Sex and Tampa Bay

I just bought my tickets for Avenue Q today! That’s good. The bad news is that I’m going alone since all of my friends who wanted to go can’t afford it right now. I understand the problem. The economy sucks, especially here in Tampa Bay where the price of essentials like rent/mortgage, insurance, food and gas take up the bulk of most people’s paychecks. The price of these items continue to go up while pay remains the same.

So, this is my attempt to try and give some tips that I use to save money in the budget. Right now I’m pretty comfortable moneywise, but that wasn’t always the case. Especially for the period in my life when I was working full time retail and going to college.

One major expense (at least for me, with my fucked up reproductive system and mental health issues) is medical care. It you are lucky enough to have insurance through work, it may not be enough to help you. Most people who file bankruptcy for medical bills do have insurance. But insurance doesn’t pay for everything (see the movie Sicko for more details on that!). It’s important to really understand your insurance coverage. For example: my policy charges $25 for primary care visits, but $50 for all other visits. By getting my pap test at my primary care doctor instead of my OB/GYN I save $25 bucks. Also, the co-pay is the same to matter how long the visit is. So feel free to stack your visits together to save money.

Prescriptions are another out-of-pocket cost that insurance doesn’t completely cover. First of all, you have to shop your script around to different pharmacies. When I switched from Walgreens to CVS I ended up saving $10 a month on my birth control. That doesn’t sound like much, but it ends up being $120 per year, which is enough to buy a couple video games or a discount plane ticket for a vacation!

Some insurance plans will give you discounts if you order your prescriptions through them. Aetna has a program where they’ll give you 3 months worth of pills for the price of 2. That can be really helpful if you have a few expensive scripts.

And, there is always the samples. Don’t be ashamed to tell your doctor about your financial situation. They may be able to suggest a less expensive alternative medicine or provide you with samples to help cut down on the cost.

If you don’t have insurance medical care can seem overwhelmingly expensive. There are local resources that can help. The Planned Parenthood resources in Tampa Bay are amazing. If you need testing or treatment for sexually transmitted infections, they offer a sliding scale based on your income. They also perform gynecological exams, pap tests, and have discounted birth control pills.

If you know of any other resources for free or discounted health care in Tampa Bay list them in the comments.