S03.E12: Best Laid Plans

[jewel21]

While working at their non-profit clinic three hours outside of Atlanta, Nic and Mina treat a patient with a failing heart VAD, forcing them to find a new battery in time to save her life. Conrad gets a call from a previous patent in crisis after being sued by Red Rock for medical expenses he can't afford. Meanwhile, Devon's VIP patient, Nadine, returns to the ER and Cain tries to get close to Bell's business partner from the supplement company.

Airdate: 01/14/2020

[twoods]

Red Rock continues to suck. Suing because someone can’t pay their bills, then the guy tries to commit suicide and gets more bills to pay. I thought that you can do a payment plan through some hospitals? 
 

Nice twist to the sisters/LVAD story. Not what I was expecting at all.

Is this the last we see of AJ and Mina now that she friendzoned him? Of course not because she’s going to be making jealous eyes at the supplement lady (forgot her name). She seems nice enough.

Yay Nadine came back! I’m glad that her and Devon are now a thing.

[NowVoyager]

It was interesting how the show compared & contrasted suicide attempts with making careful, considered end-of-life choices. The twist w/ the sisters kept the episode from being too heavy--- although I thought it made the point that we as human beings make these choices partially blind; we never know the full scope of possibilities for healing & life extension. 

I wonder why the nurse's father (sorry! I haven't watched this show in some time & I'm spacing on the names) felt suicidal? He's done some crappy things for sure, but I thought he tried to make amends? & how shitty would she feel after all he's put her through?

On a lighter note, the South Asian couple was gorgeous! Yasss! I'm here for it! I also cracked up when the Natural Supplement Lady straight up dissed Dr. Charm. Bleech! He's so smarmy! But, Morris Chestnut is so fine, she must have some rrreal strong herbs!

[Ohwell]

I, too, wonder why Nic's father is feeling suicidal.  I thought he had turned the corner after reconciling with Nic and surely he should know the damage he'd do to her if he killed himself.   

I loved that Cain got dissed twice in the episode:  1) the woman who gave him the camera to take a picture of her and Bell, and 2) the supplement lady leaving him at the restaurant.   I loved how he thought he was impressing her by talking about expensive wine and how she basically said "nope, gotta run!"  

I wish I had Devon's long, sexy eyelashes.

Edited January 15, 2020 by Ohwell

[Risky Librarian]

Okay...my husband has Ankylosing Spondylitis (HOLY MOLY IT TOOK ME FOREVER TO LEARN HOW TO SPELL THAT BY THE BY) and the kinda carefree, "nah, it's all cool" way they delivered the news kind of made me almost laugh myself out of my chair. It is manageable, but...well, it's a variety of RA, and if you know anyone with RA, you understand what "manageable" really means.

He was diagnosed in his late teens, and it actually kind of took them forever because it's so rare. He nearly died in the process, because delightful overactive immune system often attacks the bowel, so he couldn't eat and was losing weight rapidly (it's been like fifteen years since that diagnosis and keeping weight on is STILL a thing he struggles with, even on medication.) His current treatment is immunosuppressants, a weekly injectable. That's pretty standard, but it does leave him vulnerable to random bugs. 

The real fun part is pain management, because while generally not debilitating, it is pretty constant. At this point, he has partial fusion of his lower back, and he gets flare-ups. Nights are pretty hard for him, and he rarely sleeps more than a few hours at a time before his back or shoulders ache too much for him to stay in bed. Fortunately, massage can help a fair bit, so I do that when I can.

Honestly though, he's a trooper (the other fun part is the mental game - he was pretty active before his diagnosis and he had to leave a lot of it behind), and I'm lucky to be able to love him. No idea what I'd do without him. Anyway, that was on my mind at the end of the episode.

In other news, I need Mina not to sink my ship. Stop it, Mina. I get it, but stop it. Let that Raptor love you. MAKE THE SUPPLEMENT LADY GO AWAY. I know you're focused on the adorable baby and you want to keep your professional relationship healthy, but you love him and now we have to do the jealousy storyline and you're killing me, show. 

Also, it pleases me to see Cain suffer. He's going to pay it forward and that's going to suck, but I still love to see it. Skeevy jerk. That's the only upside to Raptor and the supplement lady, watching Cain lose to a decent man. 

[Ohwell]

So far I like the supplement lady (I hope she doesn't disappoint me) and I don't mind her and Raptor getting together.  I think it's fine if he and Mina stay friends/colleagues.  However, I fear that they'll make this a love triangle which I AM NOT looking forward to.

