How many of you nurses do NOT have health insurance

[NurseLoveJoy88]

I'm a LPN working partime and don't qualify for health insurance. The reason why I'm not working full-time at the moment is because I start RN school in February 2011 ( hopefully). Sometimes I get really down about this. Even my cousins dog have insurance and I don't. He's even getting his flu shot next week and I haven't got mine and I'm a nurse ! I'm recently seperated so ofcourse my ex dropped me from his plan. I guess I just needed to vent about this. :o

[Neveranurseagain, RN]

I paid out $64,000 over a 5 1/2 year period for health insurance premiums, copays and deductibles fro myself and two teens after my husband died. Then I went without insurance for a year, but just recently got it with only a $1500 deductible through the school district I work for. I managed to buy an individual plan for my teens with a $3000 deductible for only $205 a month.

Only in America is your health insurance linked to an employer. And it seems nowadays, employers don't want to to offer health insurance, or at best, offer a watered down version that is unbelievably expensive. That leaves too many people uninsured or underinsured. The problem is only getting worse. Too bad the public option was removed....

[Forever Sunshine, ASN, RN]

I work for a facility that is connected to a hospital with a very good reputation where I live.

When the subject of health insurance comes up in a conversation, they are STUNNED to find out my employer won't give me health insurance.

I am part-time. But for them to give me health insurance I would need to be on the schedule as a .5 or higher. (.5 is 5 days per pay period). I am a .4(4 days per pay period). I do have extra shifts that I pick up, but those don't count.

[whiskeygirl, LPN]

+1. Haven't had any for 11 years, come November 1.

[ms.heart]

I am part-time as well with no health insurance.

[NurseLoveJoy88, ASN, RN]

Wow. This amazes me. This is so ironic as well. We as health care professionals should be able to get health insurance one way or another. We should either get it at part-time or they should have some kind of way to take care of us since we take care of others. I'm an asthmatic and my asthma gets worse during the winter. Its a shame that while I can barely breath at times I'm at work giving q6h neb tx wishing I was on the other end of the machine. I also need some therapy to help with some issues I'm having. Instead of me getting a consult I'm always the one setting them up for someone else. I never thought I would be or could be jealous of a patient or resident. Their health needs are being met and mine are not. Oh well, guess I better get off AN and start looking for a full time job with 3 12's. I should make it through nursing school doing that.

[ChristineN, BSN, RN]

I work 2 PRN positions, with 2 12's a week per position on average. No health insurance since June when I quit my last fulll-time position.

[belgarion]

I am seriously considering changing jobs soon, not over wages or working conditions, or even the long drive to and from work - but over the crappy insurance my employer provides. Last year they cut us back and tried to tell us they "improved" the plan. If that's true then I can't afford for them to make it any "better".

[coolpeach]

I have insurance now as a new nurse, but it costs. I pay about $250 a check/or every two weeks for myself and my children. Once they take my insurance, benefits, taxes etc out of my check they have taken 1/3 of my total wages almost. After bills its difficult to afford the $2000 deductible, co-pays, co-insurance fees and medication costs associated with any medical care we might need.

Recently my son had some medical issues and required an upper/lower GI, reg Dr. visits, specialist visits, meds. The hospital charged me $500 for the deductible, plus 20% for the first test which was around $300. Another $300 for the second test. The Dr charged $250 after insurance. Then I got bills from lab, radiology etc which total another $200. We had to go to the reg Dr several times at $30 a pop, and the specialist at $40 a pop. He was put on several meds which ranged in price from $25 to $10 each.

I have paid everything off except about $400 to the hospital which I am paying out. This was minor thing. I can't imagine what a big thing would do to us. And this is with insurance....REALLY!

[TheCommuter, BSN, RN]

I'm uninsured. I work PRN at a small rehab hospital during the week, and part-time at a nursing home. While both places offer health coverage, they only do this for full-time employees who work a minimum of 30 hours per week. I work 24 hours per week at the nursing home, and 36 hours per week at the rehab hospital. Although I have asked for a full-time position at the rehab hospital, they keep giving me the runaround, so I suspect that they would rather keep me on PRN status.

I am hoping that nothing major or catastrophic happens to my health while I am uninsured.

[littlemammanurse, BSN, RN]

The only reason why I have insurance is because of my hubby.He is on disability benefits ,if it weren't for the disability insurance we probably wouldn't have insurance at all!

[OgopogoLPN, LPN, RN]

I honestly don't know how more Americans aren't bankrupt from either not having insurance, or having it but having to pay so much for the actual insurance and extras with dedectables, copays etc.

My Dh has had many health problems over the years, as well as not great jobs. If our insurance was linked to employment and we had to pay what you guys pay, we would have lost our house and been bankrupt many years ago.

[Finallydidit]

Uninsured here as well, I work full time but the insurance is too expensive, and it only pays 70%... I have not had insurance in over 5 years, nor have I been to the Dr. But I think most Dr. offices have sliding scales for the uninsured, and for me I just can't afford to throw away 2500 $ a year on insurance.