In the medical industry, it’s common for our colleagues and peers to ask us, “Is your insurance covered for this procedure?” as they want to know before they sign the dotted line.
Well, yes, it is. We have to say that the reason we are providing free eye services in the first place is because the U.S. government doesn’t really cover the treatment of glaucoma or cataracts. It’s true that many insurance companies have said that they will not cover glaucoma, and it’s true that it is very rare for a cataract surgery to be covered by insurance.
The problem is that many of the treatments for glaucoma and cataracts are very expensive. The average cost for an eye test is about $4,000. For a cataract surgery that cost about $3,000. So the average person on the street with these problems and no insurance wont be able to get the treatment. This means that our patients will have to pay out of pocket for the treatment. This is why most insurance companies won’t cover this procedure.
The reason our surgeries are not covered is that we are one of the few places where cataract surgery is not considered a cosmetic procedure. We are not in some other country or where it is only covered for those in the military. So we can’t provide the same treatment for people who need it but cant afford it.
We cant treat people who cant afford the treatment because our patients would not be able to. We are a very small ophthalmology practice with limited means. We do however, get treated to a lot of great patients and we have never had a patient refuse to go to the office if they dont have insurance. So we dont make a profit off of it.
So is it worth it to have a doctor who doesn’t charge a fee? Of course it is. It’s like that old saying, “If it’s worth it, it’s worth it”. Doctors are basically a commodity and this means that they are going to charge the same as everybody else. When you are in a situation where you only have one option, it’s worth having the doctor you can’t afford.
Well, you are right that insurance companies are a resource that we can leverage to get more money out of our patients. But we do not believe that insurance is a right for everyone. Even if you have insurance, you can have a catastrophic medical event, such as having a heart attack or stroke. Many people do not have health insurance, so they can’t get the treatment they need. However, some people can get insurance through the government or the private sector.
Doctors are a resource that we can leverage to get more money out of our patients. We are not talking about having a “health insurance”. Many people have private health insurance, but they do not have the resources to treat all the illnesses they have. People that can afford health care, can use health care services. Even if you don’t have private health insurance, you can use medical services which are available in hospitals.
The medical service model is an extension of the hospital model. You can find free and/or subsidized medical services on the internet. However, this is a resource that is controlled by the government. There are many different ways that a patient can utilize medical services, but there are some that are better than others.
One of the best examples of something that is better than others is the electronic health records (EHR). You can utilize your EHR to access your medical information, but you can also use it to keep your medical information private. This is a good example of a technology that is not controlled by the government. A lot of the time, you can just sign up for a health insurance plan and get access to some of these private medical services.
