I say yes, you say no, OR People are Strange

Thanks to everyone for all of their good wishes to me with my insurance company woes. It means a lot to me. I'm off to visit with the lawyers in person today, but will stay sort of mum about things until it's all over and done with. I'm hoping things go well, though.

BarbaraA - My youngest son went to college in your backyard - at Eckerd. FL was sort of warm for a CO boy, but he had a terrific experience at the school, and is now heading for a PHD program. This is the kid that put me on a first name basis with the principal in middle school.  

Sandy 

Good luck Sandy. Insurance hassles are a really crappy part of this journey.

I heard a commentator say yesterday that he had read the Constitution,he had read the Bible, the problem with both of them was that everyone interpreted them differently. I thought that was very interesting.

I remember before my youngest went to college I called the insurance company to see if a meningiitis shot would be covered because it was a very expensive shot. I was told yes , then the explanation of benefits came back denied. I called back and I was hot. The rep said not covered but when I told him about my previous call he said he would check with his supervisor, put me on hold(to talk to supervisor, take a break, who knows) and came back and said it was covered. I'm not sure that all had a point except that it is always a hassle to deal with insurance companies but bc patients do not need that s**t.

Having said that I have cost the insurance company a bundle over the last 4 years between surgery,chemo, herceptin, heart failure from the herceptin, a year of uncontrolled asthma from one of the heart failure meds(yes I did tell them to TAKE ME OFF IT, it just took a year for me to convince anyone the med was the culprit) a defibbralator when the heart failure didn't clear up right away and a blood clot after that surgery  and all my prescriptions, especially the AIs and the only hassle I get from the insurance company is their trying to enroll me in their annoying chronic disease programs. ( tried one and the nurse was not available the only time I called her with a serious question).

Even though my insurance road has been easy my heart just aches every time I hear about insurance problems or women who have to worry about how a fund raiser will turn out along with all the stress that naturally comes from bc.

Hi, Laura!

Part of the problem is that these people were promised care, then dropped at the last minute, and probably before they had enough time to get help from the other sources you mentioned. 

Why not put the illegal immigrants on a path to citizenship?  That adds them to the income and social security tax rolls (taking some of the social security burden off of future generations), enables them to purchase houses (putting them on MORE tax rolls), and reduces the cost of enforcement.  They're already here, closing the borders by fence or enforcement is enormously cost-prohibitive, and they could be of benefit to everyone.

And Laura, some of us ARE working to enact change.  As Medigal said earlier, you can't assume that because we're whining here that we aren't working off-line.

Hope things are okay with you.  Did you get my pm?

E

I always find it sad to see the glass jars with a sick kids picture on it when in the States.  I have been in that position and caring for a sick child takes a lot of energy, resources and time.  Not to mention the emotional toll.  I can't imagine having to raise money and/or fight with insurance companies as well.   

E, the illegals are on the social security rolls with fake ID numbers. So the taxes are going to the government now.

I am shocked that Laura could produce some arguments to make the man's death the fault of

his family: "Couldn't that man's family have held fund-raisers? Did they turn to the media for help? Did they contact charitable organizations? Did they reach out to their community leaders? Are they members of a church that could have helped?"

or maybe the fault of immigrants: "If Obama would secure the borders, Jan Brewer wouldn't have to cut spending. If he would secure the borders and stop paying for healthcare, welfare, schooling, etc., for all the illegal immigrants, there would be money available to help the legal citizens"

or maybe the fault of people on this website: "And...why don't you girls do "something" about the problem? Instead of simply complaining about it. Have you thought of volunteering your time to get out the message of the importance of organ donation?"

 The real answer is that it was the heartless retraction of a promise to provide help through Medicaid by the Governor of the State.

Clearly his family believed that Medicaid would keep its promises. Why wouldn't they?

Immigrants have absolutely nothing to do with it. It is just as likely that prisons, or roads, or schools are the culprits because they too are budgetary items.

I think of myself as a woman, not a girl, and as others have said, some of us choose not to regale a public forum such as this with our political or charitable activities. That doesn't mean there aren't any - just that we don't brag.

Alpal wrote: thanks so much for your suggestions about ways we can help. What exactly have you done to help?

I'm NOT complaining about it! lol I have my "causes" that I volunteer for on a regular basis.

Of course this situation is bad, and it's terrible he died, but I don't think the government should be blamed. My point was that people need to get involved. Period. My friend's daughter needed a Kidney transplant. They had reached their ceiling on their insurance. They raised the money - yeah it was hard work, but their family and friends helped - even strangers helped. Just saying...

But Laura, if he was promised care by the government and put on a transplant list, only to have it yanked out from under him, isn't the government at fault?

Typewriter? OMG - Are they STILL available! lol

E - Regardless of whether or not the government is at fault, my point is that people need to get involved. If more people would donate organs, this wouldn't be an issue.  

My son begged me to buy him a typewriter for his birthday. We found one on ebay and he LOVES it! (He's 10.) Some girls who live in our building came over and they loved it too. I was pretty thrilled because - well, for years a typewriter was one of my most important possessions. Long live the typewriter! OK, back to health care. 

Laura:  Yes there still is one brand of an electric typewriter available but most very hard to find. I find that there are things I still need a typewriter for which works out better for me than the computer.  I always type my taxes even tho I know I can purchase a program to do them on the computer.  I love my typewriter and to some of us, it will always hold an important place in our lives.  The problem is getting ribbons etc. for them.

I think the reason a lot of people don't donate organs may have to do with their religion.  When I return for my next life, I don't want to be missing my eyes or my kidneys etc. etc.!  I have always had a weird thing I do at funerals since I was a child.  I usually check in the