[Nahla66]

I'm currently residing in europe and will be moving to the us early next year.Already i'm out of my mind worrying about the cost of meds,pdoc and hospital over there. Is there anyone who could give me some advice on what it all costs and how you go about it.

[Phoenix_1]

I have no idea. I live in Canada and I suggest you move here. We have socialized (free) medical care.

[Nahla66]

lol!maybe if the costs are totally extortianate!!!but I'm an american citizen so prob gonna be U.S!

Hello, I'm a US citizen and I can tell you that if you do not have insurance then traditional psychiatrists and therapists are pricey. The good news is that if you do not have insurance then in larger communities they offer health services including mental health that will take your income into consideration and charge accordingly. I use the community mental health services and have been so happy with my pdoc and therapist. The first private therapist I had when I first went there was not my cup of tea so I quit seeing her and began group therapy. I liked the group therapist so well I started seeing her for private therapy. So hopefully this will give you a better idea of what's what.
Sincerely, DobieLuv

[dragonfly2]

DobieLuv is right, there are resources available for people without insurance. Along with the "sliding scale", as-you-can-afford system that many doctors offer, there are also prescription programs to help pay for medication. Here's a link to a site that has all sorts of information:

http://www.needymeds.org/

Will you be working? If you will have a job, then most employers offer some sort of health insurance. There are many different companies, with many different plans. The employer will usually pay for a portion of your premiums and then you pay the rest through payroll deductions. Medical and dental insurance are usually separate. Most health care plans involve some sort of "copayment", or "coinsurance", which are the portions of your medical costs that you are required to pay. For example, with my insurance, I pay a $20 copayment for doctor's visits. For things like x-rays, outpatient surgery, CT scans, etc, I pay 10% of what the insurance says is an "allowable" fee for the service as a coinsurance. The doctors and hospitals agree to only charge a certain amount for their services based on their contract with the insurance company. Prescription meds are usually paid through a copayment or coinsurance. It varies with each plan.

Mental health coverage is listed separately from "regular" medical care, and what they cover is often dictated by what state the plan is governed by. Some states have "mental health parity", meaning that by law, insurance companies have to cover mental health care for certain, biologically-based diagnoses the same way they cover regular medical care. In a non-parity state, the insurers can require different copayments and limits on the number of visits you can have with a provider. It's a crappy system if you're not in a parity state, but there are many grassroots efforts to try to change that.

I know it sounds very complicated, and it is, but once you learn what your plan will cover and how much they'll pay, it will make sense.

If your employer doesn't offer health insurance, then you can purchase it directly from the insurance company, but it will cost more and they usually require a health screening. If you're not working, are disabled, or have a very low income, then there are state-run medical care programs that you can qualify for. These vary by state, so you'll have to make some phone calls when you get here.

Not sure what state you're moving to, but Massachusetts requires that you have some sort of health insurance, but I think they have state incentive programs to help with that. I don't live there anymore, so I'm a bit out of touch with that program, but wherever you go, the state website should have some good info on programs available.