How Much Did Your Family Pay for Health Insurance This Year? October 26, 2006

How much did your family pay for health insurance this year? According to The Huffington Post the average family cost $10,880 this year in health insurance. While $8,167 was covered by the employer, that still leaves $2,713 to the worker.

Don’t think that figure is significant? Well, the number is a 9.5% increase over last year, and the number is expected to go up. It is also significant, because it only shows the statistics of families that have employer-based coverage. The cost of family insurance is equal to the salary of someone on minimum wage. Now is is making more sense why over 46 million people don’t have any health insurance? Even if someone is making more than minimum wage, they may not be able to afford the cost of insurance for an entire family, let alone themselves.

So, if people cannot afford health insurance, they most likely cannot afford medical care. When it comes to maintaining good health, medical care is essential. It’s time to stop just talking about changing our health care system and actually start advocating real change.

The Need for Long Term Care Insurance October 19, 2006

According to Market Day Daily News there is a health care crisis on the horizon. Met Life is reporting that 70 percent of people over 65 will need some sort of extended care before they die, and 90 percent of those over 65 years of age will have at least one chronic condition. Yet, not enough people consider whether or not regular health insurance alone will be enough.

There is a huge burden associated with long-term care. It places an emotional physical, and financial drain on the caregivers. One Met Life study done in 2003 reported the cost of long term care was $180 per day, or $66,000 per year. Yet those numbers can even rise over $150,000 with private home care. The study also estimates that by 2021 nursing home care may rise to over $175,000 per year.

So what is a person supposed to do about the rising cost of care? One alternative is long-term care insurance. This is a special insurance program that “pays for extended care when Medicare or major medical is exhausted.” There are a range of plans available that cover nursing home or home health care.

Some people say that long-term care insurance is just an added expense, but so is over $4,000 in medical bills. Would you rather pay $80 to $100 dollars as month now or $4,000 dollars a month later? You decide.

Once you know you want to consider long term care insurance you should know the facts. Start by reading the rest of the article on Market Day here, but you should also make sure you get enough quotes to compare rates and services from different companies. An informed choice is always a better choice.

Get Rid of the Slang October 16, 2006

According to Kevin, M.D. Medical Weblog a patient advocate is attempting to ban medical slang like “frequent flyer” and other terms that have been deemed offensive to patients. Many of the terms are demeaning labels that shift the blame from the disease or ailment to the patient, and they have no place in a medical setting.

October is Lupus Awareness Month October 15, 2006

What is Lupus?

• Lupus is a widespread and chronic (lifelong) autoimmune disease that, for unknown reasons, causes the immune system to attack the body’s own tissue and organs, including the joints, kidneys, heart, lungs, brain, blood, or skin.
• The immune system normally protects the body against viruses, bacteria, and other foreign materials. In an autoimmune disease like lupus, the immune system loses its ability to tell the difference between foreign substances and its own cells and tissue. The immune system then makes antibodies directed against “self.”

Please read more about this disease which affects almost two million people, of whom are mostly women. You can find out more about Lupus at the Lupus Foundation of America.

Patient Advocacy Insights October 14, 2006

At Navelgazine Midwife , there is an article on the increasing pressure being put on women to have a C-section. The article goes on to discuss the dilemma facing patient advocates. Can a patient advocate really look out for the best interest of a patient when the person is employed by the hospital itself? This is not a new, but always an interesting question. There are also some great comments by readers at the bottom of the page. Please let us know what you think…

Story: Why You Need a Patient Advocate October 14, 2006

On Living and Laughing with Chronic Illness Blog, there is a great story about why a patient advocate is necessary. Yet is also warns of those that will put themselves forward as patient advocates and not really do anything at all for you. It is a long story, but the story is not all that uncommon.