Kemoy Campbell shouldn't need a gofundme - where is REEBOK?!

crumpet wrote:

Most employer-sponsored plans will run you 3-5 grand a year. Some employers offer high-deductible plans that come with a much cheaper premium but higher potential out of pocket cost. I recently switched jobs from a company with a HDHP to a PPO. Under my old plan, the cost out of my pocket for the plan was ~$1500 a year with a $4300 deductible for the family. My new plan offers an A plan that would cost $5000 per year with a $1000 deductible and a B plan that is $3000 per year with a $3000 deductible. It truly is six one way, half dozen another.

You can't tell me that Medicare for all would cost each person any more than the $6000 I am currently paying, and it would not line the pockets of billionaire insurance companies. We would get a much better product with no middle man skimming an extra 25% off the top for his own profit. The only justification I can see for not shutting down private insurance is the fact that over 2 million Americans are employed in the industry. Otherwise, the system is corrupt, immoral and needs to be changed for the better.[/quote]

This.

Because insurance is restricted in its profits, it increases the size of the base, by challenging reimbursements and raising the costs of the medical practice. The barriers it puts in place raise office costs by approx 30%.

And of course we are a country where we sue everyone, so that also raises costs for the physicians and staff. Its a sheetshow and we support insurance over the population.

Healthcare should be a government pillar. Like education, infrastructure and defense.

And healthcare is already 55% government funded (VA, DOD, Medicare, Medicaid, Tricare etc) , so all the bs about it'll cost us trillions extra is so much rubbish. Run a bybrid scheme like they do in Canada. There is still room for private policies, just like in NHS countries like Canada, Australia, and the UK.[/quote]

You guys both get some of the deeper issues here. The American healthcare system is not great for anyone but the high ups in insurance. Patients aren't getting the best care and their billing is a constant fight of confusion with both insurance and doctors. Doctors waste time and money on complex billing and fighting insurance companies instead of giving patient care. But the insurance lobby and their propaganda is strong.

I'm a pro runner for a major company. I've finished top-3 in a few big USATF circuit races, but not made an olympic team nor am I a huge household name like Flanagan or Rupp. Therefore, like the majority of US distance runners (like Kemoy) I'm making just enough from my contract to get by while pursuing my dream.

I can't speak for us all, but no one I know has health insurance through our companies. We're independent contractors, so the companies aren't responsible if something happens.

Anyone trashing Kemoy for starting a go-fund-me is fooling themselves; most of us barely make enough to pay rent, let alone pay for multiple day hospital stays or lifesaving operations. Kemoy is an awesome guy, and despite being a great runner he isn't getting rich off this. Most of us aren't.

I know I'll be donating, because I'd hope that if I were in this situation my friends and supporters would do the same for me. We're all rooting for you Kemoy, love you bud.

rojo wrote:

I had Achilles surgery. It doesn't cost anywhere close to 30k.

That depends on the doctor and what insurance you have. If you want to go to a doctor known for treating professional athletes, they obviously charge a premium for having a track record of their patients returning to their sport 20 or 30% faster.

Also, when was your surgery? 25 years ago? Prices could be much different now.

Outside Magazine has written an article about health insurance and pro runners. Biggest takeaways for me:

Interesting to know that some elite teams offer health insurance -- though it doesn't sound like Reebok Boston TC did.

So Campbell does have health insurance, but it is very basic.

Susan Hazzard says that elite USATF athletes receive medical coverage in these situations. Obviously Campbell is Jamaican and thus not eligible, but does anyone know what the cutoff is to be considered an "elite" USATF athlete?

Basic insurance is usually for situations exactly like this. I went with the basic plan that has a $3k yearly deductible but I pay $100 for every doctor's visit and have no dental with it. So if I had anything expensive like Campbell does, my max for the year would be $3k. I could have paid more for a policy that would have charged me only $40 per doctor visit and had basic dental coverage.

The Jamaican Athletic Federation should be offering their athletes health insurance (ALL FEDERATIONS SHOULD BE DOING THIS!!!). Especially one of their Olympic athletes such as Kemoy. I'm hoping Kemoy has some sort of health insurance. If Reebok doesn't offer it he should've had the necessary money to obtain health insurance negotiated into his sponsorship. A few hundred bucks a month would give him quality coverage. You can't blame Reebok. It's the athlete's responsibility........and yes, I've been there and done that when I ran professionally. Unless you're really good.........being a professional runner SUCKS A**!!!

