hmm insurance processing lag. wtf man.

[TdC]

Fuck me, I distrust insurance companies as much as the next guy, and hate them about as much as I hate lawyers, dentists and politicians, but hey ho the order of and lag in processing that some of my bills undergo makes me suspicious as hell.

Having had an accident where I messed up my shoulder, I've had some hospital visits in 2013, 14 and very early this year, where I was there for about 5 minutes. I've already had a bill for the meds I got after the operation I had where the titanium braces were taken out of my shoulder. That specific op has not yet been billed to me, so when I got mail from my insurer, I immediately assumed that this was the one for that. Sure enough, it was around the right amount, but when I looked at the date of the declaration, it was from late January 2014 or well over a year ago, so that means this is for the op in 2013, where I had the plates put in.

The bill in itself is only partially covered by my insurance, meaning I have to pay about a third of it. I don't mind doing that, but there's the thing: I wonder if the lag in processing of this particular declaration (by either the hospital, or the insurer (since I had f*all to do with it natch)) is done in a way that causes the timing to be somehow significant. I mean, surely neither the hospital or insurer are so slow that it takes them over a year to process this declaration? It seems to me that both the entities involved should have absolutely stonking accounting departments, no? Why didn't I get this bill in say....March 2014, or about two months after the processing date printed on the insurer's invoice?

Once again, it's not that I have to pay. I mean, I'm all fixed and can ride my bike again. I'm over the moon and happy to pay. I just wonder why it sometimes takes ages to get billed.

 

[Raven]

For all its faults I really love the NHS.

 

[Moriath]

For all its faults I really love the NHS.

What ever they say the nhs is the best service in the world. It might take time for non immediate issues. But at least you pay for it every pay packet rather than big lump sums.

 

[old.Tohtori]

What ever they say the nhs is the best service in the world.

Well, in the UK perhaps

 

[Gwadien]

Well, in the UK perhaps

Name one.

It really is the best service in the world. Undisputed

 

[Lakih]

Depends on what study you are looking at, WHO did a pretty big one that came out a few years ago that put the UK on #18 and France as #1. But a recent study by The Commonwealth Fund puts the UK as #1 in most categories except... "keeping people alive". The Commonwealth Fund only compared 11 countries while WHO looked at around a hundred.
So sure, the NHS is great, but best in the world? Depends on who conducts the study and what they are looking at.
(all of this is very easy to google)

 

[old.Tohtori]

Name one.

It really is the best service in the world. Undisputed

Here's 17 http://thepatientfactor.com/canadia...zations-ranking-of-the-worlds-health-systems/

Or what @Lakih said

It also depends on who is reeiving the healthcare, for example as a diabetic the Finnish system works really well since the national insurance covers my meds(whihc would be around 200€/month).

Some meds like depression meds can go even higher, yet your payment is around 3€.

 

[Raven]

Yeah, so like the NHS then.

 

[TdC]

I pay something in the order of 150 euros / month to my insurer, and my employer doubles that.I do realize that in a social healthcare system I am also paying for people who are really sick or need horrendous operations that cost shitloads more than the low impact stuff I've been though, and I am totes cool with that.

Being the suspicious cunt I am, I just wonder where the delay in processing a hospital bill from January last year comes from.

 

[old.Tohtori]

Yeah, so like the NHS then.

Probably "like" but not quite. Unless the cost of all diabetic needs in the UK is around 12€

 

[Raven]

Its £104 for a year for any medicine(s) via a repeat prescription, some people get them free. Any other non-prescription treatment is free.

 

[Ormorof]

its probably less actually, if i remember right from my days living in the UK prescriptions were charged at ~6 quid a pop right?

for all its flaws it is extremely nice to be in a situation that if you need medical attention you dont have to worry about eating at the end of the month you can just go to the doc and get it looked at - though i must admit i was a bit of a hypochondriac when i lived a few doors away from a walk in health centre

nowadays when i need to go to doctor its covered by work (because they require doctors note if away for more than 2 days they have to pay for it ) but even the public healthcare in finland is not "free" but it is extremely cheap, if i remember right the max amount the public healthcare can bill you annually is ~90 euros, if your doctors/surgery visits are higher than that you dont pay anything, and if you need something done but the waiting time is too long (cant remember what the legal limit is for doctors, for dental it is 6 months) they give you a voucher so you can go get it done privately for almost nothing

It keeps away the hypochondriacs but ensures everyone can access it (i think if your income is below a certain level its free too, but that varies depending on where you live)

anyhoo back to the NHS - the biggest problem for me is the massive inconsistency of treatment quality, for example when i was taken to hospital in london i got sent to Guys & St Thomas hospital, fantastic hospital, clean, well staffed, almost no waiting time.

compare that to Hull Royal where it was absolutely dire, the hallways were dirty, staff overworked etc

what im getting at is if it is a NATIONAL health service why is it left to local authorities to fund it? i mean an area like Hull is pretty much guaranteed to provide less funding opportunities than a hospital on the opposite bank from Westminister - why is it not done on a per patient or by need? (i imagine the rich londoners would be using private care more anyway than the unemployed Hullians )

 

[Gwadien]

Don't get me wrong, I do think other countries have a better health service, but the point is that the NHS will help you out, then they won't send you a bill at the end.

Regardless of insurance, coming out of hospital and worrying about finance as the first thing must be fucking awful.

By the way everyone, @Tilda qualifies soon, so can we have a FH outing to Norwich and do stupid shit and up in A&E?

(assuming he'll work in A&E, which he most likely won't.)

 

[mooSe_]

Original topic successfully ignored. Tangential argument initiated.

 

[Raven]

Nobody is really arguing, just discussing

But yeah, back to the original topic, the insurance companies will sit on the cash, earn a wedge of interest on it then shift it on at the last minute possible, they really are arseholes.

 

[Gumbo]

In the UK diabetes meds are entirely free to the user, as it's considered a chronic condition. Indeed, once you have that declared, if you need any other meds for anything else, it's also free. So, painkillers for a sprain? free!

The other half has hypothyroidism, so has to take a pill a day for the rest of her life, because of that, all of her other meds will also be free. (Unless they change the rules)

 

[Moriath]

In the UK diabetes meds are entirely free to the user, as it's considered a chronic condition. Indeed, once you have that declared, if you need any other meds for anything else, it's also free. So, painkillers for a sprain? free!

The other half has hypothyroidism, so has to take a pill a day for the rest of her life, because of that, all of her other meds will also be free. (Unless they change the rules)

I have hypothryroidism also. Makes prescriptions very cheap .

 

[TdC]

wow, I had to pay 50 euros for pain meds after my shoulder operation. I took...one.

 

[Moriath]

wow, I had to pay 50 euros for pain meds after my shoulder operation. I took...one.

Why nhs is so cool. Most you would pay is eight quid. For a prescription item.