I’ve met my health insurance deductible for the year. Any suggestions of optional things i should get done while i’m maxed out? (34yo male, already getting routine bloodwork for hormone levels.)
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vasectomy?
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probably a high ROI one. but actually thinking about the inverse and getting my balls checked to make sure everything is working properly
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Nothing, Unnecessary testing just leads to mostly unnecessary medical interventions, if you don’t have any symptoms.
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Comprehensive annual physical
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mine was free since it was considered birth control. I had a HDP and was no where near meeting the deductible and never got a bill. Insurance covered it all. Not sure if that applies to everyone or not though, but I think it might. Got it after ACA about 2 years ago.
Deductible met or max out of pocket met? Huge difference there. When I met my max out of pocket last year (after surgery) I was trying to set up every appointment I could by end of year since I literally didn’t pay anything. Of course, I do have several health issues that require tests and expensive imaging so I was able to move some of those up a few months to take advantage.
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Are you traveling internationally any time soon? Maybe look at the immunization rules and guidelines if those are covered by your insurance.
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Colonoscopy, but you’re 20 years early.
Get checked for prostate cancer. I was nervous and psyched up for it but my doctor flat out refused to do it.
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That’s an example of a controversial test. It has false positives, and you might end up having a painful and potentially dangerous biopsy based on an elevated PSA when it’s unlikely you have prostate cancer as a young man, I think that’s why there’s a protocol on when to start screening for it.
Is there a Dr. in the house that can elaborate for us?
Here’s some legit discussion on the pro/con of PSA testing and there’s also a lot good discussion in the comment section.
Sleep study and CPAP machine if you think you might have sleep apnea. If you snore you likely do. Treating it can make you sleep better and reduce your blood pressure.
I had sleep study done and they did not rule that I have apnea. I know I snore like a freight train too. The thing is that I can’t even buy a CPAP without a prescription and I can’t get a prescription without a diagnose of apnea. It’s weird, it’s not like someone going to get overdose on CPAP machine.
Maybe Dr. shop? I had an AHI of 6 (0-5 is normal) and wanted to try it anyway, so the Dr. prescribed it. Whether your insurance will pay for it or not is a whole other matter. Nowadays, you can buy a nice travel sized machine for cash for ~$500.
There is also a simplified home screening test for apnea that’s only about $250. Or the ghetto version, like I did, was to buy a cheap recording pulse oximeter for $40 and tape it to my finger for a night or two.
This thread is a great demonstration of why cost-sharing in healthcare is stupid. Not only does it lead to worse outcomes and higher costs when people forgo early care (which is usually cheaper) due to cost, when someone is unlucky enough to hit the deductible, it leads to a sense of “I’ve paid all this money so I’m going to make sure I get my money’s worth by trying to get everything I can out of it” that just increases costs.
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cost-sharing in healthcare is stupid
Can’t we keep this a practical thread instead of political? There’s a whole massive thread where people complain bitterly about Obamacare repeatedly. (I see you have posted a bunch in it already).
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I don’t think that’s the exam he was nervous and psyched up for.
Is this routine? If so, my doc is behind the times.
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