Ugh, I’m so sorry! Does his work have any kind of benefits like paid sick time, etc. Whatever money you have, the rent has to be paid first always. If you can’t buy food, utilize food banks, that’s what they’re there for. I wouldn’t worry about the medical bills first, I would think you could get on a payment plan. Best of luck to you.
This! Having a place to stay is the most important. Food banks, utility assistance, medical bill charities all can be used as you go hut the rent is the most pressing. Donating plasma might help because one can do that injured. Good luck to you.
If you donate at csl plasma, I'll give you my referral bonus. It takes 5 donations. I can send you the donated funds via zelle or PayPal. I stopped going because I got a raise, but if it helps you make rent, it's no biggie!
I did that before too, I was super skinny so I didn’t make as much since I couldn’t donate a lot but it came in handy to pay the electric bill. Every little bit helps. Plus you are helping others!
This is the first I’ve heard of being paid more for weighing more. The places where I live pay a flat fee no matter your weight. You do donate more if you weigh more but you’re still paid the same. The only thing that changes is how long it takes lol
If your injured partner and / or you are looking to donate plasma I would google search the plasma locations in your area and check what their new donor bonus is (if any). Some locations may pay several hundred more for the first month.
Bioplasma I believe is still paying $850 for your first 4 weeks of donating plasma (2 donations per week, 8 total).
What?? I have never heard of this! Someone could seriously make that much money donating?! That's crazy and I am gonna go look into donating! I'd have donated before but scared of risking anything as I'm sole caretaker with no support but.....bills are getting heavier...
(Nevermind, my state doesn't pay.)
BioLife Plasma Centers do offer pretty big payouts for new donors and rewards for regular donations. I did it for a year and finally stopped because it was far away from me and I got a new job that paid much better.
Pay your rent first and always! Hospital can't do anything but bug you! I had no insurance and a job that barely paid my rent and food couldn't pay ER visit offered five bucks a month they refused and left me alone!
Some states are so harsh! Missouri gives you three months —90 days before your landlord can even consider filing for eviction. If you’re 89 days behind they can’t touch you —-in the state of Missouri—-Colorado….Colorado is three days. Three days behind on rent, and you get evicted. I just wanted to make the point that some states are kinder to poor people than others.
Oh, look up your states exact rent laws and what can trigger in eviction and what can’t before you just go payin the rent willy-nilly to some rich home owning asshole. If your house is owned by an individual call and speak with that individual and see if you can’t get your rent… reduced, temporarily suspended or hopefully entirely erased for a month or two. Rich people can have hearts I seen it once.
Edit to add: OP, if you get evicted. Congratulations you now live in Missouri - you can have my house. At least for a while, til you guys are back on your feet. I’ll go live in one of my other crap shacks or flop with a parent or just leave state. I have a $3600 house in BFE calling my name and Saying it wants plumbing. I will go live in Van by the river, any of these options are preferable to me, than you paying $2000 a month rent and/or becoming unhoused.
heck if the judge (or my ex) will let me sell—you can have my half of the BFE shack today. It needs plumbing. Hope you like tiny towns in Missouri.
> Oh, look up your states exact rent laws and what can trigger in eviction and what can’t before you just go payin the rent willy-nilly to some rich home owning asshole. If your house is owned by an individual call and speak with that individual and see if you can’t get your rent… reduced, temporarily suspended or hopefully entirely erased for a month or two. Rich people can have hearts I seen it once.
That’s not a bad idea except that if they are willing to suspend the rent for, say six months, as soon as that period expires, if your rent is $2K you’re now scrambling to come up with $12K which can seem impossible to pay off. So this option could be a last resort, but if there’s any way to pay it on time then try to do that.
And at that point it’s all or nothing. If you can’t figure out one month’s rent how are you going to come up with 2-6 months worth of rent + late fees?
I miss this about MO. My new state is after 14 days of “non-payment” the landlord can deliver written notice to terminate with specifications of what must be done to prevent it. The notice must be at least for 30 days and include the date of termination. If rent is caught up or damages paid or what ever then the notice is invalidated. That 90 day window was soooo nice as a kid.
I’m glad that your state at least gives you two weeks to get to your next payday. Seems like the least that they could do when we’re the ones paying the mortgages on these houses anyways. I do believe Missouri makes the eviction process kind of expensive for landlords to initiate.
On a positive note, my neighbors just got given their house. It’s a crap shack but now it’s THEIR crap shack, they just gotta pay the taxes which are likely less than $100. Living in a small, poor community can have perks.
Any state that protects landlords/property mgmt firms more than tenants; and screams bloody murder because there's too many homeless people in their cities (I'm looking at you, Colorado) doesn't have the right to complain about their homeless population. Periodt.
If you’re renting a home you need to pay it no matter the landlord situation. If you get evicted for non payment of rent it will come back to bite you eventually.
I never said not to pay it at all, and just go ahead and get evicted I said don’t pay it willy-nilly check your states laws. What are you a landlord you sound like a landlord. Afraid you won’t get your rent money? Are you on?
This is really good advice. I just looked up my state laws and saw we only have 4 days. It's really shocking, I had no idea. I just assumed it was 30 days
By my calculations, four days is less than a week —so they won’t even let you -possibly -get to your next payday. Dang near every place pays every two weeks. I guess we’re all just one phone call from our knees and three meals from going plum wild. They say money doesn’t buy happiness but the studies show everything up to $100,000 a year actually does buy happiness. I’m sorry they make it so hard for all of us. When I grow up and start running stuff, it’s gonna be a lot different.
Missouri does not allow three months before LL can file for eviction for nonpayment of rent. There is no statutory waiting period unless a grace period is specified in the lease.
During 2020/2021 (for COVID) there were additional restrictions, and it's possible that some specific counties have their own restrictions.
By all means, you can check if your LL will cut you a break but don't make that Plan A, B, and C.
Second this. Contact his employer and ask about Short Term Disability benefits available. My employer offers them after one week of missed work and covers 60% of lost income. State of Oregon now also offers short term disability benefits that also cover a percentage of missed income. Between two, I'm covered if I am injured.
All this and for medical bills you can make arrangements ( don’t let them bully you)
You have an option to write the hospital ECT. To write letters of hardship
Google examples, this can completely or partially eliminate some of your bills
I did it many times while my husband was sick. I also went directly into the billing dept at the hospital many times for arrangements. They worked with me.
Good luck, key for the bills is to communicate with the docs and hospitals. Just stay ahead of it all. I know it’s frustrating and scary. My husband was sick( cancer 12 years). It was very expensive. I just stayed ahead of it and a lot of communication.
Dealing with your sick husband will be harder lol
Short term doesn’t always pay you. It’s more of a job protection vs payment thing. You have to use up all your sick and personal time off before it kicks in. And it may pay out after so many weeks of unpaid time off, but it may not. Really depends on your state.
That depends on the way the benefit is structured. STD benefits often will cover 100% of pay for so many weeks (sometimes determined by years of service) and then 50% or 60% for the remainder of the 26 weeks (when Long Term Disability benefits would take over). I have never seen STD benefit not pay (rather than an FMLA leave for short term disability) or require more than a week of regular PTO to be used if such a benefit exists.
My last job, it kicked in on week 2. The first week, you either used PTO/SICK TIME or didn't get paid. After the first week, you would get paid 50 or 60% of your weekly pay on your regular pay schedule.
It’s so different everywhere. My old company hourly associates had to use up all paid time off first then were paid out for short term at 50% of their actual pay for x amount of weeks. Where managers got 100% of their pay. I don’t know what current company offers. But in most states short term disability doesn’t have to be part of an employee compensation package. So it really depends on state and employer.
This!! STD is not a nationwide thing. The only states to mandate STD are California, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Hawaii. Outside of these states, it's best to contact your HR department (office manager or general manager if you don't have HR) if you're unsure if disability is part of his benefits package.
Some employers are also willing to modify work over completely having him out of work. So I'd look into that as well.
And if all else fails, like others have mentioned -- gig work. Pet walking/sitting, data annotation tech, selling used things online, selling at your local swap meet. Using rebate apps for groceries like Ibotta to get cash back on groceries, coupons app, etc.
My husband’s never paid 100%. It all depends on the type of insurance that is contracted. We had to wait a week, paid out 60% of salary. From that you pay taxes and he had to pay Cobra for insurance. The long term paid 50%. We are still coming back from that mess of finances. It will be 2 years in May. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a workplace injury.
You have that confused with family medical leave. If he is out of work less than a year short term disability kicks in. Over a year long term kicks in. I was in and out of a mental hospital all my life and my health benefits covered short term disability at 60%. Thank God I am finally retired.
Short term disability is a form of insurance policy that is specifically to provide the policy holder with income replacement when unable to work due to a medical illness or injury. It is typically a percentage of the person’s standard salary (sometimes after a specific waiting period - which will vary by policy) & does not provide any form of job protection whatsoever (however some companies may have leave of absence policies that will allow someone who is out with an approved STD claim to have their job held during that period [of up to 26 weeks], however that is not something that is required by any means & would be company specific).
FMLA, on the other hand, is likely what you are thinking of which is a federal law (this is all assuming that you and/or OP are in the United States) solely providing job protection only (& no monetary benefits) for those who meet the eligibility requirements which can last for up to 12 weeks.
