1. Are Copayments Really Necessary?
I have a very good PPO insurance plan via my employer. This covers just about anything i would like
it to cover, with modest co-pay for doctor visits and a twice copayment if I need to see a specialist.
I am at the cusp of becoming somewhat debilitated in my older years. I am 54 years old, and I have
been completely told that I need a knee replacement, as well as lately because of an injury that I
sustained at work , I may need a total wrist reconstruction. I have been spending a lot of money in
copayments recently within my doctor’s office visits (i've more than one doctor). These copayments
range from $20 per visit for my primary care physician to $40 per check out for a specialist. I've got a
$150 copayment if i have an emergency. At times I see two specialists a week.
But what is the copayment for? Is it to offset the office costs of having a clerk pull your file and make
a new visit ? Does the money go into the doctor’s petty funds fund, or used for office payroll? in case
a specialist’s office (which often houses more than one doctor ) has 100 patients a day, that is
$4,000.00 a day taken in with the appointment window, not forgetting what the insurance companies
spend.
After a little bit of research, I have learned that the copayment can be a payment that is compensated
by the insured person each time a medical support is assessed (DUH!). Technically, it is a kind of
“coinsurance”, but it doesn't usually contribute toward any policy out-of-pocket maximums whereas
coinsurance payments do. Through what I learned, the actual copay is quite normally a small portion
of the specific cost of the medical service, and it is meant to prevent people through seeking medical
care that may not be necessary. The theory is that with no copay, people will mistreatment the
insurance coverage more than they might if they had to produce a payment each time a medical
service is rendered.
But through the same token, copayments can also discourage people from seeking essential medical
care. Unusually large copays can cause visitors to not seek medical care at all simply because they
can’t afford it, manifestation someone “uninsured” that in actuality has a good insurance policy. There
has to be a happy medium. Policies need a high enough copay to ensure that people will be
dissuaded from abusing the machine , while maintaining a low enough one to keep the insurance
coverage from becoming worthless.
Because associated with my injury, i've missed a lot of function. Worker’s Comp is still fighting it, and i
also have lost about a month’s wages in the last forty five days. My doctor , a specialist, is billing the
co-pays in my experience in an effort to help me have the treatment I need. The good news is I have
been sent to one more specialist, one that is planning to determine the extent of my hand
reconstruction. He won’t even say “hello” to me until we pay the $40.
So we wonder to personally , “What about the Hippocratic Oath”?
So I read it. This says nothing about money.
I remember a time in the past in the Midwest once i needed medical care for my young child. I could
not afford to take him towards the doctor, so the doctor worked out a deal with me. All I had to do was
clear the snowfall away from his office parking lot, and spade his personal stroll and driveway with his

2. house. I had to spend all day to do this by hand , and I felt personally rewarded by the knowledge.
The doctor was delighted as well, and had us over to his house for dinner.
I guess that even though everybody has their illnesses, medicine is still big business. Even with the
veterinarians. In the event that we have an illness, just like we have hunger, we can’t achieve an
answer at either the actual doctor’s office or perhaps the grocery store until we pay for it in funds.
Such is life.
Copyright 2011 by delete Banks
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Costa Rica medical tourism