Tri-City Speedway Amy Swindell's Post on FB....All driver's should read

Revin

Revin

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Amy Swindell
1 hr ·
With Kevin's injury, we have had to deal with many things. Insurance has turned into a nightmare and we want to give some advice to drivers, especially those with children. We all have "just raced" at tracks and never thought to question the amount of coverage you as a participant would have if you were injured. Please do not think for a minute that the tracks will have anything close to what you need. We were shocked to learn of the policy limits, Knoxville being a premier ...racetrack only carries $50,000 per accident. It sounds like a big amount until you have a hospital stay, much less 2 eight hour surgeries. Just the medical helicopter took a huge piece. His personal health insurance was tapped out and then the Knoxville policy picked up after that. So please check your own policies and make sure you have adequate coverage.

What I am encouraging drivers and their family to do is carry either a disability policy that will help with your monthly bills, or get a workman's comp policy. Sure it's a couple thousand dollar expense, but could make all the difference if you get hurt. Just call your insurance agent and ask. Trust me, it would be worth every cent. Kevin carried Workman's Comp when he raced NASCAR, and we sure wish he still would have had it.

I know how tough insurance costs are on these racetracks, it's scary. I've always wondered when we went to these smaller hometown type tracks what they had for coverage. All that have raced are guilty of not even looking to see if there was a ambulance, much less paramedics. It's just what we did. You raced and took the chance, didn't worry about it.

Please, worry about it, if not for yourself do it for your family. Call your insurance agent today and ask.
 
As startups last year this was one of the first questions I asked other racers about. I wasn't comfortable with what I was hearing so we bought riders on our personal coverages. Disability and comp.

Don't underestimate the value of a Air Evac membership either. You get hurt bad, you'll go for a chopper ride. I know a few folks that had to use them without a choice in the matter, and have heard of costs anywhere from $20K to $65K, depending where they have to take you. If your team travels, it's a must. I pay $130 a year for everyone on our team to be covered to fly. That covers everyone all the time, wherever they go, not just at the track.
 
Yes life flights are expensive ! A friend of mines wife and two kids was in a wreck 3 weeks ago and all 3 required separate flights at a price tag of $ 48,000 each.
 
Imo track's need to step up and offer a better insurance coverage then what they do. It don't bother them to take every dime they can from race team's and fans but offer some second hand bullshit coverage to the people they use to line their pockets with money! Seen first hand how they operate and it's a joke!!
 
Here is what I don't understand, in this day and age everyone is quick to suggest negative feedback to the promoters and their racetracks. We all know this is a dangerous sport. We try and try to make it safe for everyone.
I just don't get why so many people bash the places that provide a place for us to race. Then those people wonder why it's hard to keep tracks alive. I'll never get it I guess. Let's try and stay positive and focus on what we have
 
(I repeat) I know this will cause a brain aneurysm to all you conservatives out there. But just think, none of insurance problems of the Swindell family, plus save money for race tracks and businesses, if there was a national health care system. I have seen it work in person when racing in England. Don’t fall for the propaganda lies the insurance and pharmaceuticals companies and their lobbyists regurgitate.
 
TheBigWheel said:
(I repeat) I know this will cause a brain aneurysm to all you conservatives out there. But just think, none of insurance problems of the Swindell family, plus save money for race tracks and businesses, if there was a national health care system. I have seen it work in person when racing in England. Don’t fall for the propaganda lies the insurance and pharmaceuticals companies and their lobbyists regurgitate.
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don't we have Obamacare now ?..ask him why this isn't covered..and it's actually gonna save money for businesses and racetracks ?!..wake up..SOMEONE ACTUALLY HAS TO PAY FOR HEALTH COVERAGES...IT"S NOT FREE
 
is this some negligence claim or do racetracks actually have to pay for racers to be covered ?..you mean racers do not sign a waiver releasing a racetrack from liability when they decide to run around a track at 100 mph in a metal framed race car bumping off of each other ?
 
Kdub_14 said:
Here is what I don't understand, in this day and age everyone is quick to suggest negative feedback to the promoters and their racetracks. We all know this is a dangerous sport. We try and try to make it safe for everyone.
I just don't get why so many people bash the places that provide a place for us to race. Then those people wonder why it's hard to keep tracks alive. I'll never get it I guess. Let's try and stay positive and focus on what we have
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I agree. It's easy to point fingers, but to actually offer something useful is a rarity. I know many who will deny their words have any consequence on the health of the sport, but they just have their head in the sand. Each word uttered to discredit any single part of our sport is akin to a single cancer cell. Once enough cells are out there, it becomes a tumor, and you probably know the rest....
 
