Unnecessary medical testing?

Thursdays, Your Consumer Protection series, so far

                    

*I am not a medical professional. Seek medical attention if necessary.

There you are in the doctor’s office feeling a little run down wondering if its something serious. Thoughts are running through your mind working up your worry. Meanwhile, the doctor keeps ordering more tests. Are all those tests really necessary? Visit a doctor if you feel you need to, but watch out for unnecessary medical testing during vulnerable moments.

Suggestive testing

Suggestive testing goes both ways. Patients go to doctors to find answers. Doctors help find answers through suggesting tests. They are scientists, care givers, and businessmen and women all in one. They supply yours and others demands.

Large medical groups are run by a lot of people with large expenses. The doctor may be pressured to suggest and perform tests out of fear of lawsuits or finding ways to cover someone else’s bill.

Genetic testing

Over the past few years, I’ve heard from many women, each with different financial incomes, mention how doctors are asking them to get genetic testing. Insurance companies may not cover elective, experimental procedures. 

Recall your science class; some gene traits may not show up in generations. If you know your family medical history, is paying for genetic testing really necessary to prove the pattern? For example: Two deaf parents have a hard of hearing child. Is it necessary to test the child genetically to see if she has a hearing impaired gene? If you don’t know your family medical history, guess what? Many of us don’t and still live on.

They’ll test you anyways

Doctors know after a certain age, symptoms and information you provide them, they will draw an educated, process of elimination analysis, of what to test.

They will perform tests anyways to prove their suspected findings. If they don’t find it the first time, they’ll try another approach of tests. If you’re willing, they will continue more tests.

Ask questions:

• Is it urgently right now life or death necessary?
• Are there any safe self preventative practices you can do?
• Is the doctor presenting extremes?
• Will the wait for results drive you to worry, creating more stress and sickness?
• Will the bill be so high, it takes the rest of yours or others lifetime to pay off?
• Are they prematurely pressuring you with death scares?
• Are you dying to know how you may die while living?
• Why does the health industry stress your health is priceless, if they keep charging such high prices and test for flaws?

Financial Solutions

• Ask your Doctor about Safe Self Preventative Measures and apply them.
• Make payment arrangements to the medical facility.
  Ask if they consider financial hardship cases.
• Find out if your medical expenses qualifies for a Tax Deduction.
• *Bankruptcy

Exercise your right to say no to unnecessary testing and get another medical opinion or two. Morbid as it sounds, we are mortal beings, death is inevitable in us all, at any time, from any cause.

*Hesitate relying on Government Assistance or Bankruptcy to help relieve some of the expenses. It dips into the country’s deficit. Those choices may wipe off the bill on your part, but the medical facility gets left with it. They, in turn, try to figure out how to cover the loss including passing on the price to the next patient in the waiting room wondering if their symptoms are serious or not.

*I am not a medical professional. Seek medical attention if necessary.