This blog has been sorely neglected of late. I haven't had a lot to say, and what I have had to say...generally isn't suitable for the public. Namely because it's been focused on the aftermath of my illness.
I had bronchitis, people. Not plague (though it kind of felt like it), cancer, or TB. It's fairly common and is relatively easy to treat, though it does have a pretty long recovery time. That's just the nature of the beast.
For the past month or so, I've been fighting with my insurance, and after yesterday, I'm about ready to cancel it all together. Yes, I'm broke. I have a budget plan. And yeah, you get what you pay for. But my estimate is that since getting this plan, about $700 has been paid into it. So far, I've been given $10 for prescriptions (out of $70), nothing for the office visit, x-ray, or breathing treatment. Additionally, I got a letter yesterday stating that the office visit doesn't count towards my deductible because it wasn't an emergency.
So let me get this straight: they would rather I run myself into the ground, wind up in the hospital with a potentially life-threatening illness, unable to work, and with thousands of dollars in medical bills, than cover a $130 office visit and an inhaler?
Yes, that makes so much sense.
I'm not even asking for them to cover the "extras" (x-ray and breathing treatment). I just want to go to my doctor when I'm sick, get better, and go back to work. That's it. Why is that so hard?
I've decided: I'm moving to Ireland.
Free healthcare (some of the best in the world, particularly where it concerns women), low education costs, and ranked one of the happiest countries in the world (and I know from experience that they are probably the nicest, most laid back people ever). And then there are the beautiful accents. It's win all around.
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To keep myself from going insane, I've been focusing on The Project that Cannot Be Named, but Shall be Named Later This Week, pulling out all the stops trying to get it done in time. If I don't run out of yarn first (which is likely).
I did start working on that "short" story I mentioned a few days ago, but because my inner Muse is a bi-polar crack addict with ADD, she got me started on a creepy, post apocalyptic sci-fi story that I'm itching to work on even though it freaks me out (not a sci-fi fan, apart from Star Trek and Firefly. And I don't do post apocalyptic conspiracy stories, which this most definitely wants to be. For me, this is a horror story liable to give me nightmares if I really start working on it in earnest).
I've also been reading a bit more, and once I finish the third book in the series I'm working on right now (I'm on book 2) I'll probably post a review...since I'm not doing so hot on that resolution to write more book reviews.
Stick around, you don't know what might pop up next.
Well, you could try Australia. We also have a very cool centralised medical system, which... unlike what you hear about in the USA, isn't the root of socialist evil that they try to make it out to be.
ReplyDeleteIt is kinda odd that the USA is the only developed country that doesn't have a health care service. Not only that, but the population actively riles against it, as though having a government the supports caring for its people is a bad thing.
Hang in there. You will make it. Many of the European countries have much better medical care than the US does. Obamacare is only making things worse. It is not care anything, but maybe the government telling people what they can do and how to pay for care or limit the care. (I promise no more tirade for or against anything political) I won't go into my insurance fight either.
ReplyDeleteOne thing about the European countries is the taxes are much higher and the government tells the tax payer what is owed. The US is somewhat that way unless one has itemized deductions and they we can tell the government what we owe and at a lot less of a rate than other countries.
I like Germany, but my taxes would be about 55% of my income and I would not own a house. (at least that is what I am told by my German friends)
I truly hope things work out with your insurance.