[nokat]

I too was wondering why Nic's dad would be suicidal. Then I realized, he's not suicidal, but homicidal. He's seen Red Rock screw over his daughter's boyfriend, then just watched a man try to kill himself in utter despair because of their policies.  That gun is not for him. 
 

[cathmed]

1 hour ago, Ohwell said:

So far I like the supplement lady (I hope she doesn't disappoint me) and I don't mind her and Raptor getting together.  I think it's fine if he and Mina stay friends/colleagues.  However, I fear that they'll make this a love triangle which I AM NOT looking forward to.

Agree 100% and with another poster who was happy Cain was dissed twice; guess his "charm" doesn't work on everyone.  I think she's just too astute to fall for him and wants someone real (AJ).  Agree, also that I hope they don't make this a love triangle or "fallback" position for AJ since Mena shut him down albeit nicely.

1 hour ago, nokat said:

I too was wondering why Nic's dad would be suicidal. Then I realized, he's not suicidal, but homicidal. He's seen Red Rock screw over his daughter's boyfriend, then just watched a man try to kill himself in utter despair because of their policies.  That gun is not for him. 
 

Yeah - thought this was all resolved with him (daughter's death, his own selfishness, etc.).  IMO, he doesn't really add any value to the show and could be gone (not killed, just written off).  Nic doesn't need anymore guilt.

2 hours ago, Risky Librarian said:

I need Mina not to sink my ship. Stop it, Mina. I get it, but stop it. Let that Raptor love you. MAKE THE SUPPLEMENT LADY GO AWAY. I know you're focused on the adorable baby and you want to keep your professional relationship healthy, but you love him and now we have to do the jealousy storyline and you're killing me, show.

THIS ^^

12 hours ago, twoods said:

Yay Nadine came back! I’m glad that her and Devon are now a thing.

Predictable - I could see she and Devon were going to be an item when they introduced her to the storyline this season.   Jenna Dewan's character is gone; Devon and fiancee broke up so guess the writers thought it was time for him to have another love interest.

[izabella]

13 hours ago, twoods said:

Red Rock continues to suck. Suing because someone can’t pay their bills, then the guy tries to commit suicide and gets more bills to pay. I thought that you can do a payment plan through some hospitals? 

This happens all the time.  Hospitals sic debt collectors after you and sue you and anything else to get their money.  People do commit suicide because of their medical bills.  It's all unconscionable, to be honest.  Our whole medical system is unconscionable.

I like supplement lady and she does seem nice, but virtually all supplements are snake oil, so I can only see her (and Bell) as snake oil salesmen at this point. 

I am so glad Mina's friend woke up!  The running gag of Mina's nanny being able to get the baby to sleep all day so baby is up all night was funny.

[Ohwell]

I don't think that all supplements are snake oil. 

However, on this show I don't fully understand the supplement she and Bell were hyping because it didn't interest me.  

[Bulldog]

21 hours ago, twoods said:

Red Rock continues to suck. Suing because someone can’t pay their bills, then the guy tries to commit suicide and gets more bills to pay. I thought that you can do a payment plan through some hospitals? 

I would never want to be seen as sticking up for Red Rock, but . . . if the hospital actually sued the patient, that would indicate that the patient had truly made no effort at all to pay at least a minimum towards the bill.  Yes, hospitals will offer payment plans.  And every hospital I've ever encountered has an indigent care program where all or large parts of the bills are written off for those who can't pay.   There is no other business where we would fault the business for trying to collect a bill owed to them.  Hospitals are just an easy target.

Georgia nitpick - I've actually been thru Calhoun County, which is located in southwest GA (not to be confused with the town of Calhoun which actually is in north GA) and it is about as far away from Atlanta as you can get and stay in the state (both geographically and culturally).  Trust me, there is not a mountain in sight.  And there would be numerous hospitals in various towns between the two locations.   

[twoods]

Mina and Nic have jobs, so I don’t get how they drive three hours each way to run a free clinic on their days off. That is absolutely insane!

Edited January 16, 2020 by twoods

[AdorkableWitch]

18 hours ago, Bulldog said:

I would never want to be seen as sticking up for Red Rock, but . . . if the hospital actually sued the patient, that would indicate that the patient had truly made no effort at all to pay at least a minimum towards the bill.  Yes, hospitals will offer payment plans.  And every hospital I've ever encountered has an indigent care program where all or large parts of the bills are written off for those who can't pay.   There is no other business where we would fault the business for trying to collect a bill owed to them.  Hospitals are just an easy target.

