# I dont NEED health insurance! (Um... Can I have money to pay my medical bills?) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 28, 2015, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817 "2015-02-28T01:00:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2015, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/21 "2015-02-28T18:25:35Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > What is it with sheriffs in Arizona? First Joe Apaio and now this guy. Are _any_ of the sheriffs in Arizona normal? It’s _ **Arizona** _; their motto should be, “Like Florida with cacti”. (Or maybe cactuses. I’m not sure.) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2015, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/22 "2015-02-28T18:30:43Z")
> [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > It’s _ **Arizona** _; their motto should be, “Like Florida with cacti”. ‘Like Florida, but it’s a _dry_ heat.’ ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2015, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/23 "2015-02-28T18:43:34Z")
> [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > Has anyone pointed out that he can still sign up for “Obamacare”, since they can’t deny people with pre-existing conditions? > > I say let him go bankrupt for his poor decisions, let him live the beliefs of his kind of people. Serious question: do they have to wait for an end of the year open enrollment period? ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2015, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/24 "2015-02-28T19:33:21Z")
Yea, I kind of expected supporters of the ACA were motivated by compassion for the suffering of those unable to gain access to healthcare because they can’t afford it. I get the guys a jerk and a dick and has been a public detriment, but I’m not surprised that people are giving him money. I am surprised by those who are preaching, “Let him live by his own choices!”, because that’s an attitude that should remain the sole property of the far right, where it belongs, I think. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/25 "2015-03-01T02:24:01Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > Yea, I kind of expected supporters of the ACA were motivated by compassion for the suffering of those unable to gain access to healthcare because they can’t afford it. Or, you know, motivated by having enough business sense to see that paying the most for healthcare while getting the least out of it is a stupid model for most of the country. > [@](#): > > I am surprised by those who are preaching, “Let him live by his own choices!”, because that’s an attitude that should remain the sole property of the far right, where it belongs, I think. You don’t have to be compassionate to be a liberal, you just have to _not_ be as idiotically mean-spirited as this jackhole. I bet you think nurses are nice people, too. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/26 "2015-03-01T02:45:52Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > Serious question: do they have to wait for an end of the year open enrollment period? I honestly don’t know. If he lost his insurance due to a life event, maybe not. It wouldn’t help his previous bills but it would help going forward. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/27 "2015-03-01T03:11:09Z")
There was an enrollment period that ended Oct 15 and one that ended Feb 15. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/28 "2015-03-01T03:27:20Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > There’s a link in the article to the GoFundMe campaign. He’s taking a beating in the comments. > (Unless they can edit them out later) > > Samples > And even these people have donated. I’m tempted to send in a check for 2¢ with “Fuck You” in the memo line just to see if he cashes it. > [@GrumpyBunny](#): > > Has anyone pointed out that he can still sign up for “Obamacare”, since they can’t deny people with pre-existing conditions? > > I say let him go bankrupt for his poor decisions, let him live the beliefs of his kind of people. Open enrolment has ended so he’d need to have a qualifying life event sign up for a policy on the Exchange, and to the best of my knowledge getting really sick & deciding you need insurance after all doesn’t qualify. And even if it did coverage wouldn’t be retroactive so he’s still all his existing medical bills. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/29 "2015-03-01T04:35:42Z")
So if he gets enough money, he and his ilk will just say “See, we don’t need gubmint forcing us to get no insurance. We’re Americans, we help each other out when we need it.” ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/30 "2015-03-01T04:39:43Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > So if he gets enough money, he and his ilk will just say “See, we don’t need gubmint forcing us to get no insurance. We’re Americans, we help each other out when we need it.” Yeah. And no one was forced to pay for anonymous women to slut around (birth control and abortion coverage). ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/31 "2015-03-01T04:40:09Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > So if he gets enough money, he and his ilk will just say “See, we don’t need gubmint forcing us to get no insurance. We’re Americans, we help each other out when we need it.” His goal was only 30K. That’s only a few days in ICU. