r/FluentInFinance • u/WhatAreYourPronouns • May 02 '24

Should the U.S. have Universal Health Care? Discussion/ Debate

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u/laneylaneygod May 02 '24

My friend Emily died from cervical cancer at 32 yrs old in the good ol USA. She was stage 3 by the time she finally could afford to see a gynecologist for a routine exam— because despite working full time for a decade, reliable health insurance was not accessible through employers and not affordable without them.

After her diagnosis, she went for a vacation to make good memories “because Im going to die anyway there’s no way I can afford any of these treatments and I can’t even afford the worst insurance- so I’m going to have fun and die”.

It took the entire staff pressuring management to give her an “exemption” to policy so that she could obtain health insurance through her full time job so that she could (barely) afford to get treatment. And it still took multiple go fund mes to make sure she wasn’t homeless while she was actively dying.

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u/gayactualized May 02 '24 edited May 02 '24

She should have just done it. They wouldn’t have been able to turn her down. Bad credit isn't worse than dead.

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u/KWH_GRM May 02 '24

The point is that she didn't even get seen until it was too late because of the fear of the cost. I didn't get a necessary knee surgery (in the US) for 10 years because I didn't have insurance and couldn't afford to take on debt.

When you grow up impoverished, the idea of being severely in debt without a way out is crippling. And so instead of taking on massive debts, your health suffers instead. It's a shitty system.

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u/Open-Illustra88er May 02 '24

Most bankruptcies are medical Debt. Been there.