Photo via @letstalkaboutbusiness/TikTok
July 1, 2021, 1:52 pm
As the COVID-19 pandemic winds down in many parts of the U.S. thanks to vaccines (though it may be winding back up with the new Delta variant so buckle up), plenty of folks are still dealing with the fallout, particularly those who had severe cases of the illness. Long COVID has left thousands with lingering symptoms including fatigue and a severe brain fog that may be the result of actual brain damage, and those who recovered all the way in the U.S. who were not lucky enough to have good health insurance have been left with crushing hospital bills.
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One such case is catching attention on TikTok after a user posted a brief video showing their bill for a four-month hospital stay caused by COVID-19 that amounted to nearly three million real dollars that has people wondering how this country even exists in such a state.
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The bill shown by user @letstalkaboutbusiness charges them close to $325,000 for “intensive care/ICU” and another $400,000 for “intermediate ICU,” whatever that is. Close to another $400,000 was charged to them for medical supplies and another $350,000 was for lab work. The biggest single charge, over $550,000, was for the respiratory therapy that has been necessary to save the lives of those with severe cases of COVID-19. Nearly an additional $200,000 was for medications.
Bills like this were feared almost as much as death by people without health insurance in the U.S. According to the Congressional Budget Office, these citizens number around 31 million in 2021, and there are millions more who can only afford basic plans that do not nearly cover the full amount of medical bills. Those numbers have been increasing yearly as Republicans have continued their attacks on the Affordable Care Act, which even at its full power still left millions uninsured.
This problem plagued average and low-income Americans for many years before COVID-19 emerged, with conservatives fighting every step of the way to end the U.S. legacy of being the only rich nation in the world that refuses to provide its people with free or in any way affordable healthcare. During the pandemic, congress failed to pass any meaningful legislation to protect people from massive hospital bills as a result of COVID even though everyone knew this was coming.
Some commenters on the video dismissed the bill by assuming that insurance would pay for all or most of it, but that entirely depends on whether the TikTok user has insurance at all and if so, how much their plan will actually cover. U.S. health insurance companies are notorious for doing anything they can to deny coverage to their customers in their drive to maximize profits as demanded by capitalism, and even if insurance would cover 90 percent of that bill, that leaves the user on the hook for around $285,000.
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Those not trying to pretend this isn’t a massive problem that has been bankrupting people who dared to get sick for decades now condemned the U.S. for being a continuing dystopian nightmare.
“USA is not a country. Its [sic] a Business,” wrote one commenter.
“America truly is a 3rd world country in a Gucci belt,” said another.
The person who posted the video promised a follow-up with a full bill from their insurance when they receive it. For now, they just have to wait to find out just how ruined their life is.
*First Published: July 1, 2021, 1:52 pm
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