From time to time people in Oregon need to go to the doctor. This could be for routine check-ups, preventive care or to treat injuries or illnesses. If people are there for check ups and other routine care usually people are in and out of the office fairly quickly and it is not too expensive. However, when people need to treat injuries and illnesses, it can be very expensive depending on the severity of the injury or illness.
If people have surgeries and/or need to spend multiple nights in the hospital, the costs can add up very quickly. That is why health insurance can be so valuable and important for people. However, as people know insurance does not cover all costs. Usually people have deductibles each year that are paid for out of pocket. Also, after the deductible is met insurance still only covers a percentage of the costs, usually not the entire cost. So, people can still incur significant medical debt even if they have insurance.
In addition to deductibles and having to pay a percentage of the costs afterwards, there are also other factors that can lead to debt. One is if people pay for the medical bills with credit cards, they then pay interest on the medical bill, adding to the costs. Also, people often pay different amounts depending on if the medical facility is in-network or out-of-network. If people are forced to receive care at a hospital that is out-of-network people will pay a much higher percentage of the care and that can be very expensive depending on the type of care needed. Also, emergency room visits and ambulance rides can be very expensive as well.
People in Oregon may not really like going to the doctor, but it is a necessity at times. The hope is that people have good insurance to help mitigate the costs of the medical care, but even with health insurance people can find themselves with significant medical debt. This can be overwhelming at times and eventually bury people with debt. There are options people have to rid themselves of this debt though, such as bankruptcy. Experienced attorneys understand the benefits of filing for bankruptcy and may be able to guide one through the process.
