[paddym22]

I thought it would ne interesting to compare mental health care around the world, seeing what facilties are available in different countries

In my country THe Netherlands

Insurance is compulsoy for all residents. We pay monthly between 90 euros / 110 dollars up to the highest premium usually 135 euros/ 150 dollars for our healthcare. This entitles the bearer to full psychiatric services, all medications, Psyhcotherapy to a limit of 24 visits a year, the services of a psyhciatrist and a nurse and overnight and extended stay in a hospital. Group therapy and supported living. Insurance companies never ask any questions.

What does your country provide?

Originally Posted by paddym22

I thought it would ne interesting to compare mental health care around the world, seeing what facilties are available in different countries

In my country THe Netherlands

Insurance is compulsoy for all residents. We pay monthly between 90 euros / 110 dollars up to the highest premium usually 135 euros/ 150 dollars for our healthcare. This entitles the bearer to full psychiatric services, all medications, Psyhcotherapy to a limit of 24 visits a year, the services of a psyhciatrist and a nurse and overnight and extended stay in a hospital. Group therapy and supported living. Insurance companies never ask any questions.

What does your country provide?

Hi Paddy,

The system is very much the same here in the UK except payments are made via taxes based on income. The only complaint I have is that you really dont get to choose the services you tap into you are offered what other think is best for you.

[anna342]

The other thing about the UK is very long waiting lists for any kind of therapy. If you move area and you are under a new trust, then the waiting starts again. If there is a specific thing like DBT that you think may help you, it is only available in certain places. Medication has to be paid for by yourself unless you are within certain groups who are exempt (such as on benefits, over 65, under 18 (16-18 in full time education) those with some long term problems such as underactive thyriod etc) but there are no exemptions for those with some other long term conditions such as asthma.

I have quite a negative view of it, only because I have had support, but no therapy even though i've been in the 'system' for about 2 1/2yrs and am very frustrated with the situation.

I agree with Anna however if you are on a low income then the system is brilliant, you get the same as everyone else regardless of the fact you have limited funds. Also since I have moved to Scotland I have noticed the service has really improved so again its down to area.

[Elfgirl]

I am also from the Netherlands. I have to say, services are a lot better than in most countries it seems, but we do have long waiting lists, especially for long-term care. The govt also recently issued massive budget cuts on long-term care and is issuing a 3.5% budget cut on mental health for 2010. This worries me, as I may lose my long-term care funds (and I need to go itno some form of supported living or group home) and mental hospital is already understaffed. But for me, it is also hard to get appropriate services since I'm autistic, and there are very little services out there for those without intellectual disabilities (again, however, it seems better than in most places).

[Elysium]

Eeen Amedika..the kontry I com frum. Yu, how yu sai, lucki eenuf to hav gob, yu mai be lucki to hav helt eensoorenz. Eef no eensoorenz tru gob ten yu mus pai ot of de bum...up to for hundrid dolar e munth..eef yu ar ecksepted bi eensoorenz kompny.

Por peepl get eensoorenz eef dey dunt mak to mush muniez. Otter wize dey get nutting and metikal bilz go tru de roofz.

Mi kar haz beterh eensoorenz den I doo!!!

I born een de Yu Ess Eah!!!!

[splitimage]

I'm in Canada and we have public health care. Every province funds it a bit differently - where I am it's paid along with your taxes and how much you pay is linked to how much you earn, premiums range from 200-900 a year. Employers also pay a health care tax that helps fund the system.

Any service provided by an MD is covered. So psychiatrists and MD's who do counselling are covered. Psychologists and any other type of councellor are not covered so the bills for therapy can ring up really quickly. Some hospital psych departments ofer group counselling but it's usually time limited and the waiting lists can be really long. Drugs aren't covered unless you're really poor and are on social assistance, or over 65 then the gov't pays. Most big companies offer supplemental health coverage insurance to employees to cover at least part of their drug costs. At my company the insurance premium is split 80/20 company / employee and it costs me about $70 a month, but that includes disability insurance, and covers 100% of my drug costs. If you work for a small company that doesn't offer supplemental insurance or your self employed you can really get screwed because drugs are expensive.