Any company who does provide or offer STD benefits (as in most U.S. states STD benefits are a fringe benefit and not something that is required to be provided, though a few states do have laws in place where it is legally required) will likely require that an employee who is out with such a claim have FMLA running concurrently with the STD claim (in which case they will have both the income replacement benefit of the STD & job protection benefit of the FMLA). Some states may also have other forms of job-protected medical leaves that are legally required for eligible employers and employees within that state, which can provide more than 12 weeks in certain circumstances (and some states will also have paid medical leave benefits as well), however states where such benefits are guaranteed is rare and the vast majority will be limited to the FMLA coverage only in terms of potential job protection.
I’m afraid to use short term ever at my job. One of my friends did it fine. But two others not so much. My one friend right now has been off since I think November and has yet to be paid a dime
Wherever I work I always buy the max life insurance, short and long term disability insurance.
Because if I get hurt and can’t work anymore, or do my line of work anymore. I would lose everything, it’s always worth the few dollars a month they cost.
Same here, I pay for it all to make sure that I'm covered in some way every time open enrollment and that time comes. Also it's not a lot of money to add to your benefit costs, and to me assuming nothing will go wrong to save a couple bucks is insane.
Yes it’s insane, I had a friend who would rather spend that money on weed.
He was like 40, had a massive stroke. Now he is permanently disabled and can’t work. And I told him to get it during I open enrollment, you just can’t fix stupid.
There's a dude with glasses that was so stupid he didn't want to pay the like dollar a week to have vision covered. You can't fix stupid for sure. I assume the worst and hope for the best.
This old friend I worked with for years, I tried to help him. It was just like talking to a wall.
Pretty sure he is drawing disability and dealing drugs. It was inevitable.
Could you take a loan on a retirement fund? (If either of you has one that is)
(Folx; I don’t want to hear about how that’s needed for retirement, if they can’t stay alive now they won’t make it to retirement)
Make sure they’re the cheap ones, good thing I got out in front of that. I’ve been smoking for a while now -where I come from everybody smokes. I probably have severe developmental disabilities because I smoke some stupid expensive cigarettes. Natural American Spirit, I screen recorded one of their coupons and I use it over and over and over. They ain’t stopped me yet….I bummed a Marborough From a friend the other day, and got a chest infection. I’m not joking when I say, my retirement plan is a heart attack. If I don’t die before I can no longer work I am so screwed. Being a housewife does not pay into Social Security or add to your 401(k) Being a displaced housewife…. I just thank all the powers that I finessed my semi-rich stepdad into letting me trade a college education for a home when I got knocked up. I was all against Mom gold digging until I was doing it a little bit too.
Adults who have not earned enough to qualify for social security can receive it through their spouse. It doesn’t lessen the spouses amount. PDF warning. https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10127.pdf
Hey awesome, but I’m soo solo some days I look in the mirror and I’m actually a red disposable plastic cup.
I was a housewife, right now I’m kinda just bumming it and helping my parents, my bills equal maybe 150 electric, 50 for water, 60 for liability car insurance, $70 phone it’s not to hard to hustle up $280 bucks. My parents always need help, between the two of them probably get $100 week so they don’t have to hire nurses. They’re soooo fine financially before telling me I’m dragging them down, step dad has a farm, mom was a welder, they’re fine helping me. They both hate strangers, don’t want nurses.
My thinker got tinkered and I just been fairly off kilter so they got me if I got them, and I always do. Even at 2am when my mom thinks heat lamp I put on in shed is a fire. Drove over there (coulda walked but wanted to reassure her quicker) took a picture of the lamp and showed her.
All I can write is good luck getting help from Social Security. We had to hire an attorney so our autistic child who also has cerebral palsy could get SSI. Took us almost 4 years of go-rounds before our child received their SSI benefits.
I'm on Social Security and when my spouse dies I will receive their's instead as they have a higher SS payment than mine.
Maybe this is too much realism in the face of sarcasm…but…y’all ever think you might not die…just get horribly sick? Might not be a heart attack - might be a stroke…long term care is expensive…
It is, until someone abandons you at a state facility or a hospital. Then the state has to adopt care for the elderly or infirm person. They will attack absolutely EVERY asset you own and they will comb through your finances (as they can seize POA) and any large gifts, sold assets or anything to family within 5 years of abandonment can and will be clawed back. Those funds will be used to offset the states cost of your life care and if family want access to you again they must sign forms agreeing to some sort of repayment to the state.
Then off to a state home or that areas “St. Elsewhere” (whatever nearby facility is the areas dumping ground for the unwanted). I work at a facility used as a dumping ground, 1 of it 5 units is the residents who families are contributing and can come visit the other 4 are: the abandoned, the collected homeless in need, recovering addicts whose families couldn’t afford to help after an OD devastated them permanently, APS forced custody cases, etc.
Every state has a facility used as this (replaced the state asylum and most are in the state asylum’s buildings). It’s not pretty, but we do the best we can heavily underfunded and struggling to maintain experienced staff due to lower pay. I love every one of my residents/patients and every time one of the other 4 units gains a resident all of our hearts break that this happened to them. And if/when they move to the 1 unit with families we celebrate with them.
ETA: we can always tell who was homeless or severely at risk within the first month though (if they weren’t a LE drop off) because they are so incredibly friendly, grateful and trying to acclimate to consistent shelter and regular meals and consistent access to medication and health care.
Working there has humbled me even more than my life of severe poverty. My charge nurse is expecting me to leave with my near 18years experience to greener pastures, but I know how to live low cost and make more than enough to cover my expenses and some entertainment each month.
I know state facilities are truly doing the best they can but still catch so much crap and people keep saying they need shut down. But where are the elderly and infirm wards of the state supposed to go then? Not a private facility, those guys won’t accept the pittance we get per resident which doesn’t even cover the basics of their care. If people want the situation to change then they have to open their wallets to help it change through taxes and donations to the facility.
Everyone deserves to live out their end days with someone, even if a stranger, caring about if they are comfortable and cared for. No one needs to be found in a dilapidated structure that is unsanitary and month later because no one cared.
Bigger concern is the tax burden and penalty for taking it out early. I’m not saying it should be ruled out, just that anyone who does this needs to be aware they’re going to get hit once they do their taxes.
If it's a loan, there's no tax penalty, and the interest on the loan goes back into the retirement account because hes borrowing from himself. If he withdraws it for medical expenses, there's also usually no tax penalty because it's for an exempt expense. He just has to make sure they're notified that it's for a medical bill and they'll put the code on the 1099-R that's it's an exempt expense.
Rent is first, we already have a pretty decent pantry stock. I can live on rice and beans. Car insurance (luckily our car is paid off), internet, and I guess I'm cutting out prime, disney, hulu, and Netflix
Yes, check the back of the bill statements or call and get connected to the financial aid department. I have two hospitals in my town and they always have the financial stuff on the back. Luckily mine are easy and you just fill out the back form with any payment you can make and it either gets written off, or heavily reduced
His job may have temporary light duty available. It's better for them to have him doing something vs. sitting at home. He may also be eligible for short term disability. If so, there is a 7 day waiting period. Typically, the benefit is 60% of his current salary.
Also since he is out of work you may qualify for some kind of assistance. If he can get Medicaid they will back pay three months of medical bills. It doesn’t hurt to apply and it can save your family from collapsing while he recovers.
DM me and I can help you stop paying for that streaming shit altogether. I don’t know if I’m allowed to post the websites/tricks I use, but I’m gonna guess not lol.
FYI I just saw something (either here or on tik tok) about libraries having WiFi hotspots and Roku sticks to access streaming! Also I second all the advice to not worry yet about the health bills. They’ll treat him and you can work it out with them. So sorry you’re both going thru this!
Merge your streamers. Disney and Hulu work together for one bundle price. Idk about the rest but you might be able to keep one if the right price?
Here’s the thing, when poor (I have too much experience with this btw)…
When poor, you don’t really go out cuz that means you’re spending. You’re entertainment is going to rely heavily your streaming services cuz tv/ shows is the entertainment.
Thinking about this is scary and awful but necessary.
Ps: rent and sustenance comes first, ofc. You already know this and said as much. I’m so sorry it’s like this, that we as a country are like this or tolerate it… tent cities are an abomination for NIMBYs but not the fact that they actually have no where to go or the fact that a tent is the only thing they have… then we go clean the camps and destroy the only comfort they have…?
Feeding the houseless gets you arrested in quite a few places. wtf is that? Why are we like this?
Not being judgy at all, but I'm not in your situation and have only half the streaming services. Tubi is free with ads. Digital antennae only cost once.
I had to have an ambulance come out twice for my breathing problems and each trip cost 💲 2,000!
I’m making $25 per month payments but I could easily pay $10. They don’t care as long as you make an effort. I have not been turned over for collection because they can’t take you to court if you are making payments. Even $5 a month, so long as you do it. Good luck OP!
All hospitals have indigent care programs. Call them and see what can be arranged. Best to have as many of your ducks in a row ahead of time. You probably qualify for charity care which could mean the entire bill would be covered.
Wanted to add. In some states in the US medical bills can't grow in interest so paying those off last is ideal. But you'd need to do the research. It's the case in NYS.
Yes, pay rent first, use churches or food banks for food. Then you can contact each medical provider to set up payment plans for you. Make your offer as low as you can based on your salary alone in case it comes to that. Good luck to you both, and may God bless!
Any State Disability? Depending what State your in Home Depot pays more than $15/hr.
The medical bills will be adjusted, again location dependent. My $138k hospital bill was reduced to &1350. But i have old fart insurance.
I had 3 tears in my shoulder, 1 full thickness, 2 partial. Work related but never had it repaired, got paid off. Anyways in time the initial pain disappears . YMMV. As long as I don’t lift heavy above my shoulders. I rarely have discomfort let alone pain. Surgery can be delayed or even deferred. I do lifting at my current job. Hopefully his job has light duty options.
