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The Relationship Between Insurance Coverage and Cancer Care
Cancer Isn’t Cheap-
On average, the expense of someone dealing with cancer will rack up in terms of medical bills tends to be about $150,000. That’s a hefty chunk of change. If you’re averaging around $30k a year, which many in America are, that’s five straight years of paychecks if you’ve got an “average” case, and go with traditional treatment options.
The majority of Americans right now have trouble covering financial emergencies. Between 40% and 60% would be unable to handle a serious medical emergency with their savings—most of that number couldn’t even cover a $1,000 emergency without going into debt. Accordingly, without some form of insurance on a monthly basis, they’re sunk.
Meanwhile, with insurance, over the course of an entire year, a good plan will make it so the person suffering from cancer is only on the hook for between $4k and $5k by year’s end, once copays and deductibles are covered. So the difference is between $334 and $417 extra with an insurance plan, or about $12,500 a month without it.
As you can see, securing reliable insurance is very important in getting the treatment you need for cancer. The thing is, not everyone has insurance when they get diagnosed, and many insurance companies won’t cover you after you’ve received a diagnosis. It’s rather a “sticky wicket”, as the saying goes.
Finding The Best Coverage From Available Options
There are collateral options to traditional medical insurance which you may be able to get covered under should you find yourself backhanded by cancer when you’re without insurance. One option may be Medi-Share, which pools resources from its members to cover medical issues, and operates as a company that conducts itself differently than many insurance programs.
There are also options through experimental treatment avenues, though that can be very risky; especially if you’re the breadwinner in a household. In the event you don’t have insurance coverage and sustain a positive diagnosis for cancer, it can be worthwhile to explore experimental treatment. But sometimes it doesn’t work and has complicated long-term side effects.
So if you’re going to get the best sort of treatment, you definitely want to secure insurance beforehand. With your health, it’s wise to secure such options now, while you’re doing well before some hidden health problem comes.
That said, not all insurance options are created equal. Some people prefer to use the ACA (Affordable Care Act) to cover themselves, but the sort of networks and professionals you have access to is limited by legal realities should you go that route. Some prefer HMO plans, some prefer PPO plans.
Varying Healthcare Options Defined
HMOs and PPOs are types of managed care, which allows insurers to help control costs. An HMO is A Health Maintenance Organization, a PPO is a Preferred Provider Organization. Different people will find one or the other better for them based on the sort of medical networks they have access to and their varying financial profiles.
HMO tends to limit doctors covered to those approved by the HMO provider within a given network. PPO solutions provide more access options, but tend to be more expensive. Either way, when you have solid healthcare in advance of a cancer diagnosis, then it’s just like paying an additional automotive maintenance bill for a year.
When you don’t, you could quickly go into deep debt that’s difficult or impossible to recover from. While there are debt relief programs and idiosyncrasies that can help with the burden, it may be something that sticks with you.
In the worst-case scenario, you’re denied any sort of medical assistance at all. There are legal realities which should make it so, in America, you can avoid this circumstance; but stranger things have happened.
Finding The Best Healthcare Solutions For You And Your Family
So what’s the bottom line? Well, especially if you’re past your mid-thirties and have a history of cancers in your family, it’s quite wise to secure some sort of healthcare coverage before you’re impacted by something like cancer. Especially given our current “modern” society, cancerous issues tend to be more prevalent than they were, and many don’t know why.
So do your homework beforehand to determine whether PPO, HMO, ACA, Medi-share, or other insurance options are best for you. Then secure such healthcare insurance, and be sure you increase your savings. The best insurance plan won’t totally eliminate cancer costs, but it will get rid of the majority of expenses related to treatment.