Dear Diary, There’s Been A Change Of Plans…
Posted by michelle on Oct 5, 2012 in Eliminating Debt | 33 comments
If you’re a regular reader of ours, you’ve probably noticed that we’ve been missing in action the last several days. The skinny; we’ve been busy. The chubby; all three of the kids have been sick and one even ended up in the hospital for a few days. He is all better now and back at home, but it was a very stressful, scary time. Anytime your baby’s sick, no matter how old your baby may be, it stresses you out! So now we’re all healthy and I’m happy to have all my little ducks back in a row under one roof, but the financial damage remains to be seen.
What we know is that our insurance sucks. We apparently have a $1200 deductible that we haven’t even touched yet! I didn’t know this, but apparently NOTHING goes toward your deductible except big, fat hospital bills. You would think in 10 months, one of the five of us would have had something qualify as paying down that deductible, but no…nothing. One of my friends asked “wait, don’t your copays count?” NOPE. Copays do not count towards the deductible. My mom asked “what about your daughter’s shots? Don’t any of her many routine baby visits count towards the deductible?” Again, not at all. I’m sure there are many things that do count, but we’ve been lucky enough to be healthy this year and haven’t needed to pay for any of those things, I guess. So after we pay the deductible, we owe 25% of whatever the hospital bill will be. Though we haven’t seen a bill yet (or a claim since I’ve also been anxiously checking our insurance company’s member site), it’s looking like we will definitely have a 4-figure bill on our hands soon. As I’ve said and meant before, I would pay anything to ensure the health of my family. Although I am admittedly super anxious about seeing what the bill will be, I’m not worried about being able to pay it off. I know that we will get there; it will just maybe be an extra month before we see that consumer debt-free date.
In Jeff’s last post, he wrote about our progress and we were doing extremely well, regardless of the obstacles that have been thrown before us. I appreciate all the support and congratulations for having made so much of our debt run for the hills. I hope this little hiccup of possibly needing to set our debt-free date back a month doesn’t negate any of those feelings for us. We are still committed to this plan. In fact, we’re still going to try to keep our date of March 1st by hustling a little more. We have something up our sleeves and you will definitely be in the know when that comes to fruition! (No, it’s not buying Powerball tickets.)
So, if you are a regular reader, thank you so much for sticking with us through this! We will be back in the next couple days with some good, informative content and motivational words to help you through as well. If you are a new reader, welcome! Feel free to take a look at some of our favorite posts on the right side of the screen. Sorry, mobile readers! You’ll just have to click through the site to get to them! Leave us a comment while you’re at it! We love to hear from you.
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Hi Michelle,
I’m so glad that everybody is doing better! You know that we will def stick with you guys:)
You’re right: health insurance in this country sucks. Unfortunately, your insurance policy seems to be what would be considered as fairly decent compared to what is out there. We ended up having to switch to a high deductible plan (ours is $4,000) with a health savings account. It is much better than what we found on the open market, but it still isn’t great. We’ve dealt with bad insurance for years, and it isn’t something that most people think about unless it affects them immediately.
Again, I’m glad that your family is healing and we will keep you all in our thoughts!
Greg@ClubThrifty recently posted..The VIP Club – Weekly Roundup 6th Edition
Sorry to hear about your misfortune recently :/ Do you have an out of pocket max? Ours is something like $6,600 for our family or $3,300 each (we don’t have kids so the family one is kind of a waste until we do have kids). The out of pocket max should protect your wallet a bit, but it does usually end up being around $6k or so.
Anyway I do check your site every day for new updates and have been missing the posts, but it’s totally understandable why you guys have been MIA a bit. Hope things start getting back to normal!
DC @ Young Adult Money recently posted..Why Musicians Hate Spotify…and Why They Shouldn’t
Oh dear
I’m glad to hear that everyone is feeling better. I have my fingers crossed that your bill comes back on the smaller side. You’ve made so much progress, so I’m sure you’ll get through this alright. Just think how far you’ve come since you first started paying your debt down! You’ve put yourself in a much better position to be able to tackle this bill now. I hope your family stays healthy this winter!
Cassie recently posted..Is It All Bad?
Sorry to hear that the kiddos were sick – but so glad that everyone is home and doing much better now. Can’t wait to hear what you guys have up your sleeves when you’re ready to share!