Hospitalization is covered 100%. I was IP for 7 weeks in 07 and it didn't cost me a cent.

Addiction treatment is a mix of private and public. The really big treatment centers are private and expensive but you can get in quickly. The public funded centers are generally smaller but good - it's just the waiting lists to get in can be really long. I've been to both public and private treatment centers, and I have to say in my experience the public centre was better.

--splitimage

[Shangrala]

From the "wonderful" US of A here, and I can say not a whole lot of promise from this "free" country is even remotely offered.

As always, the rich reaps rewards as the poor pay their expense.

Let's see...Those who are fortunate enough to have a decent job which offers medical coverage, then there may be some hope. That depends on which company you're employed, (union is usually best...guarantees you the "better" coverage, though that is changing, as well).

Hubs is in Ironworker's Union, which provides us some pretty decent coverage...all aspects, optical, dental, mental and medical...and even some cosmetic, depending on circumstances.
Odd thing regarding the medical, though, is that we are covered 100% so long as we use emergency, yet for regular check-ups, its a 20% patient co-pay...would think it'd be the other way around.
~Dental coverage has improved...100% with only a $120 annual deductable per family...for ALL dental care.
Optical has also improved. 2 "free" (lol...even though the weekly pull out of paycheck for coverage has increased), pair of glasses per family member, plus a free pair of contacs. 20% patient co-pay for exams...Not too bad...not complaining.
Have yet to seek coverage regarding mental health, although been seriously considering it these past few weeks.
Not sure how that sets, yet.

My bro-in-law works for Lockheed-Martin (for 35 years now) and gets crap for coverage....Kaiser-Permanente....Oh yay! Talk about care who pass you through as though on a production line. My poor sister, has so been suffering from their unorthodoxed care system.

For those who are of the working class and have little coverage, its a definate strain for them to come down ill....pay out of pocket for any differences....Make too much to qualify for government assistance, and not enough to cover the co-payment rip-off plans.

Then there are those who work and receive no healt care plan. At least they earn below the required amount and qualify for some government assistance.
Those unemployed qualify for the most coverage from government, especially those with kids...tho that may very well have changed.
Who really knows anymore.

There are many hospitals who will not admit you without insurance. You WILL be turned away and sent to the local county general hospital. Care there...well, let's say, you get what you pay for.

I'm thankful for the present coverage dot and I do have through hubs, but have little to no faith that it will remain that way due to the constant changing politics.

Who knows, tomorrow no one may have any and we all suddenly end up in concentration camps...Now THAT wouldn't come as a surprise.

Oh yay for USA?

I'm ranting....My apologies...truly.

Shangrala

[VickiesPath]

In Arizona, I was surprised when I moved here ten years ago from Kansas. There are mental health services available to anyone who qualifies as a "seriously mentally ill person" including psychiatric, case management, support, counseling, hospitalization and medications. It is free of charge. You can, of course, choose to seek services on private pay. But this service is not dependent upon income. It is only for the chronically mentally ill. You do have to apply and prove a chronic condition exists. So, a person who is for the most part healthy but experiences, say, clinical depression following the death of a loved one, wouldn't qualify. I participate in this program. I do not know the history behind the establishment of this program. My best guess is it might have something to do with the homeless populations in our state. Because we have such favorable weather year round, our homeless population is quite high.

It is not a perfect program and is plagued by problems and lapses in service. But if we did not have it, there would be a lot of seriously ill people on the streets.

In NY here, it's really hard to get medical help because like previously mentioned not all jobs give you insurance and if you don't have medical insurance the cost is HUGE. (well, at least to most people I know...I guess upper middle class and rich people can afford it....not lower middle class people like my family and definitely not if you are poor) however at least in some states here in the North East you can apply for things like VESID which depending on your condition (disabilities), income, etc, they'll help you with things like that if you otherwise can't afford. THANKFULLY I can see my T even if it's only once every couple of months because of my Dad's insurance covers it (well...not completely)

[GrayNess]

I'm from Canada and for here, it seems to be somewhat similar to other places. The funding comes from the taxes you (or your parents) pay. MediCare covers many health services, however, you can get additional insurance depending on the job you have. MediCare covers almost all doctors with the exception of psychologists or most other doctors not with a M.D.. It's stirred up quite a fuss because the psychologists do want to be covered, however, their counterparts, the psychiatrists are covered.

