‘The $6 medicine I couldn’t afford’

KYLIE Travers was regularly skipping meals so her daughters wouldn’t go without, but when she got sick, it nearly sent her over the edge.

NO MOTHER wants to look at her children and know she can’t afford the medical treatment they need. Having recently left an abusive marriage and trying to make ends meet on Centrelink, I faced a decision. Pay for food or pay for the medical care my daughters needed. Every night, I cried in the shower, stressed out of my mind about how I would be able to afford everything. We barely survived and now they needed medical treatment I had no way of providing.

While my GP bulk billed, the other treatment they needed meant being on a waitlist of at least two years if we went public. If I waited, their issues would get worse and impact their lives forever, but it wasn’t life-threatening. Living in a lower socio-economic area meant resources were stretched thin and most people couldn’t afford what they needed for their families so help was limited.

Yesterday it was revealed more than one million Australians avoided seeing a doctor when they needed to, because they couldn’t afford it. Being sick and having no way of affording medicine is terrifying.

Kylie Travers skipped meals because she wanted to make sure she could afford to help her daughters. But one $6 prescription nearly sent her over the edge.

When I was struggling, each week I made sure rent was paid, we had food and the rest of the bills were covered. It took all my money and I had no wiggle room for unexpected bills. Life doesn’t go as planned though and just as I felt OK about things and that we’d manage, the medical expenses came.

Going over my budget, looking for everywhere I could cut back, my stomach got tighter. It was impossible. Their medical needs were more than my weekly rent and I didn’t have that money. Centrelink covered our basic need, which I was grateful for, but it wasn’t designed for more than the basics. Being unable to work a regular job because of the care my daughters needed and the issues with my ex-husband, I felt like I had no options but I knew I needed to do something. A business I had started was generating a little money, but nowhere near enough to cover what we needed.

Skipping meals myself to save a little on the groceries was the first thing I did. It didn’t make a huge impact, but it helped. Next, I looked for extra ways to make money such as online surveys, buying things to resell and taking on any work I could through my business. It wasn’t ideal, but it helped. All my extra money went to their medical care and I managed, but only just.

Then I got sick.

Kylie Travers is now much better off financially but she’ll never forget the terror of not being able to afford medicine.

A simple infection and I didn’t even have the $6 needed for the prescription, yet without it, my infection would get worse. I broke down and sobbed. Up until that point I had been too proud to ask for help. I wanted to do this alone, provide for my daughters and myself on my own, like I felt I should. I felt I should have it together and didn’t want anyone to know how bad my situation really was so I didn’t even tell my family.

When you’re already living week to week, doing what you can to get by, it’s hard enough. The fact that a small infection was enough to throw everything out felt like too much. Not just because it happened to me, but because it happens to so many.

While my experience at that point might be more extreme as I had just left a marriage, it wasn’t the only time I couldn’t afford medical care. I struggled for a while, at times skipping doctor’s appointments for myself when it was clear I needed them because my daughters’ care came first. My daughters were my priority and I did everything in my power to ensure they were taken care of. Myself, not so much and that was my downfall later.

Leaving my medical care to last, I ended up extremely sick, required a few surgeries and had issues for months. But what choice do you have when you can’t afford the medical care at the time? If the money isn’t there, it isn’t there.

I’m grateful now to be in a position where I no longer have to choose. The fear surrounding that experience has never left me though. Knowing you can’t afford to provide for yourself and your children stays with you for life, no matter how much your circumstances improve.

Since pulling myself out of poverty I’ve pulled together some tips to help people afford basic medical and life expenses. While I know that in no way this replaces being able to afford things easily, I’m hoping that by sharing things I learned along the way, some people will find life a little easier.

Kylie Travers is a former Young Australian of the Year finalist and the owner of www.thethriftyissue.com.au a site sharing ways to make and save money. Follow her on Twitter: @KylieTravers_au