Mrs. Pop @ Planting Our Pennies recently posted..American Express BlueCash Everyday Rewards Card
I’m glad to hear that everyone is doing better. I’m fairly new to your blogs but it sounds like you guys have some good heads on your shoulders so I’m sure you’ll make it over this hurdle. I look forward to some more postings. Have a great day!
Keith Bunn recently posted..Insurance Part 7: Identity Theft & Long Term Care
So sorry to hear that your son was in the hospital, but glad that he is home now and doing better.
It’s always the worst when you’re kid is the one who’s sick and needs care like that. You always just want to take it from them, but unfortunately we don’t have that option.
We had a similar situation last year with our now three year old son. He needed a battery of tests to be done and of course they could not tell us the amount of the main test. The nurse said “oh, it’s around $500″. We thought, ok, we can handle that. Well, we got the bill a few months later and it was $2500!! Last I looked $500 is no where near $2500. So, we just had to take several months to knock it down and pay it off. Thankfully he ended up being ok and he’s back to running around like a normal three year old.
Glad to see you guys back and even happier that your son is doing better.
John S @ Frugal Rules recently posted..Frugal Friday: Posts That Ruled This Week
Sorry to hear about the sicknesses. Getting everybody well is the most important thing. Unfortunately, most insurance (at least that I’ve been covered with) has removed co-pays as counting toward your deductible.
Money Beagle recently posted..Weekly Roundup: October 5, 2012
Stuff happens! The important thing is that your family is healthy now. It’s actually not a bad time at all to have a hiccup – you have momentum, you see the light at the end of the tunnel. If this happened earlier you may have been more discouraged or later you may not have been in a super-fast-payoff mode and less able to deal with it quickly.
So sorry to hear.about the hospital visit but I am glad everyone is OK! That sucks about the deductible but it is just money. A healthy family is more important than a 4 figure.hospital bill for sure even though the bill sucks. I am sure you guys can hustle the extra money!
Lance @ Money Life and More recently posted..7 Retirement Mistakes to Avoid
Damn. That sucks hard. Really hard. One thing I learned from being so freaking broke for so long is that hospital bills actually DO NOT have to be paid. The hospitals don’t really loud speaker this to you, because why would they? Most peopel do want to pay though, and so if it’s going to be troublesome, you can call and set up a payment plan. Yes, you can do that. And you can tell them how much it’ll be each month. Way back, my wife and I had to do that, we just didn’t have any money. So we told them we could pay $20/month. And they had to say okay. And so we paid them $20/month. They can’t garnish yoru wages or affect yoru credit score. Little known fact! So keep that in mind! And hey, glad your little tyke is okay!
TB at BlueCollarWorkman recently posted..Sometimes You Have to Do Scary Things
Wow…sorry to hear about everybody being sick and having to go to the hospital; those trips are never cheap! Just hang in there, it always seems that life allows you to go two steps forward and one step back. It’s just a little bump in the road!
Jason @ WorkSaveLive recently posted..Is Your Monthly Grocery Budget Too High? 6 Ways to Save Money on Groceries
Sorry to hear about the kids being sick and the hospital trip to boot. I’m sure you guys will find a way to stay on track with the debt free date. Like that old saying goes, “When life gives you lemons, throw them back hard, and aim for the face.”
Stan @ DebtsnTaxes recently posted..It Pays To Ask: Credit Card Style
Really glad to hear that everyone is home and doing ok now. Like you said, the bill sucks but your health is most important.
Sorry to hear that everyone was sick and that your son was in the hospital. Glad to hear that everyone is doing much better!
Dealing with medical insurance is the pits. I hope everything works out for you guys.
Mackenzie recently posted..Coffee Date Friday: It’s All About the Pumpkin!
Hey, it’s always “two steps forward, one step back” for us too! You are still doing awesome!
Holly@ClubThrifty recently posted..The VIP Club – Weekly Roundup 6th Edition
Wow, that is pretty scary to have all three kids sick at the same time. Even if it does set back your debt-free goal by a month, what’s one month? You are still doing so well with your progress and should stay in the same state of mind that you’ve come so far. Interested to hear what you guys have up your sleeves!
Kelly@Financial-Lessons recently posted..7 Ways to Make More Money off of Your Yard Sale
My insurance is similar. I hate it! And the fact that I don’t understand a lot of insurance terms does not help.
Michelle recently posted..Do You Really Need that Second Car?
What a bummer! I’m still trying to figure out the whole insurance thing so I look forward to any advice you can give.
Debt Free Teen recently posted..Why I won’t be buying an iPhone 5
So sorry to hear that! I’ve never had to deal with that kind of thing, living in Canada. But I have no doubt you guys will bounce back from this and that you’ll continue to kick your debt’s butt. Set backs happen, I know you’ll rally. Hope the little ones are feeling good as new soon.
Jordann @ My Alternate Life recently posted..How I Paid Off $12,713.50 of Debt in 10 Months
Sick kids are the saddest thing ever. Our little one is sick (again! no more letting stranger kiss him!) and has a tough time sleeping. I hope you all can rest and recover quickly. And don’t worry about your debt, it’s still on Death Row
Jacob @ iheartbudgets recently posted..5 Ways Being a Stay At Home Parent Saves You Money
Glad kiddos are ok! I’m so glad I don’t ever have to worry about anything like this in Canada, universal healthcare is such a blessing.I could walk into any hospital in Canada and have a MRI every day if I needed to. Good for you guys for being so committed! Happy weekend!
Catherine recently posted..Be Thankful
just keep swimming just keep swimming just keep swimming!
Kathleen @ Frugal Portland recently posted..Photography as a Side Hustle
Glad everyone is healthy again, but it’s painful to have to sit and wait to see what the damage is. After all the insurance crap and adjustments, it seems to just hurt us the most. I hope everything gets back on track soon!!
Budget and the Beach recently posted..In Between Things
Glad everyone feels better, sorry about the bill :s I find it strange not to know what you will have to pay before they treat you (unless life or death situations).
Pauline recently posted..Friday recap, flown-by week
That stinks! But I’m happy everyone is fine. Money you can recover. Health? Much better that you’re all better. Have a great weekend, team SDR!
AverageJoe recently posted..Five Money-Saving Tasks That’ll Help You Cha-Ching! in the 4th Quarter
Oh, gosh! I’m so glad he’s okay! Insurance companies are there to rob you, I swear. Especially the health ones. That’s a steep deductible, but still amazing that nothing has counted towards it yet. You guys shouldn’t get frustrated…even if it does take another month! You’ve done so much so quickly!
femmefrugality recently posted..Google Yourself Before a Potential Employer Does
There’s nothing worse than having a sick kid. So glad to hear everyone is on the mend. Hospitals almost always let you make payments. That was not a want but a true need, so don’t sweat it at all.
Kim@Eyesonthedollar recently posted..October 2012 Goals
Really sorry to hear such a story. I feel sincerely for the NHS here in the UK and Medicare back home in Australia. Even know I have private health insurance through my employer I’ve never had a thought to worry about getting good care cheap or free.
Money Man recently posted..Don’t Under Estimate the Long Game
Glad everyone is doing better! The one good thing about medical bills is you can make arrangements monthly to pay these off, and it doesn’t leave any negative marks on your credit report, the only time it would leave a negative mark on your credit is if you miss a payment. Also there will be a number at the top of your bill for payments, call them and request their requirements for a “Cry Letter” this is something you provide to the hospital and if approved they will waive a portion of the amount owed, worst case you won’t get approved but it doesn’t hurt to try. Every little bit helps.
I feel for you. My entire 5 person family had to go through the rabbies vaccination rounds. That is 4 trips to the ER for vaccines for 5 people so 20 trips to the ER! My deductible is 5k but I think I have just about reached it at this point.
Adam Hathaway recently posted..How I Am Generating Passive Income by Dumping My Savings Account and How You Can Too
I’m glad everthing turned out ok. That sounds horrible. I hope your little one wasn’t stuck in the hospital for too long. My own children were sick last week, partially accounting for my abscence.
Interesting insurance. There are co-pays, a high deductible and co-insurance? It sounds like you have the worst of all roads.
JP @ My Family Finances recently posted..Buying a House is definitely an Asset for Your Family
What a terrible deductible plan! Glad to hear that everyone’s happy and healthy once again. You guys will be back on track in no time!
Christa recently posted..Music to My Ears: Free Downloads
Glad everyone is feeling better but I’m sorry to hear about the financial setback. I don’t know much about healthcare in the U.S. but I do know I’m grateful for everything we get up here in Canada. Thinking of you guys, xo
Cait recently posted..We Need This in Canada: ReadyForZero PLUS