For hospitals, you can pay for private or semi-private rooms and pay for additional services, such as TV. However, for the most part it's public unless you opt to go for private, which has better equipment, faster service and such but you need to pay for it.

Medications may be covered by MediCare, however, one's insurance from a certain job can cover additional medications, usually the ones that aren't prescribed very often or are rather expensive.

[phoenix7]

IN OZ we have medicare too - you can get free hospital treatment - waiting lists are long - waiting times are long but hey at least its free if you finally get in. (paid for by a mdeicare levy from earnings) however if a dr charges over the medicare preferred amount you have to pay the difference

if you earn over a certai amount and dont have a health fund though you have to pay an extra medicare levy - think its $500 per year

Dental is user pays

Private health care doesnt often cover all costs - and there is usually an excess to pay anyway.

You can get 12 free psych (T or Pdoc ) appts a year - with a possible extra 5 if they consider you sick enough - once again if they charge over the scheduled medicare fee - then you pay the extra.

think thats about it......

[Dr.Muffin]

Originally Posted by paddym22

I thought it would ne interesting to compare mental health care around the world, seeing what facilties are available in different countries

In my country THe Netherlands

Insurance is compulsoy for all residents. We pay monthly between 90 euros / 110 dollars up to the highest premium usually 135 euros/ 150 dollars for our healthcare. This entitles the bearer to full psychiatric services, all medications, Psyhcotherapy to a limit of 24 visits a year, the services of a psyhciatrist and a nurse and overnight and extended stay in a hospital. Group therapy and supported living. Insurance companies never ask any questions.

What does your country provide?

wow! i want to move to the netherlands!!

i live in the US and i have been without adequate health insurance for so long, i cant even tell you what is offered! ive been in college and grad school since 1998, and the coverage we are offered by the school (which requires you to have coverage) is piss poor.

[little*rhino]

Actually, in Canada, psychologists ARE covered... but not all of them. The mental health services departments of the hospitals have T's that are 100% covered. One has to be referred to one by an MD, but it doesn't have to be a pdoc. Even the rural areas will have covered T's in the central hospitals (usually.. unless they cannot attract one to such an area). The various hoops to jump through do vary depending on province and hospital system, but there are covered T's.

The down side is that mental health gets the lowest funding... and so, there aren't enough free t's. The ones in the covered system don't make nearly as much as the private ones and they tend to not stick around either. T's that are covered are generally handling referrals from severe mental illness, or chronic pain etc... There is often a wait list and the frequency of appointments can be terrible. I don't see it being of any real value in terms of real change in someone's life... managing a chronic issue perhaps but not life-change. It isn't frequent enough and the client has no real say in that.

system t's are often new, less experienced or just plain crappy... they may be finishing a practicum and then leave in 6 months or whatever.

when faced with the decision i chose private or not at all

oh.. and the system frowns hard on anything not short-term CBT or simple management.

[Shangrala]

It has been brought to my attention that my comment of concentrations camps in the US was offensive.
I should note as well, that I used the wrong term for said camps. It should be noted that they are "Inernment camps"..NOT consentration...Hope that clarifies for some.
(And anyone who knows me also knows that is SO not my style...TO offend).
To those who it has offended, please know that by NO means was I implying anything in relation to past history.

It was my lame way of expressing my disgust in our own country...that it is my personal opinion that it wouldn't surprise me that our own government isn't arranging these 600 or so "camps" nationwide to imprision us american citizens..when they so decide to. That's all.
(Google: "FEMA concentration camps, USA" if you care to know what I am referring to..and I really am not the paranoid type..just trying to see it as it is).

My apologies to all I may have offended.

Shangrala

[eskielover]

I know in the US, when you are on medicare, not many pdoc's or psychologists take that coverage.....I was lucky in California, the psychologist I went to was willing to take the medicare & not charge me anything & my Pdoc was the same as they worked together.

