$330 million. That's how much go fund me says has gone
toward memorial fundraisers eve year. Uh huh. This is
in the loop on christian Bryant tonight. We're
about the cost of care in America and one of our true
safety nets, not the government we're talking about
fund me helping each other. It's human nature and Go
fund Me brings people together to find the support they
need when they need it. Go Fund Me is one of the most
popular crowdfunding sites in the world. From May of
2010 to december of 2018, more than one million Go Fund
Me fundraisers were created in the U.S. And according
to the Journal of the American Medical Associatio
more than a quarter of those were created to cover
health care costs. As of april of 2019, those
fundraisers helped raised over $3 billion. That's an
incredible amount of money that's been basically
crowdsourced. And honestly it speaks to the importance
of sites like go fund me in american life. But it also
raises a few questions about the U.S. Healthcare syste
namely why is it so difficult to get medical expens
covered by insurance Who does the financial
responsibility fall on And what does this really look
like for many americans for Some of the issue starts
out with access to insurance. The U.S. Census Bure
says 26 million people were uninsured in 2019. That can
lead to mounting medical debt since most people without
insurance make less money. I mean the average cost of a
hospital stay is almost $12,000. Hospitals can even
charge you for every single ibuprofen. But the thing is
even if you have insurance coverage that doesn't
guarantee smooth sailing in the United States, The
Kaiser Family Foundation says one in five people with
insurance, I still have trouble paying with rising
deductibles and unexpected bills. Many people aren't
prepared to cover the costs they end up being on the
hook for. But that's only a part of it, prescriptions
aren't always covered by insurance. Imagine you have
cancer and your oncologist prescribes you a promising
treatment but your insurance comes back and denies the
coverage. That means you're on the hook to pay for it
if you choose to use it. That's the gripe A lot of
people have with the process you covered this chemo.
That type of chemo is experimental and not FDA approv
Therefore we cannot pay for it. But my oncologist at MD
Anderson and Houston, which is the number one cancer
hospital in the United States and number four in the
world. I understand that, but we, the insurance
companies know far more than world renowned oncologist
and while that's just a tick tock skit that's gained
more than 370,000 views, it's also based on a true
story. And although we're making some headway with the
insurance company to pay for her treatment were still
drowned and medical bills right now, I'm kind of
desperate. So my mom friends started to go fund me for
her. Um, and I'm gonna post that link in my bio here on
my Tiktok. Insurance companies do offer an appeals
process, but that could take more than a year when
there's a serious diagnosis at hand, the patient might
not have the time or resources to fight that another
option. Paying out of pocket therapy costs for newly
diagnosed cancer patients are 23% to 63% of their
household income. I don't know about, y'all, but my
pockets are not that deep. While some people are paying
for long term medical expenses, others are struggling
to pay off charges from a while ago to make ends meet.
This could cause people to cut back on spending for
household purchases, food and basic items. Some are
draining savings accounts, borrowing more money and
changing their living situation So it only makes
sense why so many people turn to online fundraisers go
fund me is don't just cover medical bills. People hav
used campaigns to cover costly funeral expenses and a
lot of times people are unprepared to take on those
expenses because really they aren't talking about end
of life decisions. That's where death cafes come in.
Stick with me. It's a place for folks to get together
and talk about deaf Newsy's Amber Strong tells us more
$330 million. That's how much go fund me says has gone
toward memorial fundraisers every year, covering things
like family support after a death and funeral cost an
average $10,000 expense. Those high costs for death
care can come as a surprise for the unprepared. Yo
don't want to think about your end and you don't want
to think about what life will be like without you death.
And what you want after you die is the conversation
nobody wants to have. Unless of course your library and
Andrea Castillo and have led discussions at the local
death cafe. I had started as a person kind of trying to
confront my own anxieties about death. Death cafes all
over the world tend to happen in people's homes or
places like this library where folks are comfortable
gathering over coffee cake and conversations on death.
The topics can run the gamut from, you know, we've
talked about what it's like, you know losing a parent
or losing a sibling. What arrangements do you want to
make a living wills There are even like what it's like
to clean out your relative's house after they die
Talking about earth control doesn't make you pregnant
and talking about death doesn't make you die. Sandy,
schlong decker and Isabel Bernie are volunteers with
the Blue Ridge Virginia branch of the national funeral
consumers alliance. They say the kinds of talks
happening at death cafes are a good first step in
planning for one of life's biggest expenses for the
basic funeral at one place, it might be $5000 across
the street. It might be $10,000 prices varying so
drastically. It may seem hard to know what's fair and
what isn't If you're suddenly faced with burying a
loved one or just hoping to plan ahead. The FCK says
that's where they come in compiling a list every two
years comparing local funeral home costs. For example,
the lowest price containers for remains will run you
anywhere from $35 for a cremation container to $3,295
for traditional casket Hearse, anywhere from $90 to 500
And bombing is anywhere from 425 to 1395. Once the
person has died there traumatized there, you know,
everything's happening so fast. In comparison shopping
just is not like a mindset. The Federal Trade
Commission also lays out some guidelines to protect
consumers during what can be a really tough time. It's
known as the funeral rule. For instance, funeral hom
must provide an itemized list of the total cost of a
funeral or at least a good faith estimate up front.
They also can't force you to buy one of their caskets
and must accept caskets from third party vendors, which
may be cheaper than what you're offered on site.
Schloss Decker and Bernie say their group's mission is
to make sure people know this kind of info exist and to
encourage families to prepare but never prepay. It's a
good idea to think about what you want and to know
about how much it will cost us. Then you set aside that
money and you control that money. Don't give it to a
funeral home because no one pre pays for a T.V. And
picks it up three years later. But sometimes find
the cash is just difficult, which leads some to
crowdsourcing. Even still, experts say, having the
conversation now can ease the burden even if it's just
emotionally amber strong Newsy Washington
hospitalizations related to covid lead to innovative,
new ways to get some cancer patients in and out of the
hospital quicker than before. Mhm