Illinois Health Insurance and Workers Compensation Act
In that case, stay with me.
I have the best dog. She is so fun and loving. She also gets very active and excited. We were in a park recently and I was wearing flip flops and she was running like crazy. She was playing with another dog and they quickly ran towards me. One of them kicked my foot hard and cut my big toe quite hard. It was cut pretty badly and was swollen and looked infected for the following week.
I ended up going to a local emergency room because of the likely infection. I was approached by a triage nurse and then my vital signs were taken. I was then sent to a room where I waited about 45 minutes for a doctor to come. She was very nice and only took about 30 seconds to look at my toe to say it was a likely infection and recommend an antibiotic. Your care was excellent and reasonable. I didn’t come with a major injury, I just had to confirm a likely infection and get a prescription.
I waited another 30 minutes for someone to come back with paperwork so I could leave. In the meantime, a man came to confirm my address and then tell me that the total bill for my time there would be $ 1,700.00. I wasn’t given any medication, didn’t have an X-ray or other test that required expensive equipment, and shared a room with someone else. Since it was my first visit to the emergency room of the year, I was told that my responsibility was for the $ 1,000 excess. I was there less than two hours. And I have “big” insurance.
This is crazy and an anecdote for how terrible the health system is in this country. I’m not seeking pity, and I was an idiot not to go to an emergency room instead. But it’s an example of why some people avoid doctors altogether. It’s just too expensive.
So why bring up this story?
Because if you get injured at work in Illinois, you don’t need to worry about these. You will essentially learn what it would be like to live in a country with universal health coverage. This is because your medical care should be 100% covered for as long as it is reasonable and related to your accident at work. There are no deductibles. There are no expenses or co-payments. In principle, you can freely choose your provider. You don’t need to go to an emergency room if you think an emergency room would be better. You don’t need to see a chiropractor knowing an orthopedic surgeon would be better.
You can prioritize your health and try to get better. And that doesn’t make you bankrupt. This is how our health system should work for everyone, but unfortunately only works for injured workers.
At least once a week I speak to someone who was injured while working in Illinois and didn’t see a doctor because they didn’t have insurance and couldn’t afford medical care. That should never be an issue. You are insured and do not need to prevent proof of insurance to receive treatment. You are as covered as a Canadian when it comes to medical care.
This is great law, sensible and great news for IL-harmed workers. And after my recent experience in the emergency room, I’m more grateful than ever that the law is like this.
By Mike Helfand
Courtesy of Illinois Workers Comp Law Blog
Remarks
Be the first to post a comment!
You need to log in or register to read and leave comments!
login for members
Don’t have an account? click Here to register.
Disclaimer: WorkersCompensation.com publishes independently produced writings by a variety of stakeholders in the compensation industry. The opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of WorkersCompensation.com.
Comments are closed.