Mary Lou Retton Fighting for Her Life in ICU

[Pink Partridge]

https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Culture/...ton-fighting-life-due-rare/story?id=103886729

 

[gmi3804]

It’s unconscionable that she (and others like her) doesn’t have insurance and is now begging with a GoFundMe.

 

[Pink Partridge]

Well, she does have a net worth of around $2 million (some sources say $8 million). I wonder why she chose not to buy healthcare off the Marketplace?

God, I worshiped her as a kid

I hope she gets well.

 

[tvguy]

Well, she does have a net worth of around $2 million (some sources say $8 million). I wonder why she chose not to buy healthcare off the Marketplace?

God, I worshiped her as a kid

I hope she gets well.

Well, let's be honest, Marketplace insurance can be a joke. It certainly saved a friends life, but there isn't a Doctor within 150 miles of where she lives that accepts it. Fortunately she was able to travel here for treatment, and able to stay with us to recover until she was well enough to travel home.

 

[gmi3804]

Well, let's be honest, Marketplace insurance can be a joke. It certainly saved a friends life, but there isn't a Doctor within 150 miles of where she lives that accepts it. Fortunately she was able to travel here for treatment, and able to stay with us to recover until she was well enough to travel home.

It’s not the Marketplace’s fault. The insurance companies’ plans suck.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Oh, the poor woman and her family.

All her net worth could be tied up in her house, it happens a lot.

Even if a person has insurance copays and deductibles can be untenable, I think healthcare is still the major cause of bankruptcy in the US.

Marketplace didn't turn out to be the panacea it was supposed to be, remember how we were all going to be saved? Seems we are not saved and now thousands of businesses with little oversight and no accountability have access to the most intimate data on Americans. Sounds on brand, almost as if our data is valuable, nahhh no-one wants that silly thought.

 

[gmi3804]

Oh, the poor woman and her family.

All her net worth could be tied up in her house, it happens a lot.

But it’s not. Her choice to not get insurance is well-reported. And now she‘s begging for money. What a skank.

 

[tvguy]

It’s not the Marketplace’s fault. The insurance companies’ plans suck.

A little of that and a little of Doctors can be greedy. So much for the Hippocratic Oath.
I ran into that when I signed up for Medicare last year. The first choice was whether to go with Medicare part A and B, or with a Medicare Advantage Plan, known as Part C. All my Doctors take Part A and B. I had an option of 30 different private insurance plans under Medicare Advantage Part C. Then I input my Primary Care Physician's name, that eliminated 27 plans that he did not take. I put my first Specials name, and that eliminated the three remaining plans.
But I have been happy with traditional Medicare with a private Medi-gap supplement. But the different between what hospitals charge, and what Medicare and the supplement allow is mind boggling. I had an ablation in June and the hospital bill alone came to $198,000. Medicare paid $30,000, my supplement paid $1,600 and the hospital had to accept that as full payment. Of course, the not-for-profit hospital group is in hot water because they are making too much money and not investing it in care.

​

 

[gmi3804]

A little of that and a little of Doctors can be greedy. So much for the Hippocratic Oath.

Amen.

 

[dioxide45]

But it’s not. Her choice to not get insurance is well-reported. And now she's begging for money. What a skank.

There is a saying "your lack of planning shouldn't be my problem".

 

[gmi3804]

There is a saying "your lack of planning shouldn't be my problem".

It’s a lot tougher to muster any sympathy when she certainly has the means.

 

[Disneychick75]

But it’s not. Her choice to not get insurance is well-reported. And now she‘s begging for money. What a skank.

A skank? I don't agree with the GoFundMe me but geez that's harsh.

 

[Genie+]

Best wishes she pulls through. Lung disease is a horrible fight.

Hope rare form of pneumonia isn’t double talk for covid with no vaccine or insurance.

 

[Moliphino]

It’s unconscionable that she (and others like her) doesn’t have insurance and is now begging with a GoFundMe.

She didn't set it up, her kids did.

 

[dioxide45]

She didn't set it up, her kids did.

It is possible that her kids don't have access to her money, they probably don't have a POA for her. Though if she had wealth, you would think the hospital would be willing to bill her and take payment later. It still doesn't negate the fact that she has no insurance.

 

[Moliphino]

It is possible that her kids don't have access to her money, they probably don't have a POA for her. Though if she had wealth, you would think the hospital would be willing to bill her and take payment later. It still doesn't negate the fact that she has no insurance.

And if, as it says, she's "not able to breathe on her own" then she's not in any shape to be providing her kids with any info on what she has and how to access it.

 

[tvguy]

It’s a lot tougher to muster any sympathy when she certainly has the means.

I think the most important thing is she make a quick and full recovery. I have no idea what her means are, and we are all free to decide whether we want to contribute to a GoFundMe.

But there are many money mysteries out there with well known people.
Earlier this year Senator Dianne Feinstein was hospitalized for a long time and afterwards filed suit against the administrators of her late husbands $1 billion estate for not paying her medical bills. That lawsuit was unresolved at the time of her death.
My first question was, why did she have medical bills?
1) She was 90 and on Medicare. Her out of pocket should be no more than $233 a year
2) She is a member of the Senate and has Gold Level Healthcare insurance that covers 80% of her bill
3) Her personal wealth, OUTSIDE her husband estate, was $90 million.

 

[Genie+]

Raised almost $400k now.

Probably doesn’t cover hospital bill yet but if the Spotfund keeps growing might help avoid need for indigent care.

 

[bcla]

Much of the reporting is that she and her husband divorced back 2018. He was the one employed and ostensibly had employer-sponsored health insurance. That can be really tough even if she theoretically had assets.

 

[lanejudy]

My first question was, why did she have medical bills?
1) She was 90 and on Medicare. Her out of pocket should be no more than $233 a year
2) She is a member of the Senate and has Gold Level Healthcare insurance that covers 80% of her bill

I can't speak to Ms Feinstein's situation specifically ... but Medicare is secondary if the policy-holder is employed full-time. A US Senator is employed full-time. Therefore, despite being a "Gold Level Healthcare" plan there may well be providers/facilities who are out-of-network. As such, Medicare may refuse to pay secondary coverage if the patient did not go in-network with the primary coverage.