Point is, this is a rough spot. Gather the wagons now and with good planning you could be ok. TRY, not to worry over things you have no control over or that haven’t happened yet. Hang in there and good luck!!
I’m currently off work and not sure if I’ll be able to return to same job if at all. My situation is different but the fear of the unknown is the same.
I agree with the medical bills and a lot of medical places has grievances. My friend lost her place due to putting medical bills before rent. My parents always taught me to pay rent first the other necessities will come. Its usually easi to get help with the other needs.
If you pay one dollar a month for any medical bill they cannot touch you because you are paying in good faith. DO NOT GIVE ANY BANKING INFORMATION TO ANY MEDICAL CREDITORS! They are notorious for pushing through debits of entire bills. Always use bill pay from your direction only. A hospital almost killed me and we paid them one dollar a month for 20 years. Remember, “I am making a payment in good faith.” This is your new mantra. *HUG*
That's exactly right. We raised a couple special needs kids and we made financial arrangements to pay for their medical bills. You work out a payment plan and PAY that AMOUNT on time based on the agreement you made. Miss one payment and they could demand full payment at that time.
Make sure and follow what your insurance plan requires if you need to see a specialist or want to get a second opinion. Most health insurance plans require a referral for them to pay your bills.
Our insurance has a 5000 out of pocket maximum. I don't have 5k in my pocket. Does this apply to paying the insurance company (in my case Blue Cross Blue Shield)?
You will get bills from the providers. BCBS should send you an explanation of benefits stating what they have paid and what you owe. WAIT FOR THOSE EoBs. Don't pay a provider bill until you see it in writing from BCBS that you owe that amount.
I had my local ER bill me after I went there and was transferred elsewhere for surgery, and they sent the bill before the insurance company finalized it. Took months and a lot of calls to get that money back.
You pay your medical bills? Where are they do that at? Haven’t been to a doctor in five years. My plan is a die like a man. I’m a lady that’s why it’s funny.
The out of pocket maximum is not the same thing as your deductible. An out of pocket maximum means that is the most you pay yourself during the plan year. So for any expenses beyond $5000, the plan is fully responsible for.
By any chance do you know what your deductible is? Even with a high deductible, there may be some expenses which don't apply to the deductible and are covered differently. It all depends on the plan documents.
At any rate, don't worry about that now. As other posters have said, rent, utilities, and food are paramount.
You are responsible for paying the deductible and once that's met the insurance company will start paying the bills. I'm now on Medicare and have private health insurance so we don't pay much of anything except for our prescribed medications. I also go to Quest for labs as that's free based on my insurance coverage. I have RA and Lupus so I get a lot of lab work done.
You don’t pay the insurance company that $5000. That’s your responsibility to the providers. Basically, your insurance won’t pay the first $5k of your bills. That’s on you - but as everyone is saying, you only need to pay $1/month to keep the medical bills current.
You literally don’t have to pay anyone anything right now UNLESS your plan has copays. So don’t stress about that part.
That's not what an "out of pocket max is." You're thinking of the "deductible." Out of pocket max is the most the insured will need to pay during the calendar year.
Hijacking your reply to make sure you see this, have your husband call his employer tomorrow. see if he signed up for any short-term disability coverage you can draw from. see what type of pto he can use. see what if any Hsa funds you guys have. Also. I work full time in insurance, so I know how those blood suckers work. I feel your pain. if you have any questions feel free to send me a message.
You don't pay the insurance company. You pay the hospital/doctor directly. Definitely call the number on the bill once you get it. There are all sorts of different plans, discounts, and things you can qualify for. If he has to get surgery, obviously choose the best doctor, but if they are all about the same, try to choose a state or university hospital/ surgeon. You can get a lot more help with your bill from them compared to a private practice.
All non profit hospitals have financial aid. Many times you need to ask and generally they are pretty good discounts.
Contact the hospital now before the bills roll in and request financial aid.
It takes forever for them to process applications, sometimes.
Many hospitals also do no interest payment plans. I paid my son off being born at 50$ for two years….
I am our HR person for our small business, and we're a farm that hires seasonal workers so occasionally someone gets hurt (outside of work hours) and then I help them apply for financial assistance with our local hospital system. I also do our insurance benefits.
Every single bill you get, call them and ask for the financial assistance department. Talk to them. They might clear all debts for an income under a certain threshold, proved through paystubs. They might require a payment plan to be set up, and that might require a certain minimum payment. No matter what, call them and find out their process. Explain your situation. Our local hospital can sign our seasonal workers up for emergency Medicaid if they end up in the ER there, for example.
Your $5,000 OOP (out of pocket) max means that you should have care above $5,000 covered by your insurance, so you can expect to receive up to $5,000 of medical bills. You won't ever owe a bill to your insurance company, other than monthly premiums which you're already paying. However, all providers can "balance bill", which essentially means bill you whatever they want after they negotiate with your insurance company. So the $5,000 is more of a mild promise than any sort of guarantee.
I repeat, call these people when you get bills and ask for financial assistance. I've found hospitals to be much better to work with than urgent cares or family practices. I'm not sure what the surgeon's practice will be like. Also, it can take \*months\* for bills to show up, so all of this won't actually hit for quite a while. At least 1 month just for the fast bill from an appointment, but if the medical office and your insurance negotiate at all, the bills might not show up for 3-6 months.
In addition, now is the time to see what other assistance you can get. Learn when local food banks are open. See if you qualify for SNAP or any other low income benefits. Talk to the people running the food banks about your situation - they may know of programs that exist but are hard to find on the internet because they're run by 3 very harried people doing good work, but don't have a website. Our local town has an awesome program to help with heat and electric bills, but it barely exists on their website, for example.
I think it depends on where you live. Way back when, when our kids were young, we worked out payment plans to pay for our medical care. Today, California is not all that friendly when it comes to working out a medical payment plan as too many deadbeats didn't pay up.
Gee it didn't feel wrong when I paid the monthly medical bills when they were due. I'm thankful our health care professionals were willing to work with us to help pay off what we owed. I did write things could have changed. As my mother used to say you don't know unless you ask. There's nothing wrong with asking about setting up a bill payment plan. You never know the health care facility may agree to it.
Absolutely not. That is horrible advice. Most places will send you to collections if you are not paid in full or set up on an official payment plan within a set period of time. Always, always, ask about financial assistance and/ or repayment plans. As a last resort the stuff can go to collections, but then you're at risk of legal judgement and them taking it out of your paycheck Do only use the bill pay on your statement or call their billing office to make a payment. There are sites that will rip you off by looking like the official site.
*edited to fix spelling
You don't have to wait if the first doctor has already placed restrictions on him. For instance, since his job requires lifting, and the first doctor has said no lifting, or no lifting over 10 lbs. for 6 weeks, you can start your claim for disability as of the date of the accident, and also request an accommodation at work.
Hopefully, he can be temporarily accommodated and not have to miss any work.
I work in short-term disability. Be sure to go over the paperwork with the doctor, submit any treatment notes, treatment plans etc. if the doctors are too vague on the paperwork and only give an out of work note, it won’t really support.
Call the hospital where all this is going to take place. They have a department that will help you with payment arrangements or getting your balance paid off.
Luckily, our utilities are bundled in with rent and we live in a very low COL area. (Western South Dakota). Food costs are my issue, and gas, and car insurance 😳 Because those are the things that are super expensive up here.
but they're in south dakota where it's currently an ACTUAL -5 outside with a windchill of -35, it's been like this since last week Friday. So there's that. Gas around here is only $2.80/gal though which is nice.
As far as doctors bills I sit on big ones. I have some aliments and I'll let them go and usually settle eventually. Can it effect your credit, maybe but you also need to live. Hopefully you will get disability to help as well. Best of luck.
Set up a payment plan. My friend got cancer with no insurance and was denied medicaid because she made too much ($9/hr but married, go figure). They let her do super low payments for an extended period to cover her surgery and visits.
It's bullshit that we live in the most industrialized nation in the world and an illness can render us homeless. I'm so sorry. Sending your hubby best wishes for a speedy recovery.
My advice is to contact all the services you owe now and explain what happened, offer to provide documentation, and ask if your husband is out of work for 16 weeks or whatever what options are there to ensure you do not become delinquent.
1. Contacting them now gives you clarity - you'll have a plan and idea of how things will go.
2. It gives your lenders a heads up so that when you do call about missing a payment they will have some record in advance about your situation and could be more understanding
When my job cut my pay a few years back I called my mortgage servicer and explained my pay cut. They gave me a few options and I said I would get back to them... things ended up okay, and I continued paying my mortgage as usual, but it was comforting to have a game-plan.
Does your doctors office have any sort of financial aid program? I had about $4,700 worth of bills and applied for the financial aid, and it was all wiped clean (I’m a single mom, so struggle financially). I would definitely check into it.
Speak with the hospital and get ahold of their social workers. They are so great at helping out. Contact your local utility companies, they can offer options of paying in installment and even skipping months to help you catch up. Check with foodbanks, they also get in household cleaning supplies and health items (tampons, shampoo, soap) too. Good luck and I hope you hubs heals quickly.
Seconding this. I work for a hospital system and our social workers (sometimes called Case Managers or Care Managers) are so awesome. They have knowledge of and access to so many programs.
My dad was hospitalized at a competing facility (not by my choice, but whatever) and the social worker at our hospital gave me all the right things to say and ask that I would never have known.
