I spoke with more than 50 insurance experts, patients, lawyers, physicians and consumer advocates about building a tool anyone could use to navigate insurance appeals. Nearly everyone said the same thing: Great idea. But almost impossible to do.
An insurance’s purpose is to cover you for unpredictable circumstance
A for profit insurance’s job is to not pay you for as long as inhumanely possible
But you have to have insurance because the alternative is financial ruin, even if you could still be financially ruined either way.
Yeah. In case anyone was wondering, the down payment on a surgery to remove a cancerous tumor near your heart is $100,000. Cash, or no surgery for you. The tumor is growing fast, so you only have a few days to come up with the money.
That’s all because the insurance company said the surgery wasn’t necessary. Or maybe it was too experimental. I forget. Some family members with high paying jobs managed to come up with the money, and my uncle got to live a few more years. I’m sure not everyone is that lucky. And why on God’s green earth should it have to come down to luck?
Insurance changed their mind after a long appeal. I think it took 1-2 years.
An insurance’s purpose is to cover you for unpredictable circumstance
A for profit insurance’s job is to not pay you for as long as inhumanely possible
But you have to have insurance because the alternative is financial ruin, even if you could still be financially ruined either way.
Yeah. In case anyone was wondering, the down payment on a surgery to remove a cancerous tumor near your heart is $100,000. Cash, or no surgery for you. The tumor is growing fast, so you only have a few days to come up with the money.
That’s all because the insurance company said the surgery wasn’t necessary. Or maybe it was too experimental. I forget. Some family members with high paying jobs managed to come up with the money, and my uncle got to live a few more years. I’m sure not everyone is that lucky. And why on God’s green earth should it have to come down to luck?
Insurance changed their mind after a long appeal. I think it took 1-2 years.