With health care costs continuing to rise, people are doing everything they can to save costs. Two recent articles in the NY Times talk about putting off medical care and doing it yourself. For example, Dr. Ted Epperly, president of the American Academy of Family Physicians, notes that “the truth is that some health care can probably be safely postponed until you feel more satisfied, for example, and feel fine, you can wait a few months before forking out that hefty copay at a normal weight.

However, as Dr. Barbie Gatton admits, Internet diagnostics, self-medication, and prescription trading do, of course, have potentially dangerous side effects. She often sees young people who have taken the wrong antibiotics on loan from friends. “We see people with urinary tract infections who are taking drugs that are better suited for ear infections or pneumonia, the problem is that they haven’t really treated their disease and they’re building resistance,” she explained. “Or they take painkillers that mask the symptoms. And this allows the underlying problem to get worse and worse.”

Still, if you don’t have insurance and don’t have a lot of money, here are ten things to consider:

1. Preventing disease is the cheapest: eat well, exercise and sleep well.
2. Self-treatment: many times we already know what we have, so do not seek a second opinion, which means that it is not necessary to go to the doctor. Other times, using Internet tools like webmd.com or www.mayoclinic.com can help.
3. Ask for discounts: If you tell your doctor you don’t have insurance, they may give you a discount. They also don’t get the full price from the insurance company, so asking for a discount is basically asking them to match the price they normally get.
4. If you take a lot of prescriptions, sign up for a prescription discount plan – Careington has one. Wallgreens has one. But there are many more out there. Order online and save even more.
5. Order generic prescriptions that are not only cheaper but have also stood the test of time. Recently launched drugs are basically unknown in terms of their effect over time, not to mention that they have typically only been tested in small populations.
6. Consider splitting pills. If your prescription is for 25 mg. Buying 50 mg. pills and splitting them is usually cheaper.
7. Consider alternative medicine options. Chiropractors and naturopaths are substantially less expensive.
8. Sometimes your body can do the job, it just takes a little longer. Let your body heal itself.
9. Consider treatment facilities abroad. Dentists in Mexico charge a fraction of what American dentists charge.
10. Negotiate payment options.

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