For Physical and Financial Health Insurance – The Case For Whole Food Plant-Based Diets
I am ignorant about most things. You probably are too. However, you probably know more about health insurance than I do. I’m about as clueless as someone can be on that particular subject.
I ‘ve never cared very much about my lack of knowledge and understanding of health insurance. This indifference existed even during the time I worked for Anthem – one of the largest health benefit companies in the world.
My current employer has decided to switch insurance providers to Anthem. So I’ve been compelled to learn about six specific insurance plan options – one of which I must choose by the end of November. All but one includes steep in-network deductibles and they all call for large co-pays after the deductible. These deductibles and co-pays are a big change from what my fellow employees are used to. Most of my co-workers appear less than happy with our employer’s choice of these new plans.
The one plan that contains no in–network deductible is the only plan that provides any coverage for health care by an out–of–network provider. Of course this plan is insanely expensive.
I’ve narrowed my selection to the two most inexpensive plans. As an individual, I’m the only person that will be covered on this plan. I’ve only used health care once in the four years I’ve been working for my current employer and it was for a very minor ailment. I’m rarely sick and my yearly blood work results are impeccable. I’ve decided that paying the higher premiums for the other plans would be foolhardy.
My decision will be pretty easy compared to co-workers with families and/or complicated medical histories. Whatever plan they choose is likely to greatly increase their premium payments for coverage that is far below what they have now. What is happening to them is similar to what is happening to many Americans – as this article explains.
As I’ve mentioned earlier, I’m ignorant about most things. But I’m fortunate to know quite a bit about which type of diet gives me the best chance to avoid hospitals, doctors, medications and procedures. A whole food plant-based (WFPB) diet dominated by fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes is good for both my physical and financial health.
The amount of time that I’ve spent looking at these plans has brought back some memories of my time at Anthem.
I worked as a telephone nutrition consultant for members who had plans that provided this benefit. Sometimes members would describe both the physical and financial hardships their illness had caused them.
For a time, I worked next to a Social Worker. I remember that a lot of her time was spent directing plan members to various programs with the hope that these programs would help to ease members’ financial burdens. These members were already stressed about their own, or a family member’s illness. Financial concerns just added to a very stressful situation.
The most common illnesses from which people suffered were coronary artery disease (CAD), type II Diabetes (and its awful complications), various cancers and autoimmune diseases. There is an abundance of evidence that links plant-based diets to reduced risk for these diseases.
How many Americans know this? Probably a lot fewer then there should be. If that is the case, then it is imperative that we somehow figure out a way to teach people in their teens, twenties and thirties about the power of a WFPB diet.
In an earlier article, I wrote about how difficult it is to get young, healthy people interested in adopting dietary change to ensure their future physical health. Most young people think that they’ll be strong and healthy forever.
Perhaps we should appeal to their financial concerns Medical bills are the biggest cause of US bankruptcies. And 48% of these bankruptcies occur between the ages of 25-44. Many of these bankruptcies are filed by people who have year-round health insurance. More and more insurance plans are requiring consumers to pay greater out-of-pocket costs. This fact is frightening when you consider how many young people are already burdened with student debt. I foresee many struggling for years to pay off their student-debt, and when they finally do, they get diagnosed with a chronic disease that puts them in debt again. Health insurance, in its current state, is not likely to help them as much as they imagine it will.
Maybe if young people are informed about this bankruptcy reality, they’ll investigate lifestyle changes that will give them the best chance to avoid such a nasty fate.
I often cringe when people say that they can’t afford to follow a WFPB diet. It appears that most of us can’t afford not to follow a WFPB diet.
A diet dominated by fruits, vegetables, whole grains and legumes is not as expensive as most people think. This experiment by chef Darshana Thacker can give people hope that they can get healthy and save money (now and in the future) by following a WFPB diet.
Stay Healthy and Strong
E Excerpt from Laurie Endicott Thomas’s amazing book Thin Diabetes – Fat Diabetes by clicking here!
I enjoyed reading your article. I like the idea of competition. If a whole food plant-based diet could be verifiable through some means of analysis then medical/professionals could offer an exclusive health insurance to people who complied with that diet and should be able to reduce his premiums significantly. A vertical company with doctors and dietitians at the top and healthcare providers in the middle and patients at the bottom. I suspect that all of the health insurance companies have all the data regarding which populations are more likely to cause expense and which populations are less likely to cause expense.