70 RT" kowalski " said:
don't we have Obamacare now ?..ask him why this isn't covered..and it's actually gonna save money for businesses and racetracks ?!..wake up..SOMEONE ACTUALLY HAS TO PAY FOR HEALTH COVERAGES...IT"S NOT FREE
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Ohamacare is not even close to a national health care system!! The insurance companys and
pharmaceutical companies would love for you to think that... they make a butt load of money with Ohamacare, but oh, darn it, now we have to take people with pre-existing health conditions, etc. Insurance [BCOLOR=rgb(255, 255, 255)]companies reward employees who successfully denied claims, replaced employees who would not, and when all else failed, engaged in outright fraud to avoid paying claims. [/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=rgb(255, 255, 255)][BCOLOR=rgb(249, 249, 249)]That is why insurance lobbyists spent millions to buy off politicians. You [/BCOLOR]probably watched on TV where medicines are cheaper in other countries, why is that? Because they have socialized medicine. Your right, someone (us, you and me) actually has to pay for health coverages!
[BCOLOR=rgb(249, 249, 249)]When someone goes to the emergency at a hospital, do they turn them away? No. Who pays for the medical care they get? You do, with you taxes! Your pay for insurance but the next guy doesn't so in the long run WE all pay more in taxes. If we had national health care... all of us would pay LESS taxes. It a proven fact![/BCOLOR][/BCOLOR]
 
Did someone mention the good old NHS? (National Healthcare System) The single payer socialized medical system in England?

I can probably help out with some information on that system. I lived in England under it for 12 years, paid my NHS Stamp out of my wages and used its services for all my health care needs. In fact, I still have my NHS card and should I choose to, I can go use the NHS for the rest of my life.

The pros:
Everyone is entitled to register, get the card, get assigned a local doctor and use all the facilities and services with no copays, prescription charges, etc.
You need to see the best specialist in you area, you get to see that specialist. If its a life threatening condition, you even go to the front of the line.
It is cheaper, generally, when compared to the cost of a good health insurance policy in America.

There are no astronomical ridiculously overpriced emergency room visits out of the taxpayers pocket. Most people will use their heads and not go to the emergency room for a cold or diarrhea. They will use OTC meds or call their local doc and get an appointment during the normal hours.
No insurance companies are making a profit off people being sick by playing this big shell game with premiums/coverage. You get sick, yo go where you need to go, they treat you, end of story.

The cons:
Wait times at emergency rooms for non life threatening injuries and illnesses can last for 12 hours.

You won't get to see your local doc for a head cold anytime soon. Your cold will be done and over with long before you get an appointment. Local docs are for more serious things like lumps you find, consistent headaches, coughing that won't quit, etc.

You do pay for it. You pay for it from your wages, they deduct an amount similar to a very low health insurance premium every time you get paid. My opinion is it is the lowest possible premium you could possibly pay but for what you get, it's absolutely great value for money.

People with good incomes (read upper 25-30% of the nation) get to book private appointments with your doc, pay them in cash, and get in front of you in line by waving their money. Doctors in the UK get to choose to be NHS docs and are given NHS offices/premises to work out of, but they are only obligated to see so many NHS patients a week. After that, their time is their own to charge whomever they wish and see whomever they want. So most docs push the NHS clients through as fast as possible, give them the least amount of attention they can get away with, then move on to the cash cows (and push them through as fast as possible too.) Greed is alive and well in the NHS too.

Rampant fraud, overcharging by drug companies, people who provide services, etc. The NHS only has so much money to go around, they have to take care of a lot of people, so the admin/oversight is usually understaffed and can't catch all the false billing, overcharging, contractual abuse stuff. I have heard estimates that as much as 30-40% of the budget for the NHS is wasted due to all the abuses by people who supply goods and services, but the NHS doesn't have the money to properly police it and spend on service. Of course, administrators are probably being taken care of too, so there's not a lot of will to catch the thieves either when everyone who could do something is making out ok anyway.

I could write more, but my personal summary is this. It is a great alternative to employer based insurance, it provides basic health care services to the average joe walking around and everyone gets the same level of care. Which is doled out first to the life threatening stuff, and not so much to the stuff that won't kill you. You get what you pay for, as the saying goes. I think if I had cancer and I was working at Walmart for $9.00 an hour, the NHS would be a better service provider than what my insurance and wages could buy. And i wouldn't go bankrupt trying to stay alive. On the other hand, if I am really well off and no medical condition is going to drive me under financially, the system in the USA works just fine, and is probably better in the service area because there is such surplus of healthcare options and facilities and services and people just waiting for me to show up in their fancy building with the nice carpet, beautiful pictures and comfy chairs with plenty of magazines and coffee for me while I wait.

