Economy of Cancer-CANCER IS EXPENSIVE!!

Not a week goes by that I don’t see a blog or Facebook post asking how to help a friend with cancer. People often suggest many tangible things, but rarely money. Given our focus on the financial side of cancer this month, I’d like to clear up some things and provide a suggestion.

There aren’t many one size fits all ways to help someone going through treatment. Cooking meals is nice for some, but others may not be up to or able to eat (mouth sores can really make it hard to get down a meatloaf). Some people would love a snugly pair of pajamas, while for others this is just a reminder of their illness. In the end, asking the person what they need is usually best.

There is one thing that almost all people going through cancer treatment will experience: cancer is EXPENSIVE. You may think having health insurance means patients and families do not need to worry about the cost of care. But even those with “good insurance” will undoubtedly feel the financial hold of cancer treatment. There are so many expenses not covered by insurance, that any financial help would be appreciated by most patients and caregivers. Here are just a few examples of the unexpected costs of cancer:

Surprise! Medicare doesn’t pay the whole bill! It is an 80/20 split – with the patient paying 20% of the bill. At several thousand dollars a chemotherapy treatment, that adds up quickly.
Co-pays, co-pays, co-pays. You know that $25 you pay when you see your PCP for a cold? Multiply that by a lot – every doctor visit, every radiology test, every blood draw and chemo infusion. And don’t even get me started on deductibles!
The cost of gas and parking add up quickly too. If the patient ends up in the hospital for a period, add on daily parking costs for the caregiver and money to eat while there.
Job related costs – maybe the person cannot work and has to take time off without pay. This may be true for the caregiver as well. Perhaps they have to pay for COBRA to maintain their health insurance on top of that.
Dependent care costs – this could be added childcare expenses or for the care of an elderly parent. Maybe the patient is usually the babysitter but can no longer reliably provide this care.

Reference: Oncolink