Georgia nitpick - I've actually been thru Calhoun County, which is located in southwest GA (not to be confused with the town of Calhoun which actually is in north GA) and it is about as far away from Atlanta as you can get and stay in the state (both geographically and culturally).  Trust me, there is not a mountain in sight.  And there would be numerous hospitals in various towns between the two locations.   

There are lots of examples where the minimum is out of reach for many people.

[Ohwell]

4 hours ago, AdorkableWitch said:

There are lots of examples where the minimum is out of reach for many people.

Yes, not to mention the inflated hospital bills.

[izabella]

52 minutes ago, Ohwell said:

Yes, not to mention the inflated hospital bills.

They also specifically said in this case, that the anesthesiologist was out-of-network, even though the hospital was in-network.  That is one of the latest scourges of the for-profit industry. 

The Red Rocks of the world wouldn't be involved if health care weren't a for-profit industry instead of a health care industry.

[Lady Calypso]

On 1/16/2020 at 12:37 AM, twoods said:

Mina and Nic have jobs, so I don’t get how they drive three hours each way to run a free clinic on their days off. That is absolutely insane!

I maybe missed the explanation, but do they always go to this free clinic, or was this a one time thing? Because, yeah, if they're doing this a lot, then they really need to find somewhere closer to their place to volunteer. 

I just got around to watching the episode. Red Rock continues to be awful...at least Logan Kim wasn't there to ruin things. And Cain lost a battle with supplement lady, who is now going to start dating AJ? 

I can't blame AJ for wanting to date supplement lady after Mina, once again, turned him down. The unfortunate part is the love triangle brewing, because we know Mina's interested but is too career-focused and scared to change her relationship with AJ to get what she wants. But supplement lady seems alright, for the moment. I did laugh at how she turned Cain down once she realized what he was up to. Be more subtle, Cain! Sometimes, your supposed charms can't work on everyone!

The sisters storyline was done fairly well. I had a feeling she wouldn't die, but it was still somewhat surprising with how things turned out. 

Nadine's back! I will say that Devon is the most likeable he's been since season 1, now that Nadine's in the picture. Plus, Devon gets to potentially date an actual princess! Cool! I'm totally down to see more of Nadine. Devon's intern, on the other hand, can go away. I still don't like him. 

So, Kyle buys a gun and...is what, planning to shoot Cain or Red Rock Rep or something? I think he's a bit too selfish to actually kill himself (it was a struggle for Nic to convince him to go through with donating for Jessie, for crying out loud), and it's too close to the suicidal MS patient story this episode, so it must be for someone else. I mean...if Kyle shoots Cain, would I be mad? No, because guaranteed that AJ and Conrad would give him a taste of his own medicine and keep him alive in some facility if he was brain dead or something, and that would be karma. 

 

[nokat]

That moment when Mina tells AJ he's a most important person in her life, I loved that.  It doesn't always have to be romantic, and I don't want it to be, although AJ may want it.

 

I like to see Devon's and Nadine's storyline, and want to see how that develops.
 

[statsgirl]

I haven't been watching this program for long but the way Mina friendzoned AJ and her behaviour when her friend woke up, it made me think that she's gay.

On 1/15/2020 at 10:26 PM, Bulldog said:

There is no other business where we would fault the business for trying to collect a bill owed to them.  Hospitals are just an easy target.

Many people feel that medical costs in the US are unnecessarily  inflated because:  hospitals don't have price transparency so people can't comparison shop; there is too much money spent on bureaucracy (one quarter of costs is administration; for example, Duke University Hospital has 900 beds and 1300 billing clerks compared to a same sized teaching hospital in Montreal which has only 2 billing clerks); drug costs are high because Medicare is not allowed to negotiate lower prices with drug companies (unlike in single payer countries); the practice of defensive medicine because of the high number of malpractice suits and the high payouts means unnecessary tests; more expensive treatments and greater use of specialists; high physician salaries; and branding of hospitals.

Americans pay about 4  times as much per capita in health costs as other OECD countries but have a worse life expectancy.

I can't think of another business that we are so dependent on but where there is no price transparency so we can't comparison shop, and where so much behind-the-scenes price fixing goes on. An easy target, but a deserved one.

[nokat]

6 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

I haven't been watching this program for long but the way Mina friendzoned AJ and her behaviour when her friend woke up, it made me think that she's gay.

