save money
seeking
healthcare
Tips on how to
By Mark Melrose, M.D.
AN UNEXPECTED medical
bill can have a significant financial impact even on those who
are insured and practice frugality. And for those who don’t have
a financial plan or health insurance, it can be devastating.
An illness and/or accident
doesn’t have to leave you completely powerless. Believe it or
not, there are ways you can save
on your medical bills.
■ Don’t hesitate to negotiate
your bill with doctors or hospitals,
including charges for labs and
X-rays. Everyone loves cash, and
practice managers will often dis-
count fees or work out payment
training who are supervised by
experienced medical personnel.
plans if you make cash payments,
especially if you ask in advance.
■ If you are self-employed
or a freelancer, a variety of unions
and organizations provide the
benefit of a group for purchasing
health insurance at better rates
than are available to individuals.
■ Under the federal healthcare reform bill, health insurance
companies now allow adult children to remain on their parents’
policy until age 26. This can
result in great savings and is a
safer financial route than risking
no health coverage at all.
■ Healthcare professional
schools (medical, dental, podiatry, etc.) and teaching hospitals
may have general clinics and/or
specialty clinics that provide care
at discounted or sliding-scale
rates. Care is provided by doctors
and dentists with various levels of
Kim Walior
Pharmacy Buyer
HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE is
a major risk factor for heart
disease, stroke and kidney
disease. If you are being
treated for high blood pres-
sure, home monitoring in
addition to regular visits to
your healthcare provider can
help determine the effective-
ness of your treatment.
Many types of blood
pressure devices are avail-
able for home monitoring,
but the American Heart
Association recommends
just one type: an automatic
cuff-style biceps (upper
arm) monitor.
Costco offers a good
solution for your home moni-
toring needs: the OMRON
7series™ plus, an easy-to-
use and easy-to-read upper-
arm blood pressure monitor.
I’ve seen other upper-
arm monitors that have very
stiff, uncomfortable cuffs,
but the OMRON cuff is really
comfortable, and its special
design allows for easy
expansion to fit both aver-
age-size and large arms.
It includes an indicator that
confirms the cuff is wrapped
around your arm correctly.
Costco has a great price
on this item, and the model
we sell has
a feature you’ll
find only at
Costco: a
built-in
memory that
allows two
different users
to keep track
of their blood
pressure readings. The
stored readings get an
automatic date and time
stamp, so you can review
the last 60 readings at the
touch of a button.
The OMRON 7series plus
is available in warehouses
and on Costco.com. C
on this item, and the model we sell has find only at Costco: a built-in different users to keep track of their blood OMRON 7series™ plus
ciently and for 20 to 30 percent
of the price of an emergency
room visit at an urgent-care
medical practice, typically
staffed by emergency physicians.
Would you rather spend
four hours in an ER while you
miss a day of work, or 30 to 40
minutes in an urgent-care facility on your lunch hour?
■ If you need admission
to a hospital due to an injury,
infection, severe abdominal
pain, shortness of breath or
chest pain, don’t put off going to
the ER in the hope that you will
get better. The worse your illness becomes, the more complicated your treatment, and the
longer you will stay in the hospital. And not only will the bill
be bigger, but you will miss
more days of work. It usually
takes as long a time to get better
as it took to get sick in the
first place, so don’t wait. C
Dr. Mark Melrose is board
certified in emergency medicine and has shared medical
advice on ABC’s World News
with Diane Sawyer, The New
York Times and others. He is
the co-founder of Urgent Care
Manhattan ( www.urgentcare
manhattan.com).
The Costco Connection
Costco has teamed with various insurance carriers to offer members
exclusive values on quality health and dental plans. To learn more or
to obtain a quote, visit Costco.com and search “personalhealth” for
individual and family plans or “businesshealth” for employee plans.
Costco pharmacies frequently host health fairs for members.
