Healthcare Interview
Healthcare Across Generations
Rhoni Harris
DeVry University
Healthcare Across Generations
Interviewing different generations on their healthcare coverage is interesting. Here I have my grandmother, Shirley. She is seventy-six years old and is a retired postal worker. Next up is the retired teacher, Cherie, my mother. She is sixty years old and is retired from the Detroit Public School System. Lastly, we have my sister Raé. She is twenty-nine years old and unemployed. Shirley retired from the United States Postal Service in 1992. Since then, she’s been witness to many changes within the scope of her healthcare coverage. Since she is retired from the state, Shirley has Blue Cross/Blue Shield as her provider. Once she turned sixty-five, she started receiving Medicare. Shirley’s monthly premium for the Blue Cross insurance comes out of her monthly pension and the Medicare comes out of her monthly Social Security. She is able to see her doctor and choose her specialty doctors. Shirley has COPD so she see a pulmonary doctor on a regular basis. She doesn’t have a co-pay for her doctors’ visits because Medicare pays for that. Her payment for her prescriptions is not a fixed rate. Blue Cross provides her prescription coverage and they choose what percentage to pay depending on the medication. Due to Shirley’s respiratory problems, she usually pays hundreds of dollars a month for her medication. Medicare pays for her oxygen. She receives her healthcare in a doctor’s office. She must go to the hospital to have blood drawn, take x-rays and run tests. She loves her doctors and I’m not so sure that she is as “in-love” with her providers. Over the years, she has witnessed her healthcare premium increase and her coverage decrease. For example, a few years ago, she received a raise in her monthly Social Security amount. She also received a raise in her monthly premium for Medicare. (S.A. Bennett, personal interview, January 26, 2014) Cherie
Rhoni Harris
DeVry University
Healthcare Across Generations
Interviewing different generations on their healthcare coverage is interesting. Here I have my grandmother, Shirley. She is seventy-six years old and is a retired postal worker. Next up is the retired teacher, Cherie, my mother. She is sixty years old and is retired from the Detroit Public School System. Lastly, we have my sister Raé. She is twenty-nine years old and unemployed. Shirley retired from the United States Postal Service in 1992. Since then, she’s been witness to many changes within the scope of her healthcare coverage. Since she is retired from the state, Shirley has Blue Cross/Blue Shield as her provider. Once she turned sixty-five, she started receiving Medicare. Shirley’s monthly premium for the Blue Cross insurance comes out of her monthly pension and the Medicare comes out of her monthly Social Security. She is able to see her doctor and choose her specialty doctors. Shirley has COPD so she see a pulmonary doctor on a regular basis. She doesn’t have a co-pay for her doctors’ visits because Medicare pays for that. Her payment for her prescriptions is not a fixed rate. Blue Cross provides her prescription coverage and they choose what percentage to pay depending on the medication. Due to Shirley’s respiratory problems, she usually pays hundreds of dollars a month for her medication. Medicare pays for her oxygen. She receives her healthcare in a doctor’s office. She must go to the hospital to have blood drawn, take x-rays and run tests. She loves her doctors and I’m not so sure that she is as “in-love” with her providers. Over the years, she has witnessed her healthcare premium increase and her coverage decrease. For example, a few years ago, she received a raise in her monthly Social Security amount. She also received a raise in her monthly premium for Medicare. (S.A. Bennett, personal interview, January 26, 2014) Cherie