Healthcare Costs

Being a finance nerd, how else would I spend my time off? Analyzing my healthcare costs with pivot table. Here are the breakdown of costs since my cancer diagnosis

As you can see, the cost of medical care in America is ridiculous. These procedures-to-date mostly cover diagnostic scans and exams; Cancer drugs are roughly $13K/mo so the medication number will increase substantially over time. Without insurance, the “sticker price” of the medical costs would be $135K. Even with really great benefits, wide in-network coverage, and $0 deductible, my patient cost (co-pays, co-insurance) still comes out to be over $10K.

I think about how many people would not be able to afford medical care, especially during this time of high unemployment, uninsured/underinsured workers and stay-at-home orders. I’m fortunate that I have the means to be able to seek treatment. It’s sad that Americans have to make the difficult choice between getting critical diagnostic biopsy and life-saving treatments with basic living expenses or avoiding a lifetime of medical debt. There has to be a better way – healthcare reform would help everybody regardless of age, race or income level.