Medical Care for the Uninsured

When you're uninsured the worst thing to happen is for an illness to strike. Not only then do you worry about what is causing the illness, but how you can get treatment. This added stress can make trying to get better tough, but there are some things you can do if you are uninsured and need medical attention.

The first place to start if your need medical attention and you are uninsured is your family doctor. If you are upfront and frank about what the problem is, then your doctor may be willing to work with you on a payment plan to stretch out the charges so you don't feel the blow all at once. If your family's doctor is not willing to work with you, it may be time to get out the phone book, or ask others who is a good doctor that would be willing to help you out.

Another place to look for if you need medical care and you are uninsured is free or sliding scale fee clinics. Be prepared to show proof of income and bills, they often get their funding from sources that require proof that the patients could not go anywhere else. Often these clinics are understaffed and overcrowded as well. They do their best to provide care but there are not enough clinics for all the people who need to see a doctor. This causes long waits to be seen, even if you have an appointment. Without an appointment you could be waiting all day to see someone.

If your medical problem is more serious and you need emergency attention, each area has a hospital where if you go you cannot be turned away because you cannot pay. These facilities are required by law to treat you exactly the same as they would anyone else, regardless if the think they will get paid. After you have had your emergency cared for you will receive a bill, but then it is your responsibility to go to the financial office of that hospital and fill out their paperwork for financial assistance. Government grants assist these hospitals so that if you can't pay the government will, but only if you turn in certain paperwork.

As time passes and the cost of medical care continues to rise, it makes it increasingly difficult to be without insurance. My own recent experience with this has left me with a loan of $1200 to be paid off and no certain diagnosis or plan for treatment yet. But if you try to be responsible about the charges, and make the effort to find a way to work things out, you will find many of the doctors will be willing to try and make it work out. Your health should not be compromised because of lack of insurance.