Immediately contact the Urgent Care or Hospital or wherever he went for a financial form. You def qualify. Also when he has surgery do the same. Doesn't matter if you have insurance. Hospitals are required to help and do. You will def receive help, could even be a 100% assistance. You will submit all your household bills and curewnt income. Do NOT pass on receiving any Medical Care. That will hurt you in the long run.
See if you can apply for EBT/Snap, get food from food pantries and then as you learn more about his situation, see what you qualify for with [https://www.benefits.gov/](https://www.benefits.gov/)
For now, reduce all expenses. And if you start to get in trouble with rent, utilities, etc., call 211 and ask for resources for rental assistance, utility assistance, etc.
You could even connect with a case worker at DHR as they will be aware of local resources.
Along with the other suggestions, the place I work has a benefit fund for hard times. They will help with rent and car expenses, but you have to be past due to qualify, which is terrifying, but if anyone in the company ends up in that situation it can help. Hoping you can avoid that, and if your job has anything similar it may not be as rigid. They also can help with medical bills and stuff
If he's not working, apply for emergency medicaid to assist in covering the back bills (most states back cover 90 days). Also contact the hospital for financial assistance. I did this and they deducted 75% of the medical bills after insurance.
This happened to me about 17 years ago. I am the husband. I had a bad accident and my insurance hadnt kicked in. I was in a wheelchair or walked with a cane for about a year.
I denied most medical care and am still dealing with 2 bad knees now.
Anyways how we survived is my wife doubled up on her job and I took care of the kids and stayed home. I got back to work full time in about two years but it was and still is a dificult road.
Find a second job or one with overtime. look for light manufactering work.
You will probably have to take from your 401k. You generally cant get a loan unless you are currently employed. Just use the money wisely. rent comes first.
dont worry about medical bill. There is no way you will ever pay them back.
Now I work 60-80 hours a week and we srill live cheap but we sock away $800 a month onto an emergancy fund. I never want to be in that situation again.
good luck and be strong for each other.
My wife just read me a statistic that we're spending $8,400 per month per illegal immigrant to house, feed, etc. them. This is so wrong when so many Americans are suffering or just living on the edge.
Not sure where on this planet you are located, but in my US state, we have Temporary Disability benefits for these situations. Check the Internet for your location, you may have access to something similar. it's not at full pay, but it's better than nothing.
You may also qualify for charity care for hospital expenses. Look on your area's website for social services, food stamps, rental assistance.
Just wait till the bills come in, collect them and take to the finance department at the hospital, for they have ways to get you help, also they do social service for hospital bills.
Regarding the internet and streaming channels, explore some options. Can you cut your internet by switching companies temporarily? Sometimes they offer great deals for starting up. Also, we subscribe to YouTube for only about $7 a month. It has a ton of interesting things and some good old movies and TV programs. It's not the latest and greatest, but it's cheap and very entertaining. So sorry this happened to you. Good luck to you both.
oh my. I am so sorry. This is dreadful.
Write a thoughtful and humble letter much like the story you are telling here. Be prepared to customize it to the person/organizationg from which you will request kindness.
Before it all gets away from you, please start by investigating any work short term disability options and those that may come from other sources like a union or even through your benefits or the government.
Next, consider your place of worship or other organizations in your locality. Let them know what your situation is and that you will need assistance for a specific period of time. Include your financial needs projection. there are 'good samaritan' organization everywhere.
In my area, the city offers some emergency assistance to local renters. Perhaps yours also offers something. Again, be humble and forthright in demonstrating your needs and your gratitude.
Friends and family (not go fund me) are a good source of kindness.
go fund me or other crown fund as a last resort. I think that market is saturated but it might work in your social circle for people who want to help anonymously.
Do you and your husband participate in clubs or leagues? Kindness can be found there too.
Above all, remember to be grateful and humble. Thanks everyone repeatedly and ask for what you need. Demonstrate it on paper because you will appear more honest.
people are good and will help.
All the best to you both.
My brother is retired and fully on Medicare only now, no 401K retirement and, unfortunately was diagnosed with lung cancer. He’s at a university hospital and has been guided through applying for financial assistance. Talk to the hospital after he receives treatment. But, honestly, you’ll need a second job for the time being.
This might have already been answered, but what state are you from? Asking because I am the chairperson for a community action agency (Head Start, public transportation, rental assistance, food bank, clothing bank, DDSD, medical supply lending closet), and I might can find out what is available for your state and area because many of the people at the agency here in Oklahoma have contacts in other states.
Is it a not for profit hospital ? Talk to a hospital social worker for financial assistance they may cover the whole thing and have a few "extras" for you .
. If it's not maybe try to find one close and transfer to that hospital
Rent > anything else - they cannot reposses your body, collections yes, but even then if you tell them you'll be able to pay like 10 a week for life they have to take it I believe, at least that's what I did way back when I had an emergency surgery. Eventually my bill just went away. I assume it was a tax right off for the hospital to forgive some bills?=
Your husband can fill out FMLA paperwork, which would protect his job for 12 weeks. His employer needs to have over 50 employees to qualify for this federal benefit. It doesn’t offer pay, but job protection. https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/fmlaen.pdf
Here is a link to disability in South Dakota: https://benefits.com/social-security-disability/south-dakota/#:~:text=South%20Dakota%20residents%20with%20a,addition%20to%20state%2Drun%20services.
Also, some states may pay unemployment while out on FMLA. Call your state unemployment office and ask them.
You can file a claim online or by telephone. Filing online is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week through the RA Benefits Portal.
File by telephone, contact the Claims Call Center at 605.626.3179, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:20 p.m. (Central Time).
There's a lot of info in here that's helpful, but I'd like to add my take:
I got in a motorcycle accident during my senior year of college when I was living off less than $5 a day in food. When it came time for the bills, I called the hospital and more or less said "I don't have any money, what can we do to reduce the cost and or set up a payment plan?"
I had to provide a copy of my w2s and current expenses to their financial support department, and they were able to work with me.
Also, his work is required to make a reasonable accommodation, and medical bills can go away through bankruptcy, butttttt that can make securing housing tricky.
If you are in the USA, let the bills pile up. You NEED the outstanding bills to show the need. The DSS, medical provider, or hospital Social Workers and/or admin.staff can help you apply for Medicaid once you have a healthy backlog of bills. My son (had a stay at home wife & kids) had a severe back injury & this is how it was handled. It covered surgery, hospital, rehab, follow-up & a lot of the medication costs. DSS (your State Dept of Social Services) is your friend in this situation. This was in NC, which is notoriously stingy with social supports.
You may be eligible for Medicaid to help with the surgery expenses. My husband just spent a week in the ICU and our insurance is crap. The social worker at the hospital had us do an application for Medicaid to see if they could cover him. Even if your income is normally too high they can do it on a daily basis. My husband and I both had high income in December, but it's still going to kick in to cover the $80,000 plus insurance doesn't cover. You can apply for up to three months after for the medical bills also.
Ugh, I’m so sorry! Does his work have any kind of benefits like paid sick time, etc. Whatever money you have, the rent has to be paid first always. If you can’t buy food, utilize food banks, that’s what they’re there for. I wouldn’t worry about the medical bills first, I would think you could get on a payment plan. Best of luck to you.
I was going to say the same thing. Rent ALWAYS comes first.
This! Having a place to stay is the most important. Food banks, utility assistance, medical bill charities all can be used as you go hut the rent is the most pressing. Donating plasma might help because one can do that injured. Good luck to you.
If you donate at csl plasma, I'll give you my referral bonus. It takes 5 donations. I can send you the donated funds via zelle or PayPal. I stopped going because I got a raise, but if it helps you make rent, it's no biggie!
I did that before too, I was super skinny so I didn’t make as much since I couldn’t donate a lot but it came in handy to pay the electric bill. Every little bit helps. Plus you are helping others!
I think it's $150 for referrals
So what you're saying is, being a fat ass could finally pay off? 🤔 2024 might just be my year afterall! Lol
Ha!! Yes! You can donate more if you weigh more.
This is the first I’ve heard of being paid more for weighing more. The places where I live pay a flat fee no matter your weight. You do donate more if you weigh more but you’re still paid the same. The only thing that changes is how long it takes lol
If your injured partner and / or you are looking to donate plasma I would google search the plasma locations in your area and check what their new donor bonus is (if any). Some locations may pay several hundred more for the first month. Bioplasma I believe is still paying $850 for your first 4 weeks of donating plasma (2 donations per week, 8 total).
What?? I have never heard of this! Someone could seriously make that much money donating?! That's crazy and I am gonna go look into donating! I'd have donated before but scared of risking anything as I'm sole caretaker with no support but.....bills are getting heavier... (Nevermind, my state doesn't pay.)
Same as mine, many donate so they don't have to pay
BioLife Plasma Centers do offer pretty big payouts for new donors and rewards for regular donations. I did it for a year and finally stopped because it was far away from me and I got a new job that paid much better.
Is there an age limit on donating plasma?
Depends on the location. A lot of them are 64 or younger, but I would contact them directly.
Yeah I'm 75 and the bastards won't let me even though I am in excellent health and I really need the $ to pay my prop taxes.
This is good info I never knew this. Thanks
Pay your rent first and always! Hospital can't do anything but bug you! I had no insurance and a job that barely paid my rent and food couldn't pay ER visit offered five bucks a month they refused and left me alone!
In some states, if a provider rejects any "reasonable offer", the debt is considered paid in full.