When I moved to KY, the copay was so much I couldn't afford to get any help until I found the community mental health groups in my area....then are non-profit & work on a sliding scale.....then you can appeal the sliding scale & get it lowered even more....still can only afford to go 2 times a month...not as good as the once a week I was used to but better than none at all. Don't want to get involved in any extra medical costs.....have so much debt I walked away from in California from medical & ER copays that I couldn't afford......no money, no pay....it went to collection.....think there is a way where you can go to the hospitals & request a lower amount or prove you have no money to pay & they will forgive the bill, but I wasn't well enough to push & my husband wouldn't bother.

Treatment centers are a joke...only for the rich & famous.....there was one Eating disorders treatment center that had funds set up for people who had no means to pay your pdoc proved how sick you were....but it was a joke also.

Hate to say it, but the rant of Shangrala's reflects my feelings also about what's going on in our country.....really not feeling safe here at all & that goes way beyond the medical.....never have seen a country go downhill so quickly in all my 56 years. Just holding on by a thread it seems.

[Trying & Caring]

WOW--it is so confusing, isn't it? I have spent many hours on the phone w/our ins. company (mental health outsourced to a not very good company; I finally complained through my husband's HR dept. {documented all the hassles I was having}) & my husband's work company investigated & fired that mental health company!!! Now we have a new one!! I felt like I needed MORE therapy appts. due to the stress of dealing w/that ins. company!

Through my husband's work I get 30 therapy visits a year (DBT is also considered therapy so I don't turn those in as they are only $45.00 vs. $120.00 for individual therapy). The ins. co. covers 85% of the cost of the therapy visits. I get unlimited visits w/my meds provider who is a psychiatric nurse practitioner who spends 45-60 min. w/me at each visit & charges $115.00 (much less than a pdoc & much more intimate & she REALLY knows me & listens to my opinions--a collaborative relationship).

The np has actually taken an afternoon off for no charge to accompany me to a medical appt. that I was having severe anxiety over & kept canceling & rescheduling. (She has also treated her clients for no charge who have lost their jobs or in financial difficulty & really helps out w/giving lots of samples so you can save money on meds.) The np knew I needed to address my physical health as well as my mental health so she just said she would escort me & help me make it to the appt. She even called the doc in advance to make sure I wouldn't have to wait in reception area (have cried in there before so was scared I would do that again & embarrass myself) & np talked to doc to make sure she knew I was having severe anxiety & was in a "fragile" state & to have a nurse who "understood" these kinds of situations so she wouldn't be freaked out if I cried or something (which I did).
The internal med doc tried to reassure me that one out of four Americans have some mental health issues in their lifetime so I wasn’t so “weird.” She (IM doc) says she addresses all aspects of your health & that she will not separate the physical from the mental & emotional; they all are equally important & entwined.

I think I have been "lucky"--well, if you consider being ill since I was 15 (first suicide attempt) & not getting correct treatment until 48 or so when internal med doc dxed me as bipolar rather than unipolar depression due to my mother being bipolar (severe case & did commit suicide) & I was in an obvious "mixed" state to her at that appt. I had previously been going to a GP & really believe you need to see a specialist. I will never go to a GP again!
Unfortunately, I had a suicide attempt after a long hypo mania then crashed into depression (didn’t know the hypo mania & not sleeping was so dangerous as it felt SO GOOD) & husband had to take me to the ER. That was covered 100%.
Internal med doc (so very much more thorough; also found out I had low thyroid & pernicious anemia & very high amounts of cortisol due to stress & sleep disorders)--all those can cause mood problems. She sent me to a psychiatric specialist.

