Insurance: The Urban Legend.

Nurses General Nursing

Published

Once you're in a facility you'll be treated the same as everybody else.

It's laughible to imagine that staff look at somebodies insurance and treat them any differently. I mean it's hard enough to get them to even know the patients name, let alone know what insurance the person is using.

Of course you might not actually get into a LONG TERM facility unless you have the correct insurance.

And sure I guess you might be diverted to some place else for ER treatment if you don't have any insurance. But that would stand to reason, even if it's just a matter of geography.

I wouldn't expect to receive the same type of health care in a developing country as I might in say a European country or within the USA.

Specializes in Med/Surg, Ortho.

I think if you are going to see any difference at all through the Er it may be the difference between a HMO and a PPO.

Specializes in L&D, OB/GYN clinic.

In 1995, I had a laparascopic cholecystectomy. I worked at the hospital and had insurance. I had to share a room with a patient who had the same surgery at the same time that I had my surgery. She had Medicaid. My insurance said that I had to be discharged in less than 24 hours from surgery. Despite my diabetes, I was discharged the morning after surgery. (I felt amazingly well and was absolutely ready to go home that morning.) My roomie had not even left her bed as of the time I was discharged. She said that Medicaid gave her 3 days postop. She also said that the nurses were going to wait on her hand and foot until the second that she was discharged. She was making good on that promise when I left the hospital. Now, tell me that having insurance always gets better/more care?!

Wow, I haven't posted a response for at least 2 months, but I gotta give my two cents on this one.

maybe aftercare is different for an ins/un-ins pt, but heck no, I HAVE NEVER seen a pt treated differently. as tweety said (maybe its a florida thing) un-ins pts seem to get better treatment. Tests get run faster to decrease lenght of stay, and pts who don't qualify for rehab/alf situations stay longer because there is no where to send them. Now I have met docs that don't take un ins pts, but so long as they are treated by someone at the hospital, then is that not right? I know this has been debated ad-nauseum.

And for the record, and I swear this to be true, I have been threatened to be sued many times, and all by self-payers. Each and every one. (our case manager always let us know ins staus, due to above mentioned situations).

For the life of me, I can't believe anyone at the hospital I work at ever thinks they are treated differently. I have seen more than one open heart surgery with hhc follow up on a homeless person, (we of course had to find them shelter before d/c). And I am sure they have no out of pocket. My very expensive insurance charged me $1500 out of pocket when I had my daughter. HHMMH.

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