Got a call from my Doctor's office today............

[tpsbmam]

36. Wonderful! Actually, where I live, that's the way it actually is for SOME medical care....

Our local docs and even the hospital have joined together and many are part of Project Access, a program through the local medical society foundation. I now have Inclusive Health, the ACA federal insurance available to NC residents with preexisting conditions (I have many) -- thank goodness we had a Dem governor when it came about and she + Dem legislators made sure we got it -- our state is all ReTHUG right now (ugh....gives me hives to even type that) but there's no way they could get rid of it. There's no way they would have brought it in in the first place -- they turned down the Medicaid expansion. Arrrrrrggggggghhhhhhh!

Through Project Access and other medical support programs offered through my county, I had years of free doctor care from a neurologist (MS), nephrologist (chronic renal failure), free annual gyno exams and mammograms, a free biopsy of a mole of concern and more. I've had free MRIs, free CT scans and my lab work was always free all through the local hospital system. And if the mammogram, etc had found cancer, surgery and further treatment would also be free. It's truly amazing -- I've not found that in any other community I've lived in, though I'm sure there are others who do it. But the degree to which it's been done here is awe-inspiring. Not sure how those programs will change with the coming of the full ACA....I guess time will tell. I have a massive deductible and have had to forgo some needed health care (e.g., physical therapy) due to the fact I hadn't met the deductible so it would be cash out of pocket for me.....not affordable. That's the kind of thing that the ACA DOESN'T address. And things like prevention.....my 1%er sister is two years older than I am and has had 4 colonoscopies since she turned 50 -- she'll be 60 on her next birthday. I'm 58 and I've never had one because of the cost. THAT is something that's disastrous in the ACA.

You do, indeed, have a good and caring doc. And, yep, that's the way it should be! They have the right to make a good living being docs, but as the docs here have shown, that doesn't preclude seeing patients in need for free.