The question asked was “Would you let yourself be exposed to the flu for $3500?”. The answer for me was a resounding NO. I have been on both ends of the financial spectrum and I find it sad that people have to decide between their health and paying bills. To me $3,500 is not enough for anyone to be exposed to a potentially lethal virus.
If I were certain it were the normal flu “I grew up with”, and I actually got $3500 (i.e. travel expenses would be paid by them on top of that, or negligible), then I would take PTO off from work and do it: 3500 profit. BUT lately the news has been hammering us about how the flu is deadly and we should get our flu shots. This is probably fearmingering to make more money off of flu shots. But I am not sure the researchers won’t take that as a license to inject me with a flu much more deadly than the one “I grew up with”. And I don’t see how I could convince myself it is just the normal flu by asking them for clarification.
No. My time alone is worth more than that, never mind the pain and suffering and risk of death. At 10 days, we’re talking using a minimum of 48 hours of PTO if we straddle two weekends and ignore travel time.
Ooh, that’s an excellent point. Even when I had calculated it out as $43.75 an hour, it wasn’t even close to worth it when you consider that I’d have to use up PTO to do the study. When you consider it as $14.58 an hour, I’m with you – “hell no.” Even if I were unemployed, I wouldn’t do it.
Every year my county health department holds big rallies and gives out thousands of free flu shots at no charge. They don’t even ask if people are residents of the county.
I don’t think they’d do that if it were just hype by the drug companies.
Not these days. Retired; Don’t need it or the money.