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"This entire class of problem obviously doesn't exist in Canada." Unless you need to go to a dentist.
by chaosmachine 16y ago
"This entire class of problem obviously doesn't exist in Canada."
Unless you need to go to a dentist.
- eli 16y agoI don't quite see your point. How many early-stage US startups offer dental? Surely it's cheaper and easier to buy just dental coverage in CA than medical+dental in US.
- thaumaturgy 16y agoWhat a stunningly perfect example of a red herring.
- jrockway 16y agoSame problem in the US -- small group and individual insurance just doesn't cover dental work. But dental work isn't really that expensive, at least not compared to medical work. Budget $300/yr for your two checkups, and you will be fine. (Even a root canal is not that expensive. I think it was $1200 for a specialist to do it.)
- chaosmachine 16y agoIt's about $1800 here in Canada. I found out the hard way there are many things you still have to pay for yourself. For example, a doctor prescribed me Advair for asthma-like symptoms I was experiencing. It costs $200 per unit, and as someone who recently quit their day job to start my own business, it wasn't in the budget. So I just went without.
- mrkurt 16y agoGood doctors respond pretty well to your budget constraints. There's likely another option for you, you should ask. It may not be quite as effective, but I bet it's much, much cheaper. Or, you could buy from an evil Canadian pharmacy that sources generics from some place like India. We spent two years doing that for my wife's Singulair, it saved us a fortune.
- yummyfajitas 16y agoGood doctors respond pretty well to your budget constraints. There's likely another option for you, you should ask. It may not be quite as effective, but I bet it's much, much cheaper. Tangentially related fact: in the US, doctors don't do this since it poses a significant risk of lawsuits.
- cdr 16y ago"Doctors don't do this" is a little broad. Anecdotally, I have had a doctor refuse to prescribe a less expensive medication, but more often I have had doctors be sympathetic to paying out of pocket. Sometimes they may not even know how much a medication costs.
- mrkurt 16y agoMy doctors all have. "I can't afford that medication, is there something that's available as a generic that I might be able to use instead?" has worked really well for me. I've also had their front offices recode stuff at lower rates when I explained my high deductible health plan.
- jbooth 16y agoWell, if you were in the American system and didn't have insurance, you'd have to pay for all that stuff plus everything else. So, be thankful for what you have :)
- pcc 16y agoOr prescription meds etc; but there is some help: Once your startup is incorporated, you can get a PHSP-HSA (in Canada, different than the HSA idea in the US). You can then pay these expenses using pre-tax funds (your corp reimburses it to you as a benefit, via the HSA provider which checks it for CRA compliance). You can also get one of the personal Blue Cross-type plans -- at around $100/month this will give you some insured coverage for some dental etc. You can then claim back BOTH the premiums you pay to Blue Cross, as well as most of the expenses that they either don't cover or won't pay fully, from the HSA. http://pretaxhealth.com http://pretaxhealth.com is a pretty good Canadian PHSP-HSA.