Now pretty much 90% of the women in my DBT group (Dialectical Behavioral Therapy) are getting all their treatment & meds free from Medicare. They are considered “disabled” & the gov’t covers their expenses for mental health (& physical) treatment. At the center there it is a one-stop place—group therapy, individual therapy, ACT teams, pharmacy for their meds, etc.
This mental health facility also does a sliding scale according to your income if you are not on disability.
I have a friend from my support group (actually several) on disability—like $800.00 per month to cover her mental health therapy treatment; she goes to therapy at least twice a week. Seeing her pdoc is covered as well. Her medication is covered but some of her medications they will balk at—like she needs name brand Ambien & they want her to take generic, which she has tried, but the generic doesn’t work for her.
Another friend on COBRA insurance as her husband lost his job will not cover much of her son’s ADHD medication or her name brand bipolar stuff. They contact her doc & try to have the doc prescribe the cheapest med as a first line treatment even if the doc thinks something else --like an atypical—would be best for her symptoms (which I think is totally INAPPROPRIATE as they are not docs; they are just trying to save money).
Disability forms are not consumer-friendly & even in the newest edition of the Disability Handbook the gov’t actually says they usually deny you at least twice! They recommend getting a disability attorney to help you (who takes a percentage once you are accepted)! I think that is totally wrong!! Making the forms so hard to fill out that the gov’t actually recommends you get an attorney! WTF?? Is the gov’t getting kickbacks from the attorneys or what?
I do know of one friend who got accepted for disability on the first try, but I think she was extremely lucky.
My husband’s insurance did cover 100% of my IOP (Intensive Outpatient Program) that I went to 4 days a week at a hospital for about 8 weeks & I told them I was ready to “graduate” so I think my ins. probably would have covered longer, if necessary.
My meds are no charge after $2000.00 deductible (which I reach after about Feb. 15th!). My ins. co. has me do mail order meds so I get 3 mos. worth at a time. They do not charge extra for name brand vs. generic & don’t try to force my np to prescribe cheaper stuff, but when my np prescribed Provigil they denied it (Provigil is FDA approved for narcolepsy but she had read the literature that Provigil was helpful for bipolar, esp. w/the side effects of sedation from meds & she sent the literature to the ins. co. & they reversed their decision & approved it! Been on it for at least 12 yrs. now & it is definitely very helpful & VERY EXPENSIVE so having ins. covering it is essential).
But there are other places that cover people w/no ins. & it seems to be word of mouth! At my support group I learned of a lady (40 yrs. old—no job currently so can’t afford ins.) & she told about a program at the local hospital that covers all her meds & therapy & pdoc appts.!! I had never heard of that program, but definitely took down all the info. to pass on to others. We also have in our state (not sure if it is a nation-wide program) where you call 211 (like 411 for emergencies) but they assist you w/housing, medical treatment, inadequate treatment at facilities—such as filing a grievance report, employment, housing, food, all the basics.
A friend in Calif. who had Kaiser (someone else mentioned that; I have tried very hard to avoid HMO’s due to knowing about Kaiser & their inefficient & inadequate treatment) & she not only had mental health issues , but she developed leukemia when she was about 40 yrs. old (3 kids). Since the type of leukemia she had was unusual in adults they refused to pay for a bone marrow transplant as they said it was “experimental” (as she was an adult vs. a child w/the same kind of leukemia) & that she had only a 10% chance of living after the bone marrow transplant so they DENIED paying for it. Essentially, saying “plan your funeral.” Well, it ended up Calif. (Medical) paid for her transplant & whole treatment at a great hospital (the one where my husband & I both were born & my first child who was a preemie).
Um, it’s been 25 YEARS now that she is cancer free.
When we were foster parents in Calif., the state paid for all medical care for the babies (we had infants going up for adoption) at excellent facilities & also paid for special formula one needed (pre-digested as she was a crack baby & had severe digestive problems).
Anyway, I have put up the link to the new Disability Handbook on other threads if you want to search for it. I’ve also found NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) & DBSA (Depression & Bipolar Support Alliance) can give helpful advice concerning low cost or free treatment.
Plus, I think next year is when they start parity in that ins. co. cannot limit mental health treatment (such as my 30 visits/yr. to a therapist). It is to be treated as equal to physical mental health care.
SORRY to go on so long & need to go so no time to proofread—hope it makes sense & not too many typos & errors.

[Shangrala]

Originally Posted by Trying & Caring

WOW--it is so confusing, isn't it? I have spent many hours on the phone w/our ins. company (mental health outsourced to a not very good company; I finally complained through my husband's HR dept. {documented all the hassles I was having}) & my husband's work company investigated & fired that mental health company!!! Now we have a new one!! I felt like I needed MORE therapy appts. due to the stress of dealing w/that ins. company!

