Seniors Avoid Medical Care Because of Inablility to Pay

A new survey conducted by The Senior Citizens League (TSCL) reveals that over half of seniors avoid doctor’s visits due to financial concerns and almost half also put off filling important prescriptions.

The survey was conducted by contacting over 1,200 senior citizens and provided insight to the financial struggles of today’s senior population. In addition to avoiding doctor’s visits and filling prescriptions the survey also revealed sixty-one percent avoid visiting dentists, opticians or hearing specialists. Another forty four percent are choosing to take a lower dosages of the medications they’ve been prescribed.

Most seniors are paying as much as they’re able based on their income. The survey revealed that 44 percent are paying at least $300 a month in out-of-pocket medical expenses and another ten percent are spending at least $750 a month.

According to an 11/30/11 Press Release from the TSCL their chairman, Larry Hyland, believes today seniors are being required to make some very difficult decisions concerning their health.

“”Due to financial concerns, too many seniors are forced to make life or death decisions regarding their health on a daily basis. It shouldn’t be that way and we’re going to continue to pressure Congress to leave their benefits intact” said Hyland.

One solution that could help seniors would be to increase their buying power. This could be achieved by changing the Consumer Prince Index (CPI) used to determine their Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) which determines the amount of the Social Security checks each year.

Another way seniors can save money is to make sure they have the right policy for their situation. If a senior has a Medicare policy there is a good chance they could be enrolled in the wrong health and drug plan for their circumstances. It’s important for seniors to compare their health plans with other plans annually. They must then be prepared to switch, if necessary, during an insurance company’s open enrollment period. The reason is because insurers make major changes to their insurance plans every year. They could increase premiums, co-pay and even drop certain types of coverage.

Source www.seniorsleague.org


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