Since returning to the states I have always been amazed at the luxury health care we get compared to the NHS. Imagine going from a packed 1950's style green drab paint/linoleum hallwayed hospital bustling with people, coughing, sneezing, crying kids, packed waiting rooms sitting on old chairs with rips in them and stains, to the average US hospital reception area with a handful of people sitting quietly thumbing through Better Homes and Gardens on a new comfy chair with the AC just right, a little low mood music in the background, soft mood lighting and a complimentary hot coffee in hand.

People say we have a great health care system in America, and we do. But it comes at a price, just like anything else. I think the NHS is downtrodden, going broke and doesn't fully meet all of its obligations, but if you are dying its good to know you don't have to worry about losing your home if you live. On the other hand, the luxury, opulence and splendor of the average American hospital isn't really curing cancer, it's just making you comfortable while you only wait a little while to see the doc. Not sure that's what I want my insurance premium paying for, either. Like everything the trick is getting the balance just right, but I will never think its right for some insurance company that doesn't actually provide a medical service directly to me to be making so much money off my illnesses or anyone else's. I would rather see the actual doc or nurse doing ok than seeing an insurance company posting record profits while my doc complains about the cuts to his income because the insurance company wants more of the pie.

There is a happy medium somewhere, just not sure where that is. To me, the American Insurance payer system vs the NHS is a good contrast between the two extremes, and neither are really that great compared to what an ideal system would look like.
 
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Dirtboy Jr said:
Imo track's need to step up and offer a better insurance coverage then what they do. It don't bother them to take every dime they can from race team's and fans but offer some second hand bullshit coverage to the people they use to line their pockets with money! Seen first hand how they operate and it's a joke!!
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Tracks can only offer the best insurance they can afford or what an insurance company is willing to offer. I haven't looked into event insurance for racing for over 10 years, but back then it was pretty significantly expensive, didn't cover a whole lot and there weren't a lot of choices for companies that would issue the policy. Racing is dangerous, so getting insurance is limited and expensive too. You can't buy what someone isn't selling. So I agree with what the people before have said, if you are going to race and race a lot, best be figuring out your own insurance coverages and build that into your racing budget too. It's the only way to know what coverage you have.
 
As usual t.nie you give a very insightful comment. Living in the UK for 12 years gives you first hand and long time perspective. I have only visited the UK 9 times, sometimes to race BriSCA stock cars, just hang out, once to get married, be a best man, 50th anniversary of a rare British sports car I own, and one time to be in a across Europe historic car rally. I was at Chili Bowl this year again and I meet up with some British friends (they come over quite often to watch US racing.) Some are northerners and some are southerners, and as you know it's like 2 different countries in the way they think. Many in the UK now complain about NHS with just the things you commented on
(packed 1950's style green drab paint/linoleum hallways hospital bustling with people. NHS being downtrodden, going broke.) Their issue with this is because of the cut backs for the NHS by the Tories (conservatives) it's the age old story, the rich get richer the working class gets screwed. It has many of my friends very upset. Did you notice how well old people are care for over there. I visited many friend's grannies, mums, in nice rest homes, no one has to wipe out their savings to take care of them like we do. I have said before, Europe and the UK after WWII and the devastation that it caused, people felt compassion for others and believed health care should be a basic human right, not a privilege.
I aways feel sad, in our great country, when people walking through the stands or in the pits carrying a helmet for donations to help with the expenses of a injury, health issue, or just to help the family, that it has come to this... begging. Because health care is a for profit business.
 
TheBigWheel said:
Ohamacare is not even close to a national health care system!! The insurance companys and
pharmaceutical companies would love for you to think that... they make a butt load of money with Ohamacare, but oh, darn it, now we have to take people with pre-existing health conditions, etc. Insurance [BCOLOR=rgb(255, 255, 255)]companies reward employees who successfully denied claims, replaced employees who would not, and when all else failed, engaged in outright fraud to avoid paying claims. [/BCOLOR][BCOLOR=rgb(255, 255, 255)][BCOLOR=rgb(249, 249, 249)]That is why insurance lobbyists spent millions to buy off politicians. You [/BCOLOR]probably watched on TV where medicines are cheaper in other countries, why is that? Because they have socialized medicine. Your right, someone (us, you and me) actually has to pay for health coverages!
[BCOLOR=rgb(249, 249, 249)]When someone goes to the emergency at a hospital, do they turn them away? No. Who pays for the medical care they get? You do, with you taxes! Your pay for insurance but the next guy doesn't so in the long run WE all pay more in taxes. If we had national health care... all of us would pay LESS taxes. It a proven fact![/BCOLOR][/BCOLOR]
Click to expand...

You do realize that the largest contributors to the Obama campaign were insurance companies. The so called Obamacare system is probably certain to fail and then be replaced by a single payer government funded healthcare system much like that of the UK for better or worse. This will probably be ok but the transition might not be easy.
 
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