Through my husband's work I get 30 therapy visits a year (DBT is also considered therapy so I don't turn those in as they are only $45.00 vs. $120.00 for individual therapy). The ins. co. covers 85% of the cost of the therapy visits. I get unlimited visits w/my meds provider who is a psychiatric nurse practitioner who spends 45-60 min. w/me at each visit & charges $115.00 (much less than a pdoc & much more intimate & she REALLY knows me & listens to my opinions--a collaborative relationship).

The np has actually taken an afternoon off for no charge to accompany me to a medical appt. that I was having severe anxiety over & kept canceling & rescheduling. (She has also treated her clients for no charge who have lost their jobs or in financial difficulty & really helps out w/giving lots of samples so you can save money on meds.) The np knew I needed to address my physical health as well as my mental health so she just said she would escort me & help me make it to the appt. She even called the doc in advance to make sure I wouldn't have to wait in reception area (have cried in there before so was scared I would do that again & embarrass myself) & np talked to doc to make sure she knew I was having severe anxiety & was in a "fragile" state & to have a nurse who "understood" these kinds of situations so she wouldn't be freaked out if I cried or something (which I did).
The internal med doc tried to reassure me that one out of four Americans have some mental health issues in their lifetime so I wasn’t so “weird.” She (IM doc) says she addresses all aspects of your health & that she will not separate the physical from the mental & emotional; they all are equally important & entwined.

I think I have been "lucky"--well, if you consider being ill since I was 15 (first suicide attempt) & not getting correct treatment until 48 or so when internal med doc dxed me as bipolar rather than unipolar depression due to my mother being bipolar (severe case & did commit suicide) & I was in an obvious "mixed" state to her at that appt. I had previously been going to a GP & really believe you need to see a specialist. I will never go to a GP again!
Unfortunately, I had a suicide attempt after a long hypo mania then crashed into depression (didn’t know the hypo mania & not sleeping was so dangerous as it felt SO GOOD) & husband had to take me to the ER. That was covered 100%.
Internal med doc (so very much more thorough; also found out I had low thyroid & pernicious anemia & very high amounts of cortisol due to stress & sleep disorders)--all those can cause mood problems. She sent me to a psychiatric specialist.