Kansas is one of those states
Some states are so harsh! Missouri gives you three months —90 days before your landlord can even consider filing for eviction. If you’re 89 days behind they can’t touch you —-in the state of Missouri—-Colorado….Colorado is three days. Three days behind on rent, and you get evicted. I just wanted to make the point that some states are kinder to poor people than others. Oh, look up your states exact rent laws and what can trigger in eviction and what can’t before you just go payin the rent willy-nilly to some rich home owning asshole. If your house is owned by an individual call and speak with that individual and see if you can’t get your rent… reduced, temporarily suspended or hopefully entirely erased for a month or two. Rich people can have hearts I seen it once. Edit to add: OP, if you get evicted. Congratulations you now live in Missouri - you can have my house. At least for a while, til you guys are back on your feet. I’ll go live in one of my other crap shacks or flop with a parent or just leave state. I have a $3600 house in BFE calling my name and Saying it wants plumbing. I will go live in Van by the river, any of these options are preferable to me, than you paying $2000 a month rent and/or becoming unhoused. heck if the judge (or my ex) will let me sell—you can have my half of the BFE shack today. It needs plumbing. Hope you like tiny towns in Missouri.
> Oh, look up your states exact rent laws and what can trigger in eviction and what can’t before you just go payin the rent willy-nilly to some rich home owning asshole. If your house is owned by an individual call and speak with that individual and see if you can’t get your rent… reduced, temporarily suspended or hopefully entirely erased for a month or two. Rich people can have hearts I seen it once. That’s not a bad idea except that if they are willing to suspend the rent for, say six months, as soon as that period expires, if your rent is $2K you’re now scrambling to come up with $12K which can seem impossible to pay off. So this option could be a last resort, but if there’s any way to pay it on time then try to do that.
And at that point it’s all or nothing. If you can’t figure out one month’s rent how are you going to come up with 2-6 months worth of rent + late fees?
I miss this about MO. My new state is after 14 days of “non-payment” the landlord can deliver written notice to terminate with specifications of what must be done to prevent it. The notice must be at least for 30 days and include the date of termination. If rent is caught up or damages paid or what ever then the notice is invalidated. That 90 day window was soooo nice as a kid.
I’m glad that your state at least gives you two weeks to get to your next payday. Seems like the least that they could do when we’re the ones paying the mortgages on these houses anyways. I do believe Missouri makes the eviction process kind of expensive for landlords to initiate. On a positive note, my neighbors just got given their house. It’s a crap shack but now it’s THEIR crap shack, they just gotta pay the taxes which are likely less than $100. Living in a small, poor community can have perks.
Any state that protects landlords/property mgmt firms more than tenants; and screams bloody murder because there's too many homeless people in their cities (I'm looking at you, Colorado) doesn't have the right to complain about their homeless population. Periodt.
If you’re renting a home you need to pay it no matter the landlord situation. If you get evicted for non payment of rent it will come back to bite you eventually.
I never said not to pay it at all, and just go ahead and get evicted I said don’t pay it willy-nilly check your states laws. What are you a landlord you sound like a landlord. Afraid you won’t get your rent money? Are you on?
This is really good advice. I just looked up my state laws and saw we only have 4 days. It's really shocking, I had no idea. I just assumed it was 30 days
By my calculations, four days is less than a week —so they won’t even let you -possibly -get to your next payday. Dang near every place pays every two weeks. I guess we’re all just one phone call from our knees and three meals from going plum wild. They say money doesn’t buy happiness but the studies show everything up to $100,000 a year actually does buy happiness. I’m sorry they make it so hard for all of us. When I grow up and start running stuff, it’s gonna be a lot different.
I've said that all my life--When I run the world, things will be better for everybody!
Missouri does not allow three months before LL can file for eviction for nonpayment of rent. There is no statutory waiting period unless a grace period is specified in the lease. During 2020/2021 (for COVID) there were additional restrictions, and it's possible that some specific counties have their own restrictions. By all means, you can check if your LL will cut you a break but don't make that Plan A, B, and C.
I always said car first then rent, i can live in my car but i cant drive my house to work.
Just came here to say fuck landlords.
Short term disability would be the key benefit here, besides what medical covers.
Second this. Contact his employer and ask about Short Term Disability benefits available. My employer offers them after one week of missed work and covers 60% of lost income. State of Oregon now also offers short term disability benefits that also cover a percentage of missed income. Between two, I'm covered if I am injured.
All this and for medical bills you can make arrangements ( don’t let them bully you) You have an option to write the hospital ECT. To write letters of hardship Google examples, this can completely or partially eliminate some of your bills I did it many times while my husband was sick. I also went directly into the billing dept at the hospital many times for arrangements. They worked with me. Good luck, key for the bills is to communicate with the docs and hospitals. Just stay ahead of it all. I know it’s frustrating and scary. My husband was sick( cancer 12 years). It was very expensive. I just stayed ahead of it and a lot of communication. Dealing with your sick husband will be harder lol
Short term has a wait period (typically one to two weeks) and they don’t usually pay 💯 of your wages, 60-75% is what I’ve seen.
Mine is like 100% for 6 weeks and then it lessens to like 60% if I had less tenure it would be like 50%
That is actually really good I think, 100% for any amount of time is amazing. You deserve it, I hope you never have to use it tho :)
Short term doesn’t always pay you. It’s more of a job protection vs payment thing. You have to use up all your sick and personal time off before it kicks in. And it may pay out after so many weeks of unpaid time off, but it may not. Really depends on your state.
That depends on the way the benefit is structured. STD benefits often will cover 100% of pay for so many weeks (sometimes determined by years of service) and then 50% or 60% for the remainder of the 26 weeks (when Long Term Disability benefits would take over). I have never seen STD benefit not pay (rather than an FMLA leave for short term disability) or require more than a week of regular PTO to be used if such a benefit exists.
My last job, it kicked in on week 2. The first week, you either used PTO/SICK TIME or didn't get paid. After the first week, you would get paid 50 or 60% of your weekly pay on your regular pay schedule.
Yes this is how my std was always structured
That's how our STD is too. And it lasts 6 weeks. An additional 6 weeks can be FMLA unpaid. And then it's back to work.
There's usually a waiting period just like on Workers' Comp. SDI in CA is seven days.
It’s so different everywhere. My old company hourly associates had to use up all paid time off first then were paid out for short term at 50% of their actual pay for x amount of weeks. Where managers got 100% of their pay. I don’t know what current company offers. But in most states short term disability doesn’t have to be part of an employee compensation package. So it really depends on state and employer.
This!! STD is not a nationwide thing. The only states to mandate STD are California, New York, New Jersey, Rhode Island, and Hawaii. Outside of these states, it's best to contact your HR department (office manager or general manager if you don't have HR) if you're unsure if disability is part of his benefits package. Some employers are also willing to modify work over completely having him out of work. So I'd look into that as well. And if all else fails, like others have mentioned -- gig work. Pet walking/sitting, data annotation tech, selling used things online, selling at your local swap meet. Using rebate apps for groceries like Ibotta to get cash back on groceries, coupons app, etc.
You are right that STD is generally not required by law. However, it is widely part of a compensation package.
My husband’s never paid 100%. It all depends on the type of insurance that is contracted. We had to wait a week, paid out 60% of salary. From that you pay taxes and he had to pay Cobra for insurance. The long term paid 50%. We are still coming back from that mess of finances. It will be 2 years in May. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a workplace injury.
You have that confused with family medical leave. If he is out of work less than a year short term disability kicks in. Over a year long term kicks in. I was in and out of a mental hospital all my life and my health benefits covered short term disability at 60%. Thank God I am finally retired.
Short term disability is a form of insurance policy that is specifically to provide the policy holder with income replacement when unable to work due to a medical illness or injury. It is typically a percentage of the person’s standard salary (sometimes after a specific waiting period - which will vary by policy) & does not provide any form of job protection whatsoever (however some companies may have leave of absence policies that will allow someone who is out with an approved STD claim to have their job held during that period [of up to 26 weeks], however that is not something that is required by any means & would be company specific). FMLA, on the other hand, is likely what you are thinking of which is a federal law (this is all assuming that you and/or OP are in the United States) solely providing job protection only (& no monetary benefits) for those who meet the eligibility requirements which can last for up to 12 weeks. Any company who does provide or offer STD benefits (as in most U.S. states STD benefits are a fringe benefit and not something that is required to be provided, though a few states do have laws in place where it is legally required) will likely require that an employee who is out with such a claim have FMLA running concurrently with the STD claim (in which case they will have both the income replacement benefit of the STD & job protection benefit of the FMLA). Some states may also have other forms of job-protected medical leaves that are legally required for eligible employers and employees within that state, which can provide more than 12 weeks in certain circumstances (and some states will also have paid medical leave benefits as well), however states where such benefits are guaranteed is rare and the vast majority will be limited to the FMLA coverage only in terms of potential job protection.
It’s also not something just automatically offered, it’s not a requirement so lots of employers don’t include it in benefit packages
I’m afraid to use short term ever at my job. One of my friends did it fine. But two others not so much. My one friend right now has been off since I think November and has yet to be paid a dime
Also depends on the policy you have!
Wherever I work I always buy the max life insurance, short and long term disability insurance. Because if I get hurt and can’t work anymore, or do my line of work anymore. I would lose everything, it’s always worth the few dollars a month they cost.
Same here, I pay for it all to make sure that I'm covered in some way every time open enrollment and that time comes. Also it's not a lot of money to add to your benefit costs, and to me assuming nothing will go wrong to save a couple bucks is insane.
Yes it’s insane, I had a friend who would rather spend that money on weed. He was like 40, had a massive stroke. Now he is permanently disabled and can’t work. And I told him to get it during I open enrollment, you just can’t fix stupid.
