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Can someone explain to me why someone needs to raise money to get shrapnel out of their body? I mean isn't there some safety net at all? I'm seriously confuse

by xutopia 14y ago

Can someone explain to me why someone needs to raise money to get shrapnel out of their body? I mean isn't there some safety net at all? I'm seriously confused here. I'm Canadian and this seems so bizarre to me.

jetti 14y ago
It seems the most likely scenario is that she underestimated the legal system and the lawyers took advantage of that. If she had taken the time to hire an attorney, she probably wouldn't be in this situation. That being said, it is hard to get money when the traditional methods (insurance) fails when there is a somewhat high chance of not surviving the surgery. The institutions capable of giving that kind of money are not doing so out of the kindness of their hearts but to make a buck and if she dies there will be no way to recoup that money. As a side note, I think it would be interesting to make a crowd funding site dedicated to raising money to cover health costs. Bring the "burden" back to the community rather than the government. But that's just a passing thought and not meant to spark a political debate.
- pasbesoin 14y ago
  It is a system that takes people at their most vulnerable and squeezes them for every last dime. If you don't have good and capable family, friends, advocates looking out for you, and if your own strength -- perhaps, likely even, also cognitive -- is compromised, you're well on your way to being screwed. Many other societies (although certainly not all, but many other "Western" societies) have come to view healthcare as a primary means of investing in their people and in a communal, mutually beneficial future. The U.S. derived term "human resources" gives a hint at how human beings are viewed by many institutions -- and individuals -- in the U.S. There is also a malaise of short-term thinking; if you're not any good at the moment -- or rather, not approximating some ideal choice or simulating the appearance of same -- you're not worth any investment.
mcherm 14y ago
No, in the US there is no safety net. Actually, there is one for urgent care. If someone stabbed her with a knife, any hospital would need to take her regardless of whether her insurance was willing to pay. (Afterward, she would be forced to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs or perhaps give up all possessions and declare bankruptcy, but at that point at least she's alive.) But she'd not in need of emergency care: she has months to live, not hours. And in the US there is ABSOLUTELY NO PROTECTION for this. Really. It is unbelievable but true, and changing it is politically impossible. Possible solution: she should get a friend to stab her with a knife, fairly close to the site of the metal object. Then the hospital is required to offer treatment and they can remove the object while they're at it. Do the stabbing inside the emergency room of the hospital to increase her chance of surviving. You probably think I'm kidding about the stabbing. I might be... I HOPE I'm kidding.

by xutopia 14y ago

jetti 14y ago

It seems the most likely scenario is that she underestimated the legal system and the lawyers took advantage of that. If she had taken the time to hire an attorney, she probably wouldn't be in this situation. That being said, it is hard to get money when the traditional methods (insurance) fails when there is a somewhat high chance of not surviving the surgery. The institutions capable of giving that kind of money are not doing so out of the kindness of their hearts but to make a buck and if she dies there will be no way to recoup that money. As a side note, I think it would be interesting to make a crowd funding site dedicated to raising money to cover health costs. Bring the "burden" back to the community rather than the government. But that's just a passing thought and not meant to spark a political debate.

pasbesoin 14y ago
It is a system that takes people at their most vulnerable and squeezes them for every last dime. If you don't have good and capable family, friends, advocates looking out for you, and if your own strength -- perhaps, likely even, also cognitive -- is compromised, you're well on your way to being screwed. Many other societies (although certainly not all, but many other "Western" societies) have come to view healthcare as a primary means of investing in their people and in a communal, mutually beneficial future. The U.S. derived term "human resources" gives a hint at how human beings are viewed by many institutions -- and individuals -- in the U.S. There is also a malaise of short-term thinking; if you're not any good at the moment -- or rather, not approximating some ideal choice or simulating the appearance of same -- you're not worth any investment.

mcherm 14y ago

No, in the US there is no safety net. Actually, there is one for urgent care. If someone stabbed her with a knife, any hospital would need to take her regardless of whether her insurance was willing to pay. (Afterward, she would be forced to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs or perhaps give up all possessions and declare bankruptcy, but at that point at least she's alive.) But she'd not in need of emergency care: she has months to live, not hours. And in the US there is ABSOLUTELY NO PROTECTION for this. Really. It is unbelievable but true, and changing it is politically impossible. Possible solution: she should get a friend to stab her with a knife, fairly close to the site of the metal object. Then the hospital is required to offer treatment and they can remove the object while they're at it. Do the stabbing inside the emergency room of the hospital to increase her chance of surviving. You probably think I'm kidding about the stabbing. I might be... I HOPE I'm kidding.