HEARING - U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging
HEARING - U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging HEARING - U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging
21 Mrs. RIEGER. No. Chairman MELCHER. So a portion of your husband's prescriptions-- Mrs. RIEGER. I am having to pay myself. Chairman MELCHER. What does that run per month, including your own? Mrs. RIEGER. Well, if I bought mine and his both, I would be paying around $75 month. Right now, last month, I paid-his runs different-but the last month, I picked up $32 of his that was not. Chairman MELCHER. Now, I want to get this straight. He has Social Security income. Mrs. RIEGER. Yes. Chairman MELCHER. He is eligible to be in this nursing home and pay $25 per month? Mrs. RIEGER. Twenty-five dollars is what is left out of his Social Security that I can use to pay. Chairman MELCHER. All the $498 except $25? Mrs. RIEGER. Yes-goes to the nursing home. Chairman MELCHER. I see. So you are faced with paying the prescriptions for yourself and him and taking care of whatever your medical needs are, and waiting for the golden day when you are financially able to have the knee surgery-- Mrs. RIEGER. Yes. Chairman MELCHER. And what is your other medication for? Mrs. RIEGER. High blood pressure and a heart condition. I have not taken any heart pills for quite a long time, because they are the most expensive. Chairman MELCHER. Have you been able to save any money, or did you have any savings? Mrs. RIEGER. The first 6 months that he was in the nursing home, it took everything we had. Chairman MELCHER. All of your savings? Mrs. RIEGER. Yes. Chairman MELCHER. And so you still have to pay $700 of hospital charges that go back 7 years? Mrs. RIEGER. Yes, and then on top of that, I owe our former doctor, who now has retired, I owe him $1,500-but Dr. Simon said, "Well, I know you will pay it someday, Edith, so I am not going to press you for it." But I am just one who does not want bills hanging. Chairman MELCHER. So $1,500 to him, $700 to the hospital, and $1,300 to the drugstore. Mrs. RIEGER. Yes. And I have been paying the Alva Hospital. I owe them some on his last trip to the hospital. I have got that down to $43, though, which I will be able to take care of. And on top of that, he had a Medicare supplement, but I had to drop it because I could not pay it. Chairman MELCHER. In other words, you exhausted what you had set aside, and in order even to cope with the past bills that you are paying off, you are working 50 hours a week cooking at the supper club and putting off your own health care needs. Mrs. RIEGER. Yes.
22 Chairman MELCHER. Well, I am pleased that you have a very confident outlook about you. Those are not the best of circumstances. Mrs. RIEGER. I will struggle and pay it some way, some time, but there are still days when I go home and-my day consists of getting up at 6:30, going to work, coming home, maybe resting an hour, going to the nursing home and spending the rest of the evening, come home, and get up and do the same thing all over. Chairman MELCHER. That is a tough life. Thank you, Mrs. Rieger. Senator Heinz. Senator HEINZ. Mr. Chairman, thank you. Mrs. Rieger, you mentioned that you had a Medigap policy for something like 18 years; is that right? Mrs. RIEGER. Yes. Senator HEINZ. But you had no idea that it would not cover the kinds of costs and problems you have experienced? Mrs. RIEGER. Well, now, I feel that his Medicare policy covered pretty well, because those vascular surgeries are not cheap, and I felt it did pretty good. If he had not had to go to the nursing home, we could have had that all paid, but Senator HEINZ. Did you think that the nursing home costs were going to be covered? Mrs. RIEGER. Oh, no. I knew that would not happen. Senator HEINZ. So you did not feel you got blind-sided here? Mrs. RIEGER. No, not on that. Senator HEINZ. Is there anything that, if you look back 5 or 10 years, you would have done differently, knowing the kinds of problems you were going to encounter? Mrs. RIEGER. Well, I do not know of anything I could have done differently, really. Senator HEINZ. Are you at the point now where your bills are so big that you do not know how you are going to pay them? Mrs. RIEGER. From month to month now, medicine and things are going up so high that, yes, I do wonder, because until I make a house payment and insurance-like house insurance, which you have to have; car insurance, which you have to have-no, I do not know, because right now I owe the man who carries my car insurance $120. He said, "You cannot run around here without car insurance. I am sending it in for you." I said, "I do not know when I can pay you." He said, "You will pay me. I know that." But I do not like to have people do that for me. Senator HEINZ. You mentioned that you have postponed having the cartilage surgery on your knee because you cannot afford it. Mrs. RIEGER. Yes. And the doctor told me, "I can put shots in there two more times, and that is all you can have." Senator HEINZ. You also indicated you were on blood pressure medication. Mrs. RIEGER. Yes. Senator HEINZ. Do you take that every day, or are there times when you do not take it because you cannot afford it? Mrs. RIEGER. I have not had my blood pressure filled for about a month, now.