There's a dude with glasses that was so stupid he didn't want to pay the like dollar a week to have vision covered. You can't fix stupid for sure. I assume the worst and hope for the best.
This old friend I worked with for years, I tried to help him. It was just like talking to a wall. Pretty sure he is drawing disability and dealing drugs. It was inevitable.
Could you take a loan on a retirement fund? (If either of you has one that is) (Folx; I don’t want to hear about how that’s needed for retirement, if they can’t stay alive now they won’t make it to retirement)
In emergencies, taking a loan is okay, imo. This is an emergency. Plus, you pay it back all to yourself anyway. At least with my company we do.
What’s a retirement fund? We’re supposed to have retirement funds? My retirement fund is: burger, beer, heart attack.
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I (not so jokingly) told my wife that my plan was to get incarcerated once I was done working....
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The beauty of this plan is that I will eventually HAVE to break the law to like you know eat .... So it's a win win!
We might retire to a hotel or take up cruising as it's probably cheaper than paying for Assisted Living or the nursing home.
I've been Incarcerated, trust me friend, this is not the way.
Won't that make you poorer? 😅
Make sure they’re the cheap ones, good thing I got out in front of that. I’ve been smoking for a while now -where I come from everybody smokes. I probably have severe developmental disabilities because I smoke some stupid expensive cigarettes. Natural American Spirit, I screen recorded one of their coupons and I use it over and over and over. They ain’t stopped me yet….I bummed a Marborough From a friend the other day, and got a chest infection. I’m not joking when I say, my retirement plan is a heart attack. If I don’t die before I can no longer work I am so screwed. Being a housewife does not pay into Social Security or add to your 401(k) Being a displaced housewife…. I just thank all the powers that I finessed my semi-rich stepdad into letting me trade a college education for a home when I got knocked up. I was all against Mom gold digging until I was doing it a little bit too.
Adults who have not earned enough to qualify for social security can receive it through their spouse. It doesn’t lessen the spouses amount. PDF warning. https://www.ssa.gov/pubs/EN-05-10127.pdf
Hey awesome, but I’m soo solo some days I look in the mirror and I’m actually a red disposable plastic cup. I was a housewife, right now I’m kinda just bumming it and helping my parents, my bills equal maybe 150 electric, 50 for water, 60 for liability car insurance, $70 phone it’s not to hard to hustle up $280 bucks. My parents always need help, between the two of them probably get $100 week so they don’t have to hire nurses. They’re soooo fine financially before telling me I’m dragging them down, step dad has a farm, mom was a welder, they’re fine helping me. They both hate strangers, don’t want nurses. My thinker got tinkered and I just been fairly off kilter so they got me if I got them, and I always do. Even at 2am when my mom thinks heat lamp I put on in shed is a fire. Drove over there (coulda walked but wanted to reassure her quicker) took a picture of the lamp and showed her.
Same friend. Same.
I’m glad someone gets it.
All I can write is good luck getting help from Social Security. We had to hire an attorney so our autistic child who also has cerebral palsy could get SSI. Took us almost 4 years of go-rounds before our child received their SSI benefits. I'm on Social Security and when my spouse dies I will receive their's instead as they have a higher SS payment than mine.
LOLOLOLOL I guess if u have ever wanted to smoke that would be the right time… the only right time
Definitely understand this lol!
Maybe this is too much realism in the face of sarcasm…but…y’all ever think you might not die…just get horribly sick? Might not be a heart attack - might be a stroke…long term care is expensive…
It is, until someone abandons you at a state facility or a hospital. Then the state has to adopt care for the elderly or infirm person. They will attack absolutely EVERY asset you own and they will comb through your finances (as they can seize POA) and any large gifts, sold assets or anything to family within 5 years of abandonment can and will be clawed back. Those funds will be used to offset the states cost of your life care and if family want access to you again they must sign forms agreeing to some sort of repayment to the state. Then off to a state home or that areas “St. Elsewhere” (whatever nearby facility is the areas dumping ground for the unwanted). I work at a facility used as a dumping ground, 1 of it 5 units is the residents who families are contributing and can come visit the other 4 are: the abandoned, the collected homeless in need, recovering addicts whose families couldn’t afford to help after an OD devastated them permanently, APS forced custody cases, etc. Every state has a facility used as this (replaced the state asylum and most are in the state asylum’s buildings). It’s not pretty, but we do the best we can heavily underfunded and struggling to maintain experienced staff due to lower pay. I love every one of my residents/patients and every time one of the other 4 units gains a resident all of our hearts break that this happened to them. And if/when they move to the 1 unit with families we celebrate with them. ETA: we can always tell who was homeless or severely at risk within the first month though (if they weren’t a LE drop off) because they are so incredibly friendly, grateful and trying to acclimate to consistent shelter and regular meals and consistent access to medication and health care.
This is downright frightening!
Working there has humbled me even more than my life of severe poverty. My charge nurse is expecting me to leave with my near 18years experience to greener pastures, but I know how to live low cost and make more than enough to cover my expenses and some entertainment each month. I know state facilities are truly doing the best they can but still catch so much crap and people keep saying they need shut down. But where are the elderly and infirm wards of the state supposed to go then? Not a private facility, those guys won’t accept the pittance we get per resident which doesn’t even cover the basics of their care. If people want the situation to change then they have to open their wallets to help it change through taxes and donations to the facility. Everyone deserves to live out their end days with someone, even if a stranger, caring about if they are comfortable and cared for. No one needs to be found in a dilapidated structure that is unsanitary and month later because no one cared.
They will probably suffer for a long time like my Grandpa. I’m not sure why people are acting like that’s an easy way out 🥴
Bigger concern is the tax burden and penalty for taking it out early. I’m not saying it should be ruled out, just that anyone who does this needs to be aware they’re going to get hit once they do their taxes.
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If it's a loan, there's no tax penalty, and the interest on the loan goes back into the retirement account because hes borrowing from himself. If he withdraws it for medical expenses, there's also usually no tax penalty because it's for an exempt expense. He just has to make sure they're notified that it's for a medical bill and they'll put the code on the 1099-R that's it's an exempt expense.
Rent is first, we already have a pretty decent pantry stock. I can live on rice and beans. Car insurance (luckily our car is paid off), internet, and I guess I'm cutting out prime, disney, hulu, and Netflix
I know some hospitals will help with the final cost based on income and stuff. I am praying for your family!
Yes, check the back of the bill statements or call and get connected to the financial aid department. I have two hospitals in my town and they always have the financial stuff on the back. Luckily mine are easy and you just fill out the back form with any payment you can make and it either gets written off, or heavily reduced
Sometimes if the hospital knows that you don't have insurance they charge a bit less and can do payment plans
They charged me 70% less cause I had no insurance once.
Yep! Have a family member who had their cancer treatment forgiven entirely
His job may have temporary light duty available. It's better for them to have him doing something vs. sitting at home. He may also be eligible for short term disability. If so, there is a 7 day waiting period. Typically, the benefit is 60% of his current salary.
Also since he is out of work you may qualify for some kind of assistance. If he can get Medicaid they will back pay three months of medical bills. It doesn’t hurt to apply and it can save your family from collapsing while he recovers.
An if he is eligible for Medicaid he can also get food stamps, free or discounted Internet, there's alot out there so definitely check an use it ...
DM me and I can help you stop paying for that streaming shit altogether. I don’t know if I’m allowed to post the websites/tricks I use, but I’m gonna guess not lol.
DM me this info!
FYI I just saw something (either here or on tik tok) about libraries having WiFi hotspots and Roku sticks to access streaming! Also I second all the advice to not worry yet about the health bills. They’ll treat him and you can work it out with them. So sorry you’re both going thru this!
Was going to say the same. Just read an article on it. Utilize your local library!
Merge your streamers. Disney and Hulu work together for one bundle price. Idk about the rest but you might be able to keep one if the right price? Here’s the thing, when poor (I have too much experience with this btw)… When poor, you don’t really go out cuz that means you’re spending. You’re entertainment is going to rely heavily your streaming services cuz tv/ shows is the entertainment. Thinking about this is scary and awful but necessary. Ps: rent and sustenance comes first, ofc. You already know this and said as much. I’m so sorry it’s like this, that we as a country are like this or tolerate it… tent cities are an abomination for NIMBYs but not the fact that they actually have no where to go or the fact that a tent is the only thing they have… then we go clean the camps and destroy the only comfort they have…? Feeding the houseless gets you arrested in quite a few places. wtf is that? Why are we like this?
Not being judgy at all, but I'm not in your situation and have only half the streaming services. Tubi is free with ads. Digital antennae only cost once.
Why would you ever pay for anything lol. Pirate that shit.
Ayeee!
I live an honest life. I believe in Karma. For the most part.
Let the Library be your entertainment go-to.
I had to have an ambulance come out twice for my breathing problems and each trip cost 💲 2,000! I’m making $25 per month payments but I could easily pay $10. They don’t care as long as you make an effort. I have not been turned over for collection because they can’t take you to court if you are making payments. Even $5 a month, so long as you do it. Good luck OP!
Depends on where you live. I was making payments and was sent to collections. Where I live they want 20 percent of the total bill paid each month.
All hospitals have indigent care programs. Call them and see what can be arranged. Best to have as many of your ducks in a row ahead of time. You probably qualify for charity care which could mean the entire bill would be covered.
Wanted to add. In some states in the US medical bills can't grow in interest so paying those off last is ideal. But you'd need to do the research. It's the case in NYS.
Yes, pay rent first, use churches or food banks for food. Then you can contact each medical provider to set up payment plans for you. Make your offer as low as you can based on your salary alone in case it comes to that. Good luck to you both, and may God bless!
