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I'm not a political person. As a matter of point, I try to avoid speaking on the topic as much as possible, and really this isn't about that. It's our country as a whole and one of the biggest failings--healthcare. This is personal post and WAY different from anything I normally do, but sometimes it's unavoidable. I'm one person who will likely never be heard over the roar of the crowd, but if I remain silent then I've guaranteed it. At the beginning of 2014 I joined the many people in this country who signed up for the new marketplace insurance rolled out by President Obama. No matter where you stand on the matter, it looked like a good option for my family as I'm self-employed and my husband's company does not offer insurance. I have a son who is auto-immune and I'm not without my own health concerns. I'd like to start by saying, this is not free health coverage. I'm paying a pretty hefty bill every month, but I went with a company I thought I could trust (as much as anyone trusts insurance companies) Blue Cross Blue Shield of Tennessee. According to their website, a large number of doctors in our area accept the plan we chose. What a joke that turned out to be. I've been paying this huge sum of money each month for 4 months now and just two weeks ago was finally able to find 1 single doctor who would accept it. Now, here I am two weeks later with an additional hefty bill after the insurance refused to pay. You see, in my opinion, I've been ran in circles. Non-stop chasing my tail while I pay them month after month for absolutely nothing. Now, I have more medical bills to pay on top of a monthly insurance payment....trapped between two faceless entities who care nothing about my family. Insurance who won't pay despite cashing my checks each month, and doctors who won't honor having signed up to accept the plan. What are we supposed to do when we have nowhere to go? I've wondered many times over the past few months when 'we the people' lost our voice, if our forefathers are turning in their graves?
My heart and prayers are with you. It's ridiculous what the system has become.
ReplyDeleteThank you. All that we can hope is someone eventually listens. I'm just not sure what other options there are. :-D Thank you for sharing this post. Maybe if enough people speak up we'll see a bit of change, but I don't hold much hope for it.
DeleteI'm sorry to hear this, Charity. Not surprised, unfortunately. I wish I had enough money to self insure.
ReplyDeleteIn a way, I wasn't all that surprised either. I knew I'd have to change doctors, but I never dreamed it would be this bad. It's another VA scandal waiting to happen.
DeletePolitics is about power. Whether we want to accept it or not life is political, meaning about power even if we are not interested in our own personal power. Others will always try to exercise their power over others (us). So like it or not life is political and to deal with it we must be political on some level. ..In self defense. Truth is Charity, health care reform was never about health care. It is about control. ..another word for power. Very sorry to hear of the issues you are having.Wish you and you family the best and resolution at some point.
ReplyDeleteThank you. :-D To clarify, I'm not a political person due to believing they are all crooks for sale to the highest bidder. My opinion on it makes some people angry so I tend to keep it to myself. I appreciate you stopping by.
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ReplyDeleteHow ever we need to rally together to solve this we must as citizens. I'm down, what do we do?
ReplyDeleteI wish I knew. Months of dealing with this has left me feeling defeated and angry.
DeleteI dread to think of the medical bills I have incured over the last couple years...I have to say that the only thing that covered my tail is the care oregon insurance that I got...while one state funded insurance screwed me (work comp) another kept me alive. Sorry to hear about your difficulties...this does put me in mind to rant about the necessity of single payer...
ReplyDeleteMedical bills can quickly become insane.
DeleteSo sorry. It's a double whammy -- facing an illness and then having to worry how to pay for it. Have you tried appealing the denials? Insurance companies do have a process for that. You might also consider contacting your state insurance commissioner. And you can do online and rate your doctor's "service." You might also consider contacting the news media about your plight--the local newspaper and/or TV station.
ReplyDeleteMy husband has filed some official complaint. We'll see if anything comes of it. Thank you for the suggestions. :-D I'm going to keep fighting.
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