Injured while practicing - no health insurance :(

[Jake250ex]

Ok, heres the deal. Ill avoid the big story of my wreck but simply put I hit a downhill jump and hit someone head on in practice about a month ago.

I broke several ribs, punctured/deflated my lung, severe concussion, broken collarbone, fractured knee cap, torn ligaments in my knee and my back and hands is a big scar.

I made the 2 hour drive home after my crash, in fact I even got back on my bike and rode back to my truck. Dumb, I know. I really didnt think I was hurt that bad, but my voice sounded like a robot and I couldnt hardly breathe and kept asking stupid questions over and over... I thought I could just go home and sleep it off. But when I got home I had the taste of blood in my mouth really bad and my parents made me go get checked out. Good thing they did!

Anyway, Im ok now. Up and moving. But heres the problem... I didnt have health insurance. Im getting the bills now. I was at 2 hospitals, the first one I was at for maybe 3 hours. They took one X ray, i went into surgery to get a chest tube minutes later and had a steady 103 degree fever so they transferrred me by ambulance due to complications to ICU at another hospital.

I got the bill from the 1st hopsital... $6000 for the X ray and another $4300 in meds and other fees. Let me remind you I was there for 3 hours...

So I got the bill from the other hopsital, or at least a big part of it. $38,000... Im not sure what to do. The icing on the cake is I lost my job for being off work for a month.

On both of the statements it says in bold at the bottom, "this was not covered by any insurance and is therefor is your responsibility"


Im parting out my bike to pay what I can on it for now, but without work I wont be able to keep up for long.

I am not looking for pity, I just am searching for someone who has been throught a situation like this and how they got out of it. I am considerng bankruptcy, but at 20 years old Im doing everything I can to avoid it.

Thanks in advance

[Bradracer18]

well for starters, they will usually always deal with you....and if nothing else, will generally always let you make payments

[Balaz_73*00]

I agree just get on a payment plan.....for the next x years. That's your only option really. Or start opening credit cards to pay for it all. Whichever has the lesser interest rate.

[ZeroLogic]

Sorry to hear about your crash bud. This is the reason why I stopped riding. I can't afford a bill that much! Good luck with it all though.

[Mxjunkie]

Originally posted by ZeroLogic
Sorry to hear about your crash bud. This is the reason why I stopped riding. I can't afford a bill that much! Good luck with it all though.

Same here sadly enough, quit racing and tearing up tracks.. I figure a little trail ride once in awhile won't hurt anything... It really really bums me out cause I know if I could race I'd be a A class rider no doubt but whatca gonna do... :(

I feel your pain jake, I got busted up (hence why I'm smart now lol) and ended up with a 5,000 dollar hospital bill to pay off.. After that I try my damnest to not get hurt cause it's impossible for me to afford any sort of insurance.. I can barley pay for the insurance on my truck! :o

Try and work with them on a payment plan, I got mine so it was 100 dollars a month which was AWESOME by far.. BUT do not let them do a direct deposit out of your account.. When I did they would never fuggin do it at the same date of each month, I got so frustrated that I called them with very hostile feelings.. Needless to say I sent it in from then on.. Then I ran into a problem with them taking long as balls to cash checks and it'd screw me all up.. loose loose situation.. :o

[matt14c]

Go to washington and say you own a bank and need a bailout!!! :devil: tell them your last name is Citi!

[nakomis0]

I would say bankrupcy. So your credit is jacket up for 7 yrs. its gonna take you longer than that to pay off $45k.

[ZeroLogic]

Originally posted by nakomis0
I would say bankrupcy. So your credit is jacket up for 7 yrs. its gonna take you longer than that to pay off $45k.

I wouldn't do that. If he wants a new truck or house in the next few years the banks will laugh at him.

I would work out a payment plan with them.

[JJs450r]

im kinda on the same boat just not as tore up as you, no insurance stinks but im on a payment plan

[hondariderdylan]

dude, that SUCKS!

i agree, a payment plan is about the only thing you can do unless you have some rich freinds:p

since your up and moving, i would say look for a low impact job to make some kind of money while your recovering
also, look at doing some stuff to gain up some money, recycling,parting out any other vehicles you have that you dont ride/drive,stuff like that, i know it might not seem like much at the time but its money you dont have to pay later

hope it turns out well;)

[Ex_Rider43]

How much is health insurance ?

Here we pay a ****load of taxes but it doesnt cost a thing when we go to the hospital. your hospitals are 10 times better tho.

[stoopidbot]

Remember, A LOT of jobs do credit checks. A credit score will tell them how responsible the person is. A Bankruptcy on your credit is going to look horrible.

[ROLLIN]

depending on your income, hospitals around here (PA) offer 'i-care', or 'haliburton'. it's a type of partial payment. like if youre single without a dependant, you would pay %50 less, if your income is less than $31,000 per year. the higer your income the higher the % you pay. check with the billing department at the hospital, ask if you qualify for some type of assistance. plus since youre paying the bill you can refuse some of the hospital luxuries, like $50 tylenol. you could also try filing for a temp dissability, i think that's with the state. try your local assistance office too. don't go by what the bill says, i bet there is some type of assistance that will help you (hospital, local, or state). just start digging

[ZBlaster]

Damn, things like this really suck to hear... kinda makes me glad I never had a serious wreck in the 2 years I raced without health insurance. I've got blue cross right now and its only around $107 a month and is 100% worth it to me.


Payment plan will be your best bet, but like anything else stay on time with them or it will hurt you. Good luck with the whole situation!