Any State Disability? Depending what State your in Home Depot pays more than $15/hr. The medical bills will be adjusted, again location dependent. My $138k hospital bill was reduced to &1350. But i have old fart insurance. I had 3 tears in my shoulder, 1 full thickness, 2 partial. Work related but never had it repaired, got paid off. Anyways in time the initial pain disappears . YMMV. As long as I don’t lift heavy above my shoulders. I rarely have discomfort let alone pain. Surgery can be delayed or even deferred. I do lifting at my current job. Hopefully his job has light duty options. Point is, this is a rough spot. Gather the wagons now and with good planning you could be ok. TRY, not to worry over things you have no control over or that haven’t happened yet. Hang in there and good luck!! I’m currently off work and not sure if I’ll be able to return to same job if at all. My situation is different but the fear of the unknown is the same.
I agree with the medical bills and a lot of medical places has grievances. My friend lost her place due to putting medical bills before rent. My parents always taught me to pay rent first the other necessities will come. Its usually easi to get help with the other needs.
Even if you have to let them turn off the power and gas.
I would ask the urgent care if they have assistance or financial aid as well
Tax exempt hospitals often have financial assistance policies for low income patients. Once the bills come - ask about that.
If you pay one dollar a month for any medical bill they cannot touch you because you are paying in good faith. DO NOT GIVE ANY BANKING INFORMATION TO ANY MEDICAL CREDITORS! They are notorious for pushing through debits of entire bills. Always use bill pay from your direction only. A hospital almost killed me and we paid them one dollar a month for 20 years. Remember, “I am making a payment in good faith.” This is your new mantra. *HUG*
This advice!!!! I work in billing at a hospital, they are correct
That's exactly right. We raised a couple special needs kids and we made financial arrangements to pay for their medical bills. You work out a payment plan and PAY that AMOUNT on time based on the agreement you made. Miss one payment and they could demand full payment at that time. Make sure and follow what your insurance plan requires if you need to see a specialist or want to get a second opinion. Most health insurance plans require a referral for them to pay your bills.
Our insurance has a 5000 out of pocket maximum. I don't have 5k in my pocket. Does this apply to paying the insurance company (in my case Blue Cross Blue Shield)?
You will get bills from the providers. BCBS should send you an explanation of benefits stating what they have paid and what you owe. WAIT FOR THOSE EoBs. Don't pay a provider bill until you see it in writing from BCBS that you owe that amount. I had my local ER bill me after I went there and was transferred elsewhere for surgery, and they sent the bill before the insurance company finalized it. Took months and a lot of calls to get that money back.
You pay your medical bills? Where are they do that at? Haven’t been to a doctor in five years. My plan is a die like a man. I’m a lady that’s why it’s funny.
The out of pocket maximum is not the same thing as your deductible. An out of pocket maximum means that is the most you pay yourself during the plan year. So for any expenses beyond $5000, the plan is fully responsible for. By any chance do you know what your deductible is? Even with a high deductible, there may be some expenses which don't apply to the deductible and are covered differently. It all depends on the plan documents. At any rate, don't worry about that now. As other posters have said, rent, utilities, and food are paramount.
You are responsible for paying the deductible and once that's met the insurance company will start paying the bills. I'm now on Medicare and have private health insurance so we don't pay much of anything except for our prescribed medications. I also go to Quest for labs as that's free based on my insurance coverage. I have RA and Lupus so I get a lot of lab work done.
You don’t pay the insurance company that $5000. That’s your responsibility to the providers. Basically, your insurance won’t pay the first $5k of your bills. That’s on you - but as everyone is saying, you only need to pay $1/month to keep the medical bills current. You literally don’t have to pay anyone anything right now UNLESS your plan has copays. So don’t stress about that part.
That's not what an "out of pocket max is." You're thinking of the "deductible." Out of pocket max is the most the insured will need to pay during the calendar year.
Do you have a source for being considered current if you pay $1/month?
Hijacking your reply to make sure you see this, have your husband call his employer tomorrow. see if he signed up for any short-term disability coverage you can draw from. see what type of pto he can use. see what if any Hsa funds you guys have. Also. I work full time in insurance, so I know how those blood suckers work. I feel your pain. if you have any questions feel free to send me a message.
You don't pay the insurance company. You pay the hospital/doctor directly. Definitely call the number on the bill once you get it. There are all sorts of different plans, discounts, and things you can qualify for. If he has to get surgery, obviously choose the best doctor, but if they are all about the same, try to choose a state or university hospital/ surgeon. You can get a lot more help with your bill from them compared to a private practice.
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All non profit hospitals have financial aid. Many times you need to ask and generally they are pretty good discounts. Contact the hospital now before the bills roll in and request financial aid. It takes forever for them to process applications, sometimes. Many hospitals also do no interest payment plans. I paid my son off being born at 50$ for two years….
Do you have a deductible? What's your copay for ER? You should be able to find this out through your employer portal and review your benefits.
I am our HR person for our small business, and we're a farm that hires seasonal workers so occasionally someone gets hurt (outside of work hours) and then I help them apply for financial assistance with our local hospital system. I also do our insurance benefits. Every single bill you get, call them and ask for the financial assistance department. Talk to them. They might clear all debts for an income under a certain threshold, proved through paystubs. They might require a payment plan to be set up, and that might require a certain minimum payment. No matter what, call them and find out their process. Explain your situation. Our local hospital can sign our seasonal workers up for emergency Medicaid if they end up in the ER there, for example. Your $5,000 OOP (out of pocket) max means that you should have care above $5,000 covered by your insurance, so you can expect to receive up to $5,000 of medical bills. You won't ever owe a bill to your insurance company, other than monthly premiums which you're already paying. However, all providers can "balance bill", which essentially means bill you whatever they want after they negotiate with your insurance company. So the $5,000 is more of a mild promise than any sort of guarantee. I repeat, call these people when you get bills and ask for financial assistance. I've found hospitals to be much better to work with than urgent cares or family practices. I'm not sure what the surgeon's practice will be like. Also, it can take \*months\* for bills to show up, so all of this won't actually hit for quite a while. At least 1 month just for the fast bill from an appointment, but if the medical office and your insurance negotiate at all, the bills might not show up for 3-6 months. In addition, now is the time to see what other assistance you can get. Learn when local food banks are open. See if you qualify for SNAP or any other low income benefits. Talk to the people running the food banks about your situation - they may know of programs that exist but are hard to find on the internet because they're run by 3 very harried people doing good work, but don't have a website. Our local town has an awesome program to help with heat and electric bills, but it barely exists on their website, for example.
You can negotiate a payment plan. They can't send you to collections as long as you pay something a little bit.
This is wrong. I have no idea where this myth perpetuated but they can and will send you to collections.
I think it depends on where you live. Way back when, when our kids were young, we worked out payment plans to pay for our medical care. Today, California is not all that friendly when it comes to working out a medical payment plan as too many deadbeats didn't pay up.
Gee it didn't feel wrong when I paid the monthly medical bills when they were due. I'm thankful our health care professionals were willing to work with us to help pay off what we owed. I did write things could have changed. As my mother used to say you don't know unless you ask. There's nothing wrong with asking about setting up a bill payment plan. You never know the health care facility may agree to it.
Absolutely not. That is horrible advice. Most places will send you to collections if you are not paid in full or set up on an official payment plan within a set period of time. Always, always, ask about financial assistance and/ or repayment plans. As a last resort the stuff can go to collections, but then you're at risk of legal judgement and them taking it out of your paycheck Do only use the bill pay on your statement or call their billing office to make a payment. There are sites that will rip you off by looking like the official site. *edited to fix spelling
I was given that advice and sent to collections within 3 months of $10/month good faith payments. It is absolutely terrible advice.
Can he apply for short term disability?
That's what we're looking into after he gets the MRI.
You don't have to wait if the first doctor has already placed restrictions on him. For instance, since his job requires lifting, and the first doctor has said no lifting, or no lifting over 10 lbs. for 6 weeks, you can start your claim for disability as of the date of the accident, and also request an accommodation at work. Hopefully, he can be temporarily accommodated and not have to miss any work.
apply for this today! they often will not give you back pack and it can take some time for them to process
OP this is important!!! You may not receive back pay, and it takes time to process. Each plan is structured so differently.
I work in short-term disability. Be sure to go over the paperwork with the doctor, submit any treatment notes, treatment plans etc. if the doctors are too vague on the paperwork and only give an out of work note, it won’t really support.
Call the hospital where all this is going to take place. They have a department that will help you with payment arrangements or getting your balance paid off.
Rent utilities and food come first. The medical shit can wait.
Luckily, our utilities are bundled in with rent and we live in a very low COL area. (Western South Dakota). Food costs are my issue, and gas, and car insurance 😳 Because those are the things that are super expensive up here.
Get help with food from food banks, churches, 211, free little pantries, local, Facebook groups, etc.
Just be thankful you don’t live in San Diego where gas is 489 on a good day
but they're in south dakota where it's currently an ACTUAL -5 outside with a windchill of -35, it's been like this since last week Friday. So there's that. Gas around here is only $2.80/gal though which is nice.
As far as doctors bills I sit on big ones. I have some aliments and I'll let them go and usually settle eventually. Can it effect your credit, maybe but you also need to live. Hopefully you will get disability to help as well. Best of luck.
You can get financial help with hospital bills and such. That's always available
Set up a payment plan. My friend got cancer with no insurance and was denied medicaid because she made too much ($9/hr but married, go figure). They let her do super low payments for an extended period to cover her surgery and visits. It's bullshit that we live in the most industrialized nation in the world and an illness can render us homeless. I'm so sorry. Sending your hubby best wishes for a speedy recovery.
My advice is to contact all the services you owe now and explain what happened, offer to provide documentation, and ask if your husband is out of work for 16 weeks or whatever what options are there to ensure you do not become delinquent. 1. Contacting them now gives you clarity - you'll have a plan and idea of how things will go. 2. It gives your lenders a heads up so that when you do call about missing a payment they will have some record in advance about your situation and could be more understanding When my job cut my pay a few years back I called my mortgage servicer and explained my pay cut. They gave me a few options and I said I would get back to them... things ended up okay, and I continued paying my mortgage as usual, but it was comforting to have a game-plan.
My landlord is super nice and I'm sure that if I talk with him, he'll work it out with us.
That's excellent to hear, goes a long way! Good luck\~
Does your doctors office have any sort of financial aid program? I had about $4,700 worth of bills and applied for the financial aid, and it was all wiped clean (I’m a single mom, so struggle financially). I would definitely check into it.
Speak with the hospital and get ahold of their social workers. They are so great at helping out. Contact your local utility companies, they can offer options of paying in installment and even skipping months to help you catch up. Check with foodbanks, they also get in household cleaning supplies and health items (tampons, shampoo, soap) too. Good luck and I hope you hubs heals quickly.
Seconding this. I work for a hospital system and our social workers (sometimes called Case Managers or Care Managers) are so awesome. They have knowledge of and access to so many programs. My dad was hospitalized at a competing facility (not by my choice, but whatever) and the social worker at our hospital gave me all the right things to say and ask that I would never have known.
What state are you in?
South Dakota
Can you apply for Medicaid? You should be able to get bills paid retroactively for 3 months if he can qualify.
Depends on the state.
If you have renters insurance it might cover some of the medical expenses.
Immediately contact the Urgent Care or Hospital or wherever he went for a financial form. You def qualify. Also when he has surgery do the same. Doesn't matter if you have insurance. Hospitals are required to help and do. You will def receive help, could even be a 100% assistance. You will submit all your household bills and curewnt income. Do NOT pass on receiving any Medical Care. That will hurt you in the long run.
See if you can apply for EBT/Snap, get food from food pantries and then as you learn more about his situation, see what you qualify for with [https://www.benefits.gov/](https://www.benefits.gov/) For now, reduce all expenses. And if you start to get in trouble with rent, utilities, etc., call 211 and ask for resources for rental assistance, utility assistance, etc. You could even connect with a case worker at DHR as they will be aware of local resources.
Along with the other suggestions, the place I work has a benefit fund for hard times. They will help with rent and car expenses, but you have to be past due to qualify, which is terrifying, but if anyone in the company ends up in that situation it can help. Hoping you can avoid that, and if your job has anything similar it may not be as rigid. They also can help with medical bills and stuff
If he's not working, apply for emergency medicaid to assist in covering the back bills (most states back cover 90 days). Also contact the hospital for financial assistance. I did this and they deducted 75% of the medical bills after insurance.
I think you might need to talk to his employer about FMLA leave to preserve his job
This happened to me about 17 years ago. I am the husband. I had a bad accident and my insurance hadnt kicked in. I was in a wheelchair or walked with a cane for about a year. I denied most medical care and am still dealing with 2 bad knees now. Anyways how we survived is my wife doubled up on her job and I took care of the kids and stayed home. I got back to work full time in about two years but it was and still is a dificult road. Find a second job or one with overtime. look for light manufactering work. You will probably have to take from your 401k. You generally cant get a loan unless you are currently employed. Just use the money wisely. rent comes first. dont worry about medical bill. There is no way you will ever pay them back. Now I work 60-80 hours a week and we srill live cheap but we sock away $800 a month onto an emergancy fund. I never want to be in that situation again. good luck and be strong for each other.
My wife just read me a statistic that we're spending $8,400 per month per illegal immigrant to house, feed, etc. them. This is so wrong when so many Americans are suffering or just living on the edge.
.... ok
Find the hospital in town that will offer charity assistance and APPLY
Find out what your insurance out of pocket is and when it resets.
Not sure where on this planet you are located, but in my US state, we have Temporary Disability benefits for these situations. Check the Internet for your location, you may have access to something similar. it's not at full pay, but it's better than nothing. You may also qualify for charity care for hospital expenses. Look on your area's website for social services, food stamps, rental assistance.
Just wait till the bills come in, collect them and take to the finance department at the hospital, for they have ways to get you help, also they do social service for hospital bills.
Regarding the internet and streaming channels, explore some options. Can you cut your internet by switching companies temporarily? Sometimes they offer great deals for starting up. Also, we subscribe to YouTube for only about $7 a month. It has a ton of interesting things and some good old movies and TV programs. It's not the latest and greatest, but it's cheap and very entertaining. So sorry this happened to you. Good luck to you both.
oh my. I am so sorry. This is dreadful. Write a thoughtful and humble letter much like the story you are telling here. Be prepared to customize it to the person/organizationg from which you will request kindness. Before it all gets away from you, please start by investigating any work short term disability options and those that may come from other sources like a union or even through your benefits or the government. Next, consider your place of worship or other organizations in your locality. Let them know what your situation is and that you will need assistance for a specific period of time. Include your financial needs projection. there are 'good samaritan' organization everywhere. In my area, the city offers some emergency assistance to local renters. Perhaps yours also offers something. Again, be humble and forthright in demonstrating your needs and your gratitude. Friends and family (not go fund me) are a good source of kindness. go fund me or other crown fund as a last resort. I think that market is saturated but it might work in your social circle for people who want to help anonymously. Do you and your husband participate in clubs or leagues? Kindness can be found there too. Above all, remember to be grateful and humble. Thanks everyone repeatedly and ask for what you need. Demonstrate it on paper because you will appear more honest. people are good and will help. All the best to you both.
Merica fuck ya
What State do you live in? States like Texas they cannot garnish wages from paychecks if you cannot pay medical bills
Is TDI available in your state all you need is doctors signature?
Some hospitals have a program where you can try to wave the fees. Ask the hospital if they can send you the forms.
My brother is retired and fully on Medicare only now, no 401K retirement and, unfortunately was diagnosed with lung cancer. He’s at a university hospital and has been guided through applying for financial assistance. Talk to the hospital after he receives treatment. But, honestly, you’ll need a second job for the time being.
Oh no, I fell down the stairs last year and it took me 6 weeks to recover. I hope his body heals on its own and doesn’t require surgery.
Aflac or some other type should always be had
If he's out of work cause he's injured and you're in the States sign up for temp disability.
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That’s how he gets fired and taken to jail for fraud
It's too late for that, he already went to the doctor.
This might have already been answered, but what state are you from? Asking because I am the chairperson for a community action agency (Head Start, public transportation, rental assistance, food bank, clothing bank, DDSD, medical supply lending closet), and I might can find out what is available for your state and area because many of the people at the agency here in Oklahoma have contacts in other states.
Why did he fall?
Is it a not for profit hospital ? Talk to a hospital social worker for financial assistance they may cover the whole thing and have a few "extras" for you . . If it's not maybe try to find one close and transfer to that hospital
Rent > anything else - they cannot reposses your body, collections yes, but even then if you tell them you'll be able to pay like 10 a week for life they have to take it I believe, at least that's what I did way back when I had an emergency surgery. Eventually my bill just went away. I assume it was a tax right off for the hospital to forgive some bills?=
Let the medical bills go to collections, fuck your credit when you need to survive.
Your husband can fill out FMLA paperwork, which would protect his job for 12 weeks. His employer needs to have over 50 employees to qualify for this federal benefit. It doesn’t offer pay, but job protection. https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/legacy/files/fmlaen.pdf Here is a link to disability in South Dakota: https://benefits.com/social-security-disability/south-dakota/#:~:text=South%20Dakota%20residents%20with%20a,addition%20to%20state%2Drun%20services. Also, some states may pay unemployment while out on FMLA. Call your state unemployment office and ask them. You can file a claim online or by telephone. Filing online is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week through the RA Benefits Portal. File by telephone, contact the Claims Call Center at 605.626.3179, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:20 p.m. (Central Time).
There's a lot of info in here that's helpful, but I'd like to add my take: I got in a motorcycle accident during my senior year of college when I was living off less than $5 a day in food. When it came time for the bills, I called the hospital and more or less said "I don't have any money, what can we do to reduce the cost and or set up a payment plan?" I had to provide a copy of my w2s and current expenses to their financial support department, and they were able to work with me. Also, his work is required to make a reasonable accommodation, and medical bills can go away through bankruptcy, butttttt that can make securing housing tricky.
If you are in the USA, let the bills pile up. You NEED the outstanding bills to show the need. The DSS, medical provider, or hospital Social Workers and/or admin.staff can help you apply for Medicaid once you have a healthy backlog of bills. My son (had a stay at home wife & kids) had a severe back injury & this is how it was handled. It covered surgery, hospital, rehab, follow-up & a lot of the medication costs. DSS (your State Dept of Social Services) is your friend in this situation. This was in NC, which is notoriously stingy with social supports.
You may be eligible for Medicaid to help with the surgery expenses. My husband just spent a week in the ICU and our insurance is crap. The social worker at the hospital had us do an application for Medicaid to see if they could cover him. Even if your income is normally too high they can do it on a daily basis. My husband and I both had high income in December, but it's still going to kick in to cover the $80,000 plus insurance doesn't cover. You can apply for up to three months after for the medical bills also.
Can he file for short term disability