Now pretty much 90% of the women in my DBT group (Dialectical Behavioral Therapy) are getting all their treatment & meds free from Medicare. They are considered “disabled” & the gov’t covers their expenses for mental health (& physical) treatment. At the center there it is a one-stop place—group therapy, individual therapy, ACT teams, pharmacy for their meds, etc.
This mental health facility also does a sliding scale according to your income if you are not on disability.
I have a friend from my support group (actually several) on disability—like $800.00 per month to cover her mental health therapy treatment; she goes to therapy at least twice a week. Seeing her pdoc is covered as well. Her medication is covered but some of her medications they will balk at—like she needs name brand Ambien & they want her to take generic, which she has tried, but the generic doesn’t work for her.
Another friend on COBRA insurance as her husband lost his job will not cover much of her son’s ADHD medication or her name brand bipolar stuff. They contact her doc & try to have the doc prescribe the cheapest med as a first line treatment even if the doc thinks something else --like an atypical—would be best for her symptoms (which I think is totally INAPPROPRIATE as they are not docs; they are just trying to save money).
Disability forms are not consumer-friendly & even in the newest edition of the Disability Handbook the gov’t actually says they usually deny you at least twice! They recommend getting a disability attorney to help you (who takes a percentage once you are accepted)! I think that is totally wrong!! Making the forms so hard to fill out that the gov’t actually recommends you get an attorney! WTF?? Is the gov’t getting kickbacks from the attorneys or what?
I do know of one friend who got accepted for disability on the first try, but I think she was extremely lucky.
My husband’s insurance did cover 100% of my IOP (Intensive Outpatient Program) that I went to 4 days a week at a hospital for about 8 weeks & I told them I was ready to “graduate” so I think my ins. probably would have covered longer, if necessary.
My meds are no charge after $2000.00 deductible (which I reach after about Feb. 15th!). My ins. co. has me do mail order meds so I get 3 mos. worth at a time. They do not charge extra for name brand vs. generic & don’t try to force my np to prescribe cheaper stuff, but when my np prescribed Provigil they denied it (Provigil is FDA approved for narcolepsy but she had read the literature that Provigil was helpful for bipolar, esp. w/the side effects of sedation from meds & she sent the literature to the ins. co. & they reversed their decision & approved it! Been on it for at least 12 yrs. now & it is definitely very helpful & VERY EXPENSIVE so having ins. covering it is essential).
But there are other places that cover people w/no ins. & it seems to be word of mouth! At my support group I learned of a lady (40 yrs. old—no job currently so can’t afford ins.) & she told about a program at the local hospital that covers all her meds & therapy & pdoc appts.!! I had never heard of that program, but definitely took down all the info. to pass on to others. We also have in our state (not sure if it is a nation-wide program) where you call 211 (like 411 for emergencies) but they assist you w/housing, medical treatment, inadequate treatment at facilities—such as filing a grievance report, employment, housing, food, all the basics.
A friend in Calif. who had Kaiser (someone else mentioned that; I have tried very hard to avoid HMO’s due to knowing about Kaiser & their inefficient & inadequate treatment) & she not only had mental health issues , but she developed leukemia when she was about 40 yrs. old (3 kids). Since the type of leukemia she had was unusual in adults they refused to pay for a bone marrow transplant as they said it was “experimental” (as she was an adult vs. a child w/the same kind of leukemia) & that she had only a 10% chance of living after the bone marrow transplant so they DENIED paying for it. Essentially, saying “plan your funeral.” Well, it ended up Calif. (Medical) paid for her transplant & whole treatment at a great hospital (the one where my husband & I both were born & my first child who was a preemie).
Um, it’s been 25 YEARS now that she is cancer free.
When we were foster parents in Calif., the state paid for all medical care for the babies (we had infants going up for adoption) at excellent facilities & also paid for special formula one needed (pre-digested as she was a crack baby & had severe digestive problems).
Anyway, I have put up the link to the new Disability Handbook on other threads if you want to search for it. I’ve also found NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) & DBSA (Depression & Bipolar Support Alliance) can give helpful advice concerning low cost or free treatment.
Plus, I think next year is when they start parity in that ins. co. cannot limit mental health treatment (such as my 30 visits/yr. to a therapist). It is to be treated as equal to physical mental health care.
SORRY to go on so long & need to go so no time to proofread—hope it makes sense & not too many typos & errors.

Thank you, T&C..
I think that is so sweet of you to do that research and offer your findings for others...
Btw...made LOTS of sense...Whatta sweetie!

Shangrala

[Shangrala]

Originally Posted by Dr.Muffin

wow! i want to move to the netherlands!!

i live in the US and i have been without adequate health insurance for so long, i cant even tell you what is offered! ive been in college and grad school since 1998, and the coverage we are offered by the school (which requires you to have coverage) is piss poor.

I'm right there with you, Dr.M~

I've BEEN wanting to move to the Netherlands for about 3 years now, (for personal reasons), but yours is equally just. And, the longer it takes, the more I want it. Sigh...In time.

Shangrala

[Elysium]

Last year when I did DBT...it wasn't covered by my Health insurance. I was paying $250.00 a week. ($75.00 for class, $175.00 for individual T) This was all out of pocket so thank the Goddess at the time I had a permanent FT job and good income.

Now that I am only going once a week to my T...I private pay by choice...that way no one can tell me how many visits I can have and my employers have absolutely NO access to my medical files. It is still quite expensive...$500.00/mos just for T...it's really hard when you are working temp jobs and getting unemployment in between, but at the end of the year I get to write it off on my taxes.

Private pay is so much easier than dealing with insurance. I do wish others had the opportunity to private pay or at least get good MH benefits through med insurance.

This Health insurance system in the US needs to be ripped up from the roots and rebuilt.

If only we could say "BUS DRIVER...MOVE THAT BUS!!"

[Greenleaves]

I live in Ontario Canada. I'm not sure about other people's experiences, but I've have good experiences with the mental health care system. I think I am just extremely lucky though. I see my psychiatrist every week for therapy and meds.

