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kAL’S FALL MEDICAL GUIDE 2008
1 TO AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE
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dose of your medication.
...or to double up - Buying smaller
doses of your medicine can sometimes
save you money. The antidepressant
fluoxetine generally costs about S9O for
45 40-mg pills, but you can often buy
90 20-mg capsules for only SSO. Taking
two of these lower-dose pills would
save you S4O for 45 doses.
Freebies - If you have a limited in
come, you may be eligible for free or
low-cost drugs through your state or the
manufacturer. The Partnership for Pre
scription Assistance can help you learn
if you qualify. Call 888-477-2669, or go
online. Those 65 and over with annual
incomes less than $14,700 (single) or
$19,800 (couple) and limited assets may
qualify for drug coverage under Medi
care at very low cost, and additionally
may be eligible for a Medicare savings
program (also known as a Medicare
buy-in program) that can help pay for
other Medicare out-of-pocket expenses.
Contact Medicare for more informa
tion by calling 800-633-4227 or visiting
www.medicare.gov.
EYE CARE
See through.the hype - The retail
markup on eyeglass frames tends to run
as high as 1,000 percent. The cheapest
frames, he says, are available at large
retail stores and optical chain stores.
But these usually don't hold up as well
as frames from eye doctors' offices or
boutiques. And because of the markup,
the price of the frames you really want
may be more flexible than you think.
Negotiate. If you buy two pair, ask for
20 percent off. You'll probably get it.
Also ask if they ever issue coupons or
run seasonal sales. If you can't get a
price reduction, try to negotiate some-
thing else, perhaps an extension on the
warranty, an upgrade on the lens from
plastic to polycarbonate (which is light
er), or scratch protection.
Score a free exam - Eye Care America,
a program run by the American Acade
my of Ophthalmology, has helped more
than 760,000 people in the past 20 years.
If you are 65 or older, have not seen an
ophthalmologist in the past three years,
and do not belong to an HMO or have
coverage from the VA, then you may
be eligible to receive a comprehensive
eye exam and care for up to one year.
The program is also open to people un
der 65 who are at increased risk for eye
disease. You can find more information
by calling 800-222-3937 or going online.
Many Lions Club chapters work with
optometrists and ophthalmologists in
their communities to provide free eye
glasses to those with limited means.
You can find the Lions Club nearest to
you by calling 800-747-4448 or visiting
their website.
HOSPITALS AND EQUIPMENT
Skip Saturday night at the hospital -
Unless it's a true emergency, don't check
yourself into a hospital on a weekend.
Many hospital departments aren't open
on weekends, and others have reduced
staffs, which means you might be pay
ing SI,BOO a dav for a room with a view
of the parking lot. Better to schedule
your hospitalization for Monday and
get the attention you need to mend as
quickly as possible.
Check your bill twice
- Your hospital bill comes
to you looking like a | JHHf
veritable rat's nest of |C
codes, numbers, debits, JHT
and credits. How *■ Jgfc
can vou tell it the . ' .'TSH
accounting is /
accurate 1 \ou «i
the number
ot mistakes on y*'* .1
hospital bills is
high. 50 percent
of bills have t
an error or an
overcharge
somewhere.
If you think your hospital bill may be
a bit overstuffed, ask the hospital ac
counting person to explain it to you,
line by line. If that doesn't prove pro
ductive, contact ACAP at 630-562-1000
or online. Most members charge by
the hour (S3O to $120), although some
will charge a percentage of any amount
they recover. They can also help you if
your insurance company is reluctant
to pay for your care, even though your
policy seems to indicate it should. Simi
lar services are rendered by a Philadel
phia-based company called Healthcare
Advocates. Call 215-735-7711, or go to
their website.
\W M.
Take your ailment on the road - Some
of the best hospitals in the world today
are located outside the United States, in
countries like Thailand and India. They
often have U.S.-trained physicians,
and sometimes deliver safer and better
services in a comfortable, resort-type
atmosphere. And —as reported on 60
Minutes recently—a quintuple-bypass
operation might run $12,000, as opposed
to SIOO,OOO or so in the States. In South
Africa an outfit called Surgeon & Safari
advertises package deals that give you
\ orthopedic, plastic, ophthalmologic,
1 or dental surgery, plus the chance to
spy on lions and elephants, all
for less than you'd spend for
igL B a few days in an American
yiySHRM hospital. If you prefer
to stay in the Western
Hemisphere, Costa Rica
/“ / / Health Escapes adver
l/T !/ tises that "Costa Rica not
only offers quality medical
Ssr ' 1 care, but offers it at a
fraction of the cost for
the same procedures in
the United States." Of
course, wherever you go for surgery,
whether in the United States or abroad,
very carefully check credentials and get
referrals.
Bargain like the big boys - Your hos
pital may be charging you way more
than it does some of its other patients
especially if you're paying your own
way. Pulitzer Prize-winning investiga
tive reporters Donald Barlett and James
Steele, in their book Critical Condition:
How Health Care in America Became
Big Business & Bad Medicine (Double
day, 2004), tell how a hospital in Or
lando charged one uninsured patient
$35,200 for an appendectomy. Medicare
would have paid $6,200 for the same
operation in the same hospital; a typi
cal insurer, $7,000. There are currently
no fewer than 70 class-action lawsuits
involving at least 400 allegedly not-for
profit hospitals and hospital systems
whose uninsured patients say they
have been price-gouged. If you have
no insurance or Medicare and feel you
were taken for an anesthetized chump,
don't be afraid to ask your physician
and the billing department about cut
ting the bill down to size. If those talks
go nowhere, you might want to hire a
(contingency-based) attorney. Go to
the Case Connect website, or write to
Attorney Sid Backstrom, Scruggs Law
Firm, P.O. Box 1136, Oxford, MS 38655,
for information about whether you just
might have a case.
Accept hand-me-downs - If you find
yourself in need of a walker, wheel
chair, reclining bed, or other piece of
potentially pricey medical equipment,
don't rush out and buy a new one. Your
church, senior center, or social club may
SEE HEALTHCARE ON PG. 14
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