Many people feel that medical costs in the US are inflated because:  hospitals don't have price transparency so people can't comparison shop; there is too much money spent on bureaucracy (one quarter of costs is administration; for example, Duke University Hospital has 900 beds and 1300 billing clerks compared to a same sized teaching hospital in Montreal which has only 2 billing clerks); drug costs are high because Medicare is not allowed to negotiate lower prices with drug companies (unlike in single payer countries); the practice of defensive medicine because of the high number of malpractice suits and the high payouts means unnecessary tests; more expensive treatments and greater use of specialists; high physician salaries; and branding of hospitals.

Americans pay about 4  times as much per capita in health costs  as other OECD countries with worse life expectancy.

I can't think of another business where we are so dependent on it but where there is no price transparency so we can't comparison shop, and where so much behind-the-scenes price fixing goes on. An easy target, but a deserved one.

I should say, I don't think Mina is gay because she friendzoned the Raptor.  The transparency about medical costs, I agree with.
 

[Mellowyellow]

This show likes to dangle potential crappy scenarios and then dodge them much to my relief.

Happened with Connic and Hotmom, happened with Marshall. I am hoping there will be no love triangle or if there is one it will be tastefully written.

Raptor walked in the snow for Mina. He pined over her quietly when she was dating someone else. The man is the biggest romantic out there! I refuse to believe he will give up that easily.

[Ohwell]

11 hours ago, statsgirl said:

I haven't been watching this program for long but the way Mina friendzoned AJ and her behaviour when her friend woke up, it made me think that she's gay.

I'm not quick to say "he's gay" or "she's gay," but I think AJ thought that too when he saw Mina with her friend.

Regarding administrative costs for health care:  I was in a minor car accident but went to the ER to get checked out, just in case (thankfully, I was ok).  The ER "clerk" or whatever he was came over and spent a few minutes getting my insurance information.  The accident wasn't my fault but I got a copy of the hospital bill that the other driver's insurance company was going to pay and one of the items was $900 for those few minutes.  Even though I didn't have to pay, I contacted the insurance company just to point that out.  I don't know what happened, but I do wonder if insurance companies negotiate with hospitals to bring down costs because I'm sure they know some of the costs are inflated. 

[bros402]

15 hours ago, Ohwell said:

I'm not quick to say "he's gay" or "she's gay," but I think AJ thought that too when he saw Mina with her friend.

Regarding administrative costs for health care:  I was in a minor car accident but went to the ER to get checked out, just in case (thankfully, I was ok).  The ER "clerk" or whatever he was came over and spent a few minutes getting my insurance information.  The accident wasn't my fault but I got a copy of the hospital bill that the other driver's insurance company was going to pay and one of the items was $900 for those few minutes.  Even though I didn't have to pay, I contacted the insurance company just to point that out.  I don't know what happened, but I do wonder if insurance companies negotiate with hospitals to bring down costs because I'm sure they know some of the costs are inflated. 

Insurance companies do negotiate

 

Real example: 2007, I had a 10 day inpatient video EEG in the pediatric neurology wing.

 

Claim total: $101,000

Total after Provider Discount: $25,000

[SnarkySheep]

I don't claim to be any sort of expert in heart problems or this VAD thing (which I had known nothing at all about until watching this) but jeez! If I had one, I think I'd have backup batteries at home, in the car, in my purse, etc, and double and triple check if I were embarking on a six-hour round trip from home! But this lady was just like, oops! as though she had forgotten something she wanted but wasn't totally life-essential. And then she was like, I'll just run over to the drugstore for another! I would imagine a person who relies on a thing to survive might know a thing or two about where replacement parts could and could not be obtained.

[Emma9]

On 1/26/2020 at 2:59 PM, SnarkySheep said:

I don't claim to be any sort of expert in heart problems or this VAD thing (which I had known nothing at all about until watching this) but jeez! If I had one, I think I'd have backup batteries at home, in the car, in my purse, etc, and double and triple check if I were embarking on a six-hour round trip from home! But this lady was just like, oops! as though she had forgotten something she wanted but wasn't totally life-essential. And then she was like, I'll just run over to the drugstore for another! I would imagine a person who relies on a thing to survive might know a thing or two about where replacement parts could and could not be obtained.

I'm not 100% sure, but I thought it was one of the other clinic assistants who suggested the drugstore. With you on the backup batteries, though, that seemed like a no-brainer precaution to take.

If it's not that simple, it would have been nice to have a line in the episode explaining so - maybe the woman's insurance didn't cover more backup batteries (fits the theme!) or she had no access to medical-supply providers to obtain them, or maybe spares wouldn't hold a charge long enough for you to just stash them everywhere for peace of mind.

Edited January 29, 2020 by Emma9