When I worked, I had extra insurance that covered my meds 100% but I got laid off. Now I am enrolled in the Trillium program which makes you pay 4% of your income for meds then the rest is free. It works out to be about $400 a year for meds for me, but I no longer have a job now so I think they will make a new calculation for my zero income. I think the least you pay is like $200 a year.

Seeing my pdoc is free, (well not exactly since we all pay through out taxes).

I was also hospitalized once and that was covered 100%.

I've seen my pdoc for like 8 years for therapy and meds. She is good.

[birdcrazy]

Ghaw... the stories I have...

First time I was involuntarily committed into a psych ward. Long story, but it cost an outrageous 12,000 dollars! I tried and tried to get help, I got it reduced to 3,000, but I still couldn't find any help. Now the bill collectors are after me over something I couldn't help at all.

I get coverage now here in Michigan, but it's just because I have no job and I got lucky in getting into the "adult tuition wavier" program. The problem is the program is now closed to new applicants, so if I loose it and get a job, then loose that job and become a new applicant, I'm in trouble cause it's the only state-funded health program for anyone over 21 with no kids, and yes that's how it works I asked before. Also this coverage is only good in my county, if I get sick out of county... tough luck to me.

So when getting a job, I now am pretty much limited to stuff with benefits, and those are few and far between in my field. And now I'm afraid of getting a job then loosing it and not having coverage, I take Abilify and Lamictal, those are expensive!!!

One job I almost got in California... I was this close to getting hired and starting this week, but before going there I checked out mental health coverage... in that county they only took the medi-cal program... and guess what, they just cut that program for anyone over 21. Since job had no benefits... and it seems benefits wouldn't have helped anyway cause they ONLY took medi-cal, not even cash... I had to tell the hiring people to take me out of the running!

Even though I'm doing well, my tdoc told me I had to see him once a week now... but my theory is that they said they were having funding cuts and they are milking my adult tuition waiver money, lol

My tdoc is afraid he will loose his job now, cause of the severe budget cuts coming from the state, things are not looking good.

we've also talked about low fee mental health care options in the psychotherapy forum. many therapists will give a sliding scale on their fee and some even take pro bono cases. my t gives me $50 off her usual rate since i can't work currently. also, the colleges of many psychology graduate programs have clinics where they offer therapy quite inexpensively. the therapy is usually done by psych interns completing their graduate hours. i've done that also and one was good and graduated and referred me to another intern who was not so good. another thing is psychoanalytic training institutes also offer free/low cost psychoanalysis with their students who i believe have more training than those at the regular psych graduate schools. if i'd known about that i would have probably done that but my t is psychoanalytically trained as well. you can negotiate with hospitals on their fees. i know a guy who had surgery at the county hospital and the bill was $60,000 and he got it reduced to zero--no joke!

i've had an HMO (pacificare) in the past and i don't think i would even consider trying to find a t thru that. the medical doctors were pretty poor quality. now i'm back to PPO insurance where it's more expensive but i can choose from many, many doctors. unfortunately, the HMO was so ridiculously limited in their choice of doctors and they were not physicians i would ever recommend to anyone so i can't imagine the ts would have been any better.

[NuckingFutz]

[QUOTE=Elysium3006;1142074]Eeen Amedika..the kontry I com frum. Yu, how yu sai, lucki eenuf to hav gob, yu mai be lucki to hav helt eensoorenz. Eef no eensoorenz tru gob ten yu mus pai ot of de bum...up to for hundrid dolar e munth..eef yu ar ecksepted bi eensoorenz kompny.

Por peepl get eensoorenz eef dey dunt mak to mush muniez. Otter wize dey get nutting and metikal bilz go tru de roofz.

Mi kar haz beterh eensoorenz den I doo!!!

I born een de Yu Ess Eah!!!!
[/QU this post would get anyone out of their depresion!

[Lauru]

Here in California I have been pretty lucky. I do have health insurance from my job, but I also have MediCare which pays for all of my meds. Through my private ins. I pay nothing to see my T however many times I want. No limit. This is due to mental health parity, where if you have certain diagnoses then you qualify to have your psych benefits the same as your medical benefits. Which is cool. My Pdoc I only pay a $20 co pay to see him. So yeah I am lucky and I thank God every day.