Being without health insurance at the moment, we’ve put off a lot of routine care because we simply can’t afford the bills. Vaccination boosters can wait, yearly check-ups can be put off, and if anyone gets sick, I can put my Super Mom-RN skills to use to determine if a trip to the doctor is really necessary.
But when the school sends home a form requiring a medical professional to sign off that your child has had a physical in the past year and is healthy enough to attend school – and said child can’t attend school without this signature – then you have to bite the bullet and make an appointment.
Mira had her doctor’s visit yesterday, what would have been her three-year-old well-child visit, now more like her three-and-a-few-months well-child visit. Her doctor is actually a nurse practitioner (yay for supporting my fellow nurses!), and Mira spent all morning excited about going to the “dot-torz oh-hice!” Or at least she was excited until we got there and the nurse asked her to take off her shoes to be weighed. Then the wailing started.
Thankfully, the tears stopped when the nurse practitioner came into the room. Our NP is very friendly and outgoing, and Mira quickly recovered herself and became the show-off ham she’s known for. The NP pointed out that Mira is continuing the tradition of Amazon warrior princesses in our household – 95th percentile for height – no surprise there. If she continues on this growth curve, she’ll likely be 5’8″ or taller as an adult.
There were no surprises at this visit. Mira still has speech apraxia. We knew that and she’ll be getting therapy through the school in the fall. She has sensitive skin and a sensitive tummy, which we’ve been aware of since birth. She has a persistent junky cough that is likely just allergies as her chest is clear – the NP’s stethoscope findings matched my own from home. She’s bright, overflowing with energy, and completely healthy with no serious medical concerns whatsoever. And that’s essentially what was noted on the paper required for school admittance.
In other words, we didn’t need the NP to tell us any of this. We just needed her signature.
And then we paid $110 for that signature and 15 minutes of time that only confirmed what we already knew.
Ouch.
I think my checkbook needs a band-aid and a Thomas the Tank Engine sticker now.
Hey since DH are out of work don’t you guys qualify for medicaid for the kids? or since you are working you make too much income to qualify?
Jen – Yep, I make too much for us to qualify for health insurance for the kids. My job is contract, and I’m hoping that either I get offered full-time employment soon or Aaron finds a good job with benefits.
Or both. Both would nice, too.
Ouch is right. Doesn’t Ohio have the All Kids health insurance? It’s free (or nearly free, depending on income) for all children in Illinois.
Check it out and see if it’s in Ohio, too.
Programs for Children, Families and Pregnant Women
Ohio Medicaid offers two programs for children, families and pregnant women with limited income to get health care. Once eligible for Medicaid, each child (birth through age 20) will have access to an important group of services known as Healthchek.
Healthy Start
Healthy Start (also called SCHIP) is a Medicaid program available to:
■Children (younger than age 19) in families with income up to 200% of the federal poverty level.
■Pregnant women in families with income up to 200% of the federal poverty level.
Healthy Families
Healthy Families is a Medicaid program available to:
■Families with income up to 90% of the federal poverty level. (Families must include a child younger than age 19).
YES OHIO SUCKS!!!!
Yep, what Susan said.
Not to get too detailed, but I do make over 200% of the federal poverty level, so we’re excluded.
Which would mean we’d be doing OK if it wasn’t for the fact that no insurance co. wants to insure us. I’ve got pre-existing conditions (skin cancer risk), and no one will touch Cordy’s autism. Those that are willing offer practically no coverage for a lot of money each month.
Just crossing my fingers and hoping Aaron or I can get coverage soon. My job is contract, and Aaron is still job hunting after being laid off.
I’m with you. We have hospitalization-only, so we tend to put things off as well. Once a year Db goes to the doc to get his form signed — like you, with stuff we mostly already know — for his After-School application. Don’t know a solution!
Ouch indeed! We have insurance, through my hubby’s work, and we just got billed $1100 from Children’s for 3 stitches my son needed last month. It’s insane. We have a $6000 per person deductible that we pay almost $500 a month for.
I don’t understand the people who think our systems are just hunky-dory.
Hope you get insurance too.
Just chiming in from Massachusetts… which sucks too. Even with the Universal plan – the only thing that changed here is that the majority of working folks still bust their asses to cover their ever-increasing premiums and copays for less coverage.
There is still such a majority that falls ‘between the cracks’ in areas like health insurance: sending healthy vibes your way!