- Page 1 and 2: S. HRG. 100-69 CATASTROPHIC HEALTH
- Page 3 and 4: CONTENTS Opening statement by Senat
- Page 5 and 6: 2 Second, I think the private insur
- Page 7 and 8: 4 So the question before us is how
- Page 9 and 10: 6 the elderly, long-term health car
- Page 11 and 12: 8 ments for our retirement. I might
- Page 13 and 14: 10 Mrs. YELINECK. Well, it would be
- Page 15 and 16: 12 As I understand it, you have not
- Page 17 and 18: 14 Mrs. YELINECK. One does not expe
- Page 19 and 20: 16 Senator BURDICK. Well, thank you
- Page 21 and 22: 18 Mrs. YEL.INECK. No. I started ou
- Page 23: 20 Therefore-I am supposed to take
- Page 27 and 28: 24 month. Let us assume it costs $1
- Page 29 and 30: 26 STATEMENT BY SENATOR PETE WILSON
- Page 31 and 32: 28 Mrs. RIEGER. We have; we have wo
- Page 33 and 34: 30 Four years ago this August was w
- Page 35 and 36: 32 she has only 50 percent vision i
- Page 37 and 38: 34 Senator HEINZ. So it is both a p
- Page 39 and 40: 36 rich. Indeed, in the academic co
- Page 41 and 42: 38 pointedly in the comment from Mr
- Page 43 and 44: 40 finding out is that it is very l
- Page 45 and 46: 42 industry's role in providing cat
- Page 47 and 48: 44 Senator HEINZ. So things are wor
- Page 49 and 50: 46 Chairman MELCHER. In exactly the
- Page 51 and 52: 48 plement policy, what should that
- Page 53 and 54: 50 - 2 - I am Robert Shapland, Vice
- Page 55 and 56: 52 - 4 - CATASTRIPC PROTECTION IiDE
- Page 57 and 58: 54 -6- MiCIGAP INSJRANCE: A RPL1C/P
- Page 59 and 60: 56 To ensure that all of these cont
- Page 61 and 62: 58 - 10 - The HJAA also endorses Me
- Page 63 and 64: 60 - 12 - Finally, given that Congr
- Page 65 and 66: 62 - 14 - A recent HLAA survey of o
- Page 67 and 68: 64 Chairman MELCHER. Senator Heinz.
- Page 69 and 70: 66 Mr. SHAPLAND. I think we are in
- Page 71 and 72: 68 Those problems are real problems
- Page 73 and 74: 70 Mr. SHAPLAND. Oh, no. There are
22<br />
Chairman MELCHER. Well, I am pleased that you have a very<br />
c<strong>on</strong>fident outlook about you. Those are not the best of circumstances.<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. I will struggle and pay it some way, some time, but<br />
there are still days when I go home and-my day c<strong>on</strong>sists of getting<br />
up at 6:30, going to work, coming home, maybe resting an<br />
hour, going to the nursing home and spending the rest of the<br />
evening, come home, and get up and do the same thing all over.<br />
Chairman MELCHER. That is a tough life.<br />
Thank you, Mrs. Rieger.<br />
Senator Heinz.<br />
Senator HEINZ. Mr. Chairman, thank you.<br />
Mrs. Rieger, you menti<strong>on</strong>ed that you had a Medigap policy for<br />
something like 18 years; is that right?<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. Yes.<br />
Senator HEINZ. But you had no idea that it would not cover the<br />
kinds of costs and problems you have experienced?<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. Well, now, I feel that his Medicare policy covered<br />
pretty well, because those vascular surgeries are not cheap, and I<br />
felt it did pretty good. If he had not had to go to the nursing home,<br />
we could have had that all paid, but<br />
Senator HEINZ. Did you think that the nursing home costs were<br />
going to be covered?<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. Oh, no. I knew that would not happen.<br />
Senator HEINZ. So you did not feel you got blind-sided here?<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. No, not <strong>on</strong> that.<br />
Senator HEINZ. Is there anything that, if you look back 5 or 10<br />
years, you would have d<strong>on</strong>e differently, knowing the kinds of problems<br />
you were going to encounter?<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. Well, I do not know of anything I could have d<strong>on</strong>e<br />
differently, really.<br />
Senator HEINZ. Are you at the point now where your bills are so<br />
big that you do not know how you are going to pay them?<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. From m<strong>on</strong>th to m<strong>on</strong>th now, medicine and things<br />
are going up so high that, yes, I do w<strong>on</strong>der, because until I make a<br />
house payment and insurance-like house insurance, which you<br />
have to have; car insurance, which you have to have-no, I do not<br />
know, because right now I owe the man who carries my car insurance<br />
$120. He said, "You cannot run around here without car insurance.<br />
I am sending it in for you."<br />
I said, "I do not know when I can pay you."<br />
He said, "You will pay me. I know that."<br />
But I do not like to have people do that for me.<br />
Senator HEINZ. You menti<strong>on</strong>ed that you have postp<strong>on</strong>ed having<br />
the cartilage surgery <strong>on</strong> your knee because you cannot afford it.<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. Yes. And the doctor told me, "I can put shots in<br />
there two more times, and that is all you can have."<br />
Senator HEINZ. You also indicated you were <strong>on</strong> blood pressure<br />
medicati<strong>on</strong>.<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. Yes.<br />
Senator HEINZ. Do you take that every day, or are there times<br />
when you do not take it because you cannot afford it?<br />
Mrs. RIEGER. I have not had my blood pressure filled for about a<br />
m<strong>on</strong>th, now.
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