While my Statement is just true yours is an obvious lie because you cant know its true. I actually met us. Americans who asked me to move to the usa. But i never would support a country that puts invading other countries over the life of their own citizens

My thoughts on the Outside Magazine article.

I object a bit to the title.

Both are a bit click baity.

The title that shows up on LetsRun says "Pro Runners Deserve Better Health Care". The actual title on the website is, "Kemoy Campbell and the Crisis of Runners' Healthcare"

I don't see how pro runners situation is really that much different than any other independent contractors/self employed people in the United States in general. Some "pro" runners are full-time, some are part time, etc.

Having said that if a runner has a heart attack at the most prominent indoor track meet in America I feel like the meet should have insurance to cover it. This meet is put on by USATF, NYRR and it matters whether the guy is a USATF member or not? That's nuts. Kemoy lives in the US most of the time but a lot of foreigners fly in for meets and may not have insurance outside of what they have in their home countries.

The Boston meet is an IAAF meet. So if Kemoy had had his incident there he would be covered.

Anyone know what happens at a NYRR road race?

I'm not even sure Reebok could make it a condition for having insurance for its runners since they are contractors. But a high deductible policy for someone Kemoy's age would be what $200-400 a month?

It would be nice to know what his insurance covers.

Through ACA-healthcare isn't there a limit to out-of-pocket expenses per year?

If he has health insurance it would have to be a TERRIBLE plan to not have an out-of-pocket back that is more then he is asking for in the gofundme. I'm not sure of the specifics of the ACA but I thought some of these wood-teir plans are not even legal now.

Someone please educate me because I am confused.

https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/out-of-pocket-maximum-limit/

Interesting to know that some elite teams offer health insurance -- though it doesn't sound like Reebok Boston TC did.

ZAP has been offering health insurance for years

I think this all brings me back to my original point- suppose an athlete is getting $40K/ year from their shoe sponsor. Wouldn't it make sense for the company to put the athlete into their risk pool and pay a few dollars less? As someone who has gotten health insurance from the ACA marketplace and public and private sector employers I'm confident that the $400/ mo plan they'd provide to their employees would certainly be superior to an ACA plan at a similar price-point.

Maybe some of the athletes on here can weigh in on a question I've had since this all came about- if a professional athlete of Kemoy's caliber has a small nagging injury are they unable to get a quick PT appointment because of the cost? This is of course more relevant to small groups and independent athletes than large teams that have in-house folks. What about a doctor's visit for illness that's tangential to running? Obviously we don't know, and it's largely none of our business, but it's also possible that Kemoy's trouble could have been avoided with a thorough physical.

All of this to say, I'm hoping this unfortunate situation is enough to have some sponsors re-thinking their sponsorship agreements. If I were laying out money to sponsor athletes I'd sure kick myself if I found out later that my investments were underperforming because they'd been fighting a lingering cold or nagging injury, or something else silly that could have been better treated.

The better financed Clubs have

1. Team Physician

2. Team PT

3. Team masseuse

4. Team Chiropractic

5. Team Podiatric

And then Health Insurance for Emergencies like Kemoy.

wejo wrote:

My thoughts on the Outside Magazine article.

I object a bit to the title.

Both are a bit click baity.

Ironic!

It would be nice to know what his insurance covers.

Oh really? It's none of your fcckin' business.

He's a paid employee of Reebok. I'm sure he has insurance.

Morally Poor wrote:

Any country that does not provide healthcare for all is a poor country. Either financially or morally poor. It amounts to the same thing.

Amen

You mean Jamaica? All residents of the USA get healthcare.

USA is rich wrote:

You mean Jamaica? All residents of the USA get healthcare.

How so?

Better Financed Clubs wrote:

The better financed Clubs have

1. Team Physician

2. Team PT

3. Team masseuse

4. Team Chiropractic

5. Team Podiatric

And then Health Insurance for Emergencies like Kemoy.

Bowerman must not be one of them. Pretty shocking to read Infeld had to get an MRI from the Olympic Training Center instead of her own team (sponsored by Nike) even when she was visibly limping and clearly injured for quite a while. After her MRI came back it was revealed she had a pretty serious injury -- torn labrum. I know Schumacher leaves it up to his athletes to look after themselves outside of training, but this was ridiculous. Very similar to Solinsky's career-ending injury where Schumacher commented that he leaves mileage up to his athletes and doesn't monitor them.

Walt Kowalski wrote:

this cat doesn't need our dough

You know this how?