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/32 "2015-03-01T05:11:45Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > I am surprised by those who are preaching, “Let him live by his own choices!”, because that’s an attitude that should remain the sole property of the far right, where it belongs, I think. I think that even the most crunchy of liberals have a point at which they say, “Fuck him.” This guy used his position to campaign against the ACA so that other people couldn’t have coverage (which I assume he had as sheriff). Once the ACA passed, the guy opted to not obtain insurance, which would’ve included coverage for anything pre-existing. And now the same guy is begging for money to cover his medical bills? Oh, fuck him. Besides, as Happy Lendervedder points out, if people pay for his stupid decision, the sheriff and those like him will claim that in Murka, Real Merkins help each other out. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/33 "2015-03-01T06:41:20Z")
I _might_ be willing to contribute _if_ he admits he was wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/34 "2015-03-01T09:47:19Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > So if he gets enough money, he and his ilk will just say “See, we don’t need gubmint forcing us to get no insurance. We’re Americans, we help each other out when we need it.” That is, as I understand it, the theory behind opposition to government programs. People think that people should be civil to one another, have local community, and help out each other as kind, passionate, and caring beings. Whereas, if we cede all that to the government then we end up as self-concerned teet-sucking buttheads. ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/35 "2015-03-01T14:14:05Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > That is, as I understand it, the theory behind opposition to government programs. People think that people should be civil to one another, have local community, and help out each other as kind, passionate, and caring beings. Whereas, if we cede all that to the government then we end up as self-concerned teet-sucking buttheads. Which is a great theory that in practice works like tipping. A few generous souls overtip. Then people tip because they feel obligated and resent it. And a few people consistently stiff the waitstaff. And I tend not to trust a lot of conservative thought because I often get the “stiff the waitstaff” vibe from them. Then I’M stuck making up the difference. And it works in theory when the community itself is strong. But there isn’t a lot of community in Detroit or Hibbing right now to take care of a kid’s leukemia treatment. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_stamos_left_ear/32/3198_2.png) [@John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Stamos_Left_Ear)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/36 "2015-03-01T18:44:38Z")
As conservatives and Republican presidential nominees told me, he will still get his treatments. He won’t die. He’ll just be bankrupt and the costs will come back to us anyway so we will pay whether we donate or not. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/37 "2015-03-01T19:18:34Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > I _might_ be willing to contribute _if_ he admits he was wrong. You are safe. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/38 "2015-03-01T19:25:48Z")
> [@John\_Stamos\_Left\_Ear](#): > > As conservatives and Republican presidential nominees told me, he will still get his treatments. He won’t die. He’ll just be bankrupt and the costs will come back to us anyway so we will pay whether we donate or not. I think conservatives and Republicans don’t understand the last part. If the costs are going to come back to us anyway, then it makes more sense and saves more money if we go single-payer. But they would rather pay millions or billions more just so they don’t have to save money with :eek: SOCIALISM! ---
**Author:** ![BOOM](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c4cdca/32.png) [@BOOM](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BOOM)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/39 "2015-03-01T19:34:26Z")
He just bought the same propaganda most people did, and he’s had several decades of it - difficut for some people to admit they’ve been conned and lied to for half a century. Maybe it’s a pride thing, maybe he just couldn’t unwrap the issue from the flag it was wrapped so tightly in. I remember looking at working class people attending town hall meetings pleading it would be the end of America, looking at their kids and shaking my head. ---
**Author:** ![phall0106](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/phall0106/32/5934_2.png) [@phall0106](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phall0106)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2015, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817/40 "2015-03-01T20:07:25Z")
> [@running\_coach](#): > > His goal was only 30K. That’s only a few days in ICU. Those were my thoughts. For an ongoing medical condition, $30K won’t get your far. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-dont-need-health-insurance-um-can-i-have-money-to-pay-my-medical-bills/713817.md?page=3)