[muddy400EX]

ive got insurance on my quad for this reason. it covers bodily injury up to a certain amount:)

[79400ex]

jake250x, Did you apply for Family Medical Leave Act. THis a feradal law. It keeps your job for 12 weeks if you or a family member is hurt/sick. Some exptmention apply but everyone should apply. As for your medical bills try to see if they will lower your bills. I know hopistal charge people without insurance more than people with insurance.

[F-16Guy]

Start by demanding an itemized bill of all of the expenses. Make sure that all of the charges are legitimate. I had sinus surgury a while back and it was a 2 hour total (including recovery) out-patient procedure, and they billed me over $10K. They threw a bunch of BS stuff on the bill because I'm sure they thought I would just pay whatever they asked for. If you took your car to the mechanic and he handed you a huge bill, you wouldn't just pay it, would you? You'd probably want to see what he charged you for.

[SRH]

medacaid..... they will go retro active and pick up the costs if you didnt have above there resource level for that time period if your unemployed and on your own now you should be able to go that route at least in ny...id look into it

if not id declare bankruptcy, 40k... think about it, you probably have not yet established credit.... clean slate after 7 yrs assuming your only early 20's your should be able to re establish credit at some point when your going to need it, take that 40k youd be paying them and invest it and you wont even need credit...


i for one would not pay it out of pocket.... costs are so inflated like was said get a itemized bill

i broke my back...between everything it was around 200,000 luckily i had insurance but i noticed...immeadiately after my surgery a pt came to see me pushed me in my chair to the gym and showed me a few things, maybe 20 minutes...they wanted me to pay 200 bucks for that...no ...no way in hell

[stoopidbot]

Why would anyone file bankruptcy? Especially in your early 20's. Good luck buying a house, getting a good job... credit is everything. Look at people with school loans. They face near and usually more than you do and they survive.

[scuzz]

You can work with the hospital in paying your bill. You can actually negotiate your charges and get them reduced. (my mom has done this several times with the times my dad has been in the hospital)

Once you have a final negotiated bill, work out a payment plan with them and stick to it.

No bumps on your credit and you're a stand-up guy.

Also, you might want to get a job with some health insurance. (if you can)

[meankfx]

Alot of times u can pay like 5 bucks a month on health bills. As long as your paying something they cant take it to collections.

[Aarons 01 400EX]

Get an itemized bill! Most of the time the insurance will pay whatever, but when it is coming out of your own pocket, you need to look through everything before paying a dime.

Secondly, most hospitals get charitable contributions that you can use to help pay off your bills. Churches, schools, businesses give tons of money to hospitals and you will need to ask if any can be donated towards your bill.

Thirdly, if all else fails, speak with a lawyer if the hospital begins to harrass you. Most lawyers that are worth their weight will deal with them for a small fee to you. You may end up with a deal of giving the hospital some $$ to avoid a bankruptcy. For instance if a bankruptcy cost $1000, you would have your lawyer send them a letter that says that you are going to file for it, but instead you will offer them $1000 to write off the bill.


And lastly, what did you wreck? I'm in need of a decent tire/rim combo.

[rodeo#11]

i was in the same spot you were man, i wrecked last year racing and had a slipped disk in my lower back and had all the muscles in my back pulled and bruised my lower spine....i had right at about 10 grand in hospital bills plus they think that i may of pass out before my wreck do to a panic disorder i have so i had to get a ekg, eeg, mri, and a tilt table test which was another 12 grand, and on top of that i had to have follow up appointments to make sure i was ok....needless to say right around 23,000 when it was all said and done, and some how my mom found a way through the state to get them to pay it all off...maybe it was through social security or something i cant remember..ill ask for sure tonite but thats what we got and they paid every bit of it off. just hang in there man

[Jake250ex]

I wrecked my 450r. Im selling a set of single bead Hipers - black rings, $400 shipped. I atcually broke a fist size chunk out of my inner bead/center sectoin on my right front from the impact of hitting the ground. But its covered under warranty so it will be brand new. The other 3 have about 15 minutes on them. Already sold my razr 2's.

[SRH]

Originally posted by stoopidbot
Why would anyone file bankruptcy? Especially in your early 20's. Good luck buying a house, getting a good job... credit is everything. Look at people with school loans. They face near and usually more than you do and they survive.


this is true if you live your life with debt, its hard to get out of the borrowing ditch once you start, but to each his own

[stoopidbot]

Not if you do it right. I can walk into any car dealer and give them no money, no trade in and leave with a brand new truck. I have 2 debts as of right now. My truck and my quad. My house was bought on credit, my wife's car, and my wife's Rhino. Once the truck and quad are done will go get a toy hauler. And never(other than the house) have I put anything down. I have a credit limit of 30,000 and it is completely empty.

[Bryson#221]

NO. No. NO.

Under NO circumstances should you file for bankruptcy. My cousin did this when she was about your age and it ruined her credit FOR YEARS. Even past the 7 year mark, people still looked down on her and deemed irresponsible. It was over a divorce.

DO NOT do it. I have seen what it can do to you. In 7 years, chances are you will get married, have children, buy or RENT a home, buy a vehicle- all of those require good credit. ESPECIALLY in this day and age. I've got an excellent credit score- and it is still almost impossible for me to get a loan. The economy sucks- don't make your situation worse. Don't even CONSIDER it an option.

DO THE PAYMENT PLAN; they will let you- I have never ever heard of a hospital that didn't (and I worked in hospitals). They cannot expect people to pull $40,000 out of their pockets.

You'll be fine :)