CML Patient interested in becoming a nurse

canigraduate · Oct 6, 2015

Our insurance sucks just as much as everyone elses'.

If you want specifics, you need to ask your prospective future employers. Call the local hospitals' HR departments and get them to send you information on the benefits package.

elkpark · Oct 6, 2015

Our insurance sucks just as much as everyone elses'.
If you want specifics, you need to ask your prospective future employers. Call the local hospitals' HR departments and get them to send you information on the benefits package.

(And, of course, the coverage that local hospitals offer now may have changed dramatically by the time the OP gets through school and gets licensed, so even that action would be of limited value.)

dream'n, BSN, RN · Oct 6, 2015

Every year for at least the last 10, my insurance coverage gets more expensive and covers less. In all honesty, just because we're in healthcare it doesn't mean that our insurance is any better than anywhere else. In fact, my sister is a FNP for a large healthcare insurance company and her husband has the better insurance plan as an electrician. I'm an RN in acute care and getting care where I work through my insurance can cost me an arm and leg.

NanaPoo · Oct 6, 2015

As a school nurse, my healthcare is better than any I ever had working in the healthcare industry. Maybe you should consider becoming a teacher??

BeachsideRN, ASN · Oct 6, 2015

I don't intend to demean anyone, but at times lay folks forget that health care is a business. We are employees, just like everyone else. Our industry is in a severe cost containment crunch, reeling from reimbursement decreases on all fronts. The most common cost containment strategy for healthcare is to control labor costs. This means fewer staff and slashing the costs of employee benefits. In fact, employee benefits in healthcare organizations are not at all competitive with other industries that have a much better profit margin.
I know of several organizations that have either already implemented the dreaded "consumer plan" insurance or they are planning to do so. This type of plan does not really provide any sort of insurance... only an amount of money that the employee is supposed to use to purchase his/her own plan. YIKES!! It may be a great deal for the young & healthy folks, but not so much for everyone else.

This. So much this. My husband has always had better benefits than me. When he was at the bank and now he is in compliance for a Medicare administration company.

NurseSpeedy, ADN, LPN, RN · Oct 6, 2015

From my experience, I had better health care insurance offered by retail companies I worked for prior to going into nursing. After getting my LPN and working in a hospital a while back I was better off going on my husband's health plan (he's not a medical professional). Every employer is different, but every hospital I worked for was self-insured so there was zero privacy (had to use that hospital and the doctors that had privileges there). The LTC facilities had crap coverage and I won't even go there with HHC agencies and what they offered (one if they didn't have 32 hours to offer you for two consecutive weeks your coverage was automatically dropped).

It's impossible to say if your medication will be covered. Plans change constantly and the prescription coverage seems to change even more frequently. I wouldn't be able to base a huge career choice based on insurance because anything can change between now and when you graduate to later find employment.

mimibrown, ADN, BSN · Oct 6, 2015

Nursing is a very stressful job. It is physically and mentally draining. Add in a lack of jobs for new grads, and a difficult job market. What do you plan to do if you graduate and can't find a job for a year? Going into this field for the benefits is not a good idea. I don't think it will go well for you.

Ruby Vee, BSN · Oct 6, 2015

I'm a CML survivor of 9 years, and I'm interested in becoming an oncology nurse. Each day I take 800mg of Gleevec, which retails at $24,000/month. When I began taking the meds the cost was $3000, so there seems no end in sight to the price increase. I spoke to a friend who is a nurse who told me that his insurance covers about 90% of his Rx costs. That would be about $36000/year for me for my meds. I'm trying get a sense from other nurses what they pay in Rx costs. I'm sure it differs, depending on union contracts and maybe region. I wonder if folks here would be so kind as to provide me with any information they have about a nurse's health care costs so that I can begin to make a cost benefit analysis. Thank you.

Seriously? Rather than research employers you may be interested in working for, you're going to write a post on an online forum asking for personal information from strangers who may or may not be shining you on? Look at the websites of some of the major health care employers in your area, or get to know some of their employees and ask them the personal questions.

enuf_already · Oct 6, 2015

Benefits such as healthcare and Rx coverage frequently change each year as employers try to cut costs. My benefits change every year and costs increase. I have a high deductible insurance where I have prescription benefits.

My $5,000 deductible must be met before insurance pays for medication other than a few preventive (cholesterol) medications. After that, medication must be generic and on the formulary (which also changes).

My insurance is not cheap either!

KelRN215, BSN, RN · Oct 6, 2015

In the past 8 years of being a nurse, I have paid anywhere from $23-$139 per pay period for health insurance. My co-pays for inpatient stays have ranged from $0-$500. My co-pays for my annual MRIs have ranged from $0-$100. I currently pay $5 for generic meds and $40 for tier 2 brand name meds. I don't know how much the most expensive tier would be and I hope to not find out.

No one here can tell you what your experience will be. Every plan is different and they're not necessarily good. I turned down a job earlier this year because the insurance coverage was insufficient to meet my needs. At 31, I don't have the luxury of not worrying about this kind of thing because I was diagnosed with a brain tumor as a teenager. I'm fine but left with many chronic conditions that will require life long follow-up. This particular employer only offered high deductible or tiered plans. Tiered plans, of course, have high deductibles for the most expensive tiers. I was unwilling to sacrifice my medical care (which is complex) for a job that paid about $0.75 per hour more than I was already making. I ended up finding another job that paid significantly more. The insurance is more expensive but a better plan and the higher salary makes up for it.