throat and ear thats plagued me for almost 2 months but seemingly is getting worse since last night. Cant get into an ENT specialist on such short notice and it feels like my throat is swelling more closed by the second. Is this an emergency room visit sort of thing, a urgent care or just keep trying to find someone who's able to get me in today? Is an emergency room visit crazy expensive? I figure even if they are I have a better chance of getting more for my buck and immediate results. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Major_golf Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Being that you are on disability file for assistance when they come in the room to get your info and to have you sign the paper work last time I was without a job the whole bill was covered Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Draco-REX Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Granted, my last visit to an ER was in MA. But it was silly expensive. Some blood tests, pain killers, and a couple hours in a bed cost me $1200. If you don't feel your life is in immediate danger, you might do better going to a walk-in clinic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
copperhead Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 If it helps, my out of pocket under my insurance is like $750. So expect it to be thousands. You can get private insurance, Google it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 I didnt even think about some sort of financial assistance. What/where is a walk in clinic? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RyM3rC Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 In my very limited experience anything requiring tests will be very expensive. Just going in and getting some stitches for a gash I'm thinking was around $500ish locally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigOxley Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 it's stupid expensive because, ultimately, you are also paying for the people who don't pay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99BlownYellowGT Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Last time i was there after insurance it was around $1000. My guess is yours will be pretty expensive if they start doing tests and xrays Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miller Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Go to CVS or something they have clinics open until 5pm too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tshensley Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 If at possible try going to Urgent care instead and you can save quite a bit more also Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffro Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Urgent care. So much cheaper than ER. Heres one close to you, kind of http://www.grovecityurgentcare.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue98ls1 Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 There is an Urgent Care on Broad St not very far from you at all. I would personally go there. When I went to the ER a couple months ago the wait was insane. Even though I went by ambulance. It was also in the $8k range (thank you insurance) because they did a cat scan and a bunch of blood work and knocked me out with the good stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirks5oh Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Urgent care. You should have a family physician---if something has been going on for months, an er visit is what many people do--use the er as their primary care dr., and that's just one of the problems with the utilization of health care in america. Even if you don't have insurance, you can get into a free clinic run by medical residents. But yes, an urgent care is much less than an er typically. We paid $2k last year when my daughter figured out how to open a childrens tylenol bottle. Our deductible is set at the lowest possible amount--$3k. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gbracing81 Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Go to CVS or something they have clinics open until 5pm too. This is what do. Even though I have insurance I go to the minute clinic at the CVS in Pickerington. They are actuall doctors and it's only around $50. The last two times I went there they were not able to help me with what I needed, but they did give me info that helped me to get OTC meds to get better. Plus, since they couldn't actually "help" me they did not charge me so it was almost like free health care that not even the paying customers had to pay for. lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trouble Maker Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 If it helps, my out of pocket under my insurance is like $750. So expect it to be thousands. You can get private insurance, Google it. My partner has her own insurance since it's as good of coverage and less expensive than she can get through her work. That's even with her work covering half of the premiums. :dumb: She pays about $100/month for an HSA type with about $5k/year deductible, but I think all preventive is covered. But she's been having shoulder issues for a while. She saw a PT for a while last year, which we had to pay for out of pocket, seeing a Chiro now, which we are paying for out of pocket. The fucked up thing is that doesn't go towards her yearly deductible because if she pays their out of pocket rates it's less than their insurance rates. So of course we chose to pay their out of pocket rates. Either way we pay it ourselves. If she had an ER visit, we would pay for it out of pocket until we hit that $5k. It's OK for the piece of mind that if something like what just happened to me (ACL), we wouldn't be paying tens of thousands of dollars for it. More traditional insurance plans, with less out of pocket max and covers 90/10 or 80/20 after a smaller deductible, seem prohibitively expensive for an individual. It also might be worth it for him to look into group plans, since because of his (wifes?) company and there being '2' employees, they may be able to get group rates through some insurers. It's still not going to be cheap. BUT HEY, our health care system works, we don't need any reform. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 I have never been to an urgent care, not exactly sure what services they provide. I rarely go to a family DR or primary Dr. so as far as they are concerned I stop being a patient at somepoint( I dont understand this). I called around when this thing started and had difficulty finding a local Dr accepting new patients or new cash paying patients(I dont get this either). I spoke with mt Carmel and apparantly I qualify for some sort of financial assistance however I would need to come in seeking treatment to apply. I dont know if this warrants an er visit. As I stated in another thread I am afraid going to one place such as a primary care Dr. will only result in a bill and being sent to another type of specialist. Tina did you take an ambulance to an urgent care and did they perform a ct scan there? Technically we are considered poor. Family of 5 with only $20k annual income. My wife has 0 income. We meet the criteria according to mt. carmel for free healthcare however I dont know enough about how to apply and approval times. I need to research more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceGhost Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 HSA is nice because: A: you are paying yourself to a savings account PRE-TAX. B: You can change your monthly or paycheck contribution to a much lower rate after you have more than your maximum out of pocket in the account. C: If you decide to change jobs or just Ins carrier, your HSA goes with you, you didn't just piss away money to the INS company, you have your HSA account with the money in it ready to go. And D: my Job pays $2000 a year into my HSA tax free which almost makes my Premium $0 by it's offset. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpaceGhost Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 HSA for a young single person would be perfect, once you have your maximum out of pocket you can stop paying into it, your health INS cost per month is almost nothing. Most young people never see a doctor for years at a time. I didn't until I was in my 30s. I might have seen a doctor in my 20s a half dozen times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 After looking at mt carmels urgentcare website, it sounds like thats my best bet. I assumed they were just an after hours type facility when you technically didnt need an er. I didnt realize they were a place to go even if you just couldnt get into a regular Dr. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truckin Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Try cvs minute clinic. An ER is gonna raped you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 What capabilities do these minute clinics have? Anything besides just a Dr? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LJ Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 What capabilities do these minute clinics have? Anything besides just a Dr? "yep, you got some drainage your your sinuses are swollen, here is some penicillian" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 "yep, you got some drainage your your sinuses are swollen, here is some penicillian" I am hoping thats what it is. Whats bothering me is that my throat is swelling closed today. I feel just fine. The worst symptom is what I can only describe as a gurgling sensation where an adams apple might be low/deep in the throat that has persisted for weeks. Even just touching it with 0 pressure forces me to gag. That and the fact its accompanied by a ripping/tearing feeling on one side of the neck but it feels really close to the surface of the skin and my left ear feels like I need to keep tugging on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LJ Posted April 27, 2012 Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 I am hoping thats what it is. Whats bothering me is that my throat is swelling closed today. I feel just fine. The worst symptom is what I can only describe as a gurgling sensation where an adams apple might be low/deep in the throat that has persisted for weeks. Even just touching it with 0 pressure forces me to gag. That and the fact its accompanied by a ripping/tearing feeling on one side of the neck but it feels really close to the surface of the skin and my left ear feels like I need to keep tugging on it. My dad had that, only he had to be admitted for observation due to lacking a kidney. Otherwise they just doped him with with steroids and anti biotics Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wnaplay1647545503 Posted April 27, 2012 Author Report Share Posted April 27, 2012 Wouldnt this have just cleared itself up by now? I typically just wait for these things to run its course but this is the first time its just not going away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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