Yet another patient of mine lost his job and both husband and wife in their mid 60’s lost their health insurance. Husband struggling with advanced liver disease and the wife with Diabetes and High Blood Pressure, left to sort out their medical expenses. They started skipping their pills every other day so they can ’stretch it’ longer. The cost of the medicines and the blood work for their chronic diseases prohibited them to care for their health appropriately……. and this is just one of my many patients who have lost their insurance.

The health care cost is taking a toll on our health and wellbeing.

More than half (53%) of the American households cut back on their health care secondary to cost concern, reports Kaiser Family Foundation survey of February 2009.

One in four put off the health care they needed, 16% delayed care for a serious medical illness.

One in five didn’t fill prescriptions.

One in six skipped their medications to make it last longer.

One in five experienced serious financial hardships secondary to their health care expenses. 12% have been reported to collection agency.

HealDeal is envisioned to bring transparency and fair market practices to health care. Patients who are self pay will be able to manage their health care dollars effectively. As Mr. Dave Mandelkern, CEO of QuickHealth, says ‘One of the myths of the self pay market is that the consumer is not savvy enough, its just that they don’t have the tools to manage their health care expenses’. Here at HealDeal we work hard to bring these tools to our self pay consumers.

Archana Dubey, MD