Getting sick or injured here in Texas or elsewhere in the country can be expensive. Even with health insurance, some people end up owing thousands of dollars in medical debt. Anyone experiencing this right now should know that others are going through the same thing.
The primary issue with this type of debt is that people do not choose to incur it. They end up owing large sums of money to health care providers due to an injury or illness they did not want. Moreover, most people do not have the ability to prepare financially for such an event.
Of Americans between the ages of 25 and 54, 25 percent have medical bills that go unpaid. For people between the ages of 65 to 74, that percentage drops to 10 percent. What many do not realize is that they could end up paying interest on those bills, which only increases the amount owed and the inability to pay. This can easily happen when patients use credit cards to pay these debts.
What Texas residents may not realize is that it could be possible to negotiate medical debt with at least some providers. Payments plans could also take some of the burden off of patients. It may also help to better understand health care coverage. Insurance companies may not point out benefits in order to keep their costs down. Instead, some research may be in order.
These alternatives will not work for everyone facing significant amounts of medical debt. In those cases, other debt relief options make more sense. For instance, bankruptcy could relieve patients of this debt burden. Moreover, it could also eliminate other debts that keep individuals from being able to support themselves and their families.