In the US, how do people go bankrupt from medical bills when most insurance have a max out of pocket?

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Just was thinking about this the other day while looking at my insurance. How do people in the U.S. accumulate huge bills without hitting their max out of pockets? Are cancer treatments not usually covered by insurance? Are the doctors that provide the treatment just happening to be out of network?

I guess I’m wondering if there is anyway I can plan to not be in a situation of me or my husband rejecting treatment and dying or having huge medical bills cripple us. We’re relatively healthy now, but the future is near.

I’d like to understand better how it seems to be so *common* for people to not be covered by their out of pocket max.

Thanks.

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20 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

Insurance doesn’t/won’t cover every health expense.
Also in the recent past, even if it’s a covered expense, that doesn’t mean they pay all of it. A hospital could charge $10k, and the insurance company may decide that the “reasonable and customary” fee is actually $5k, leaving you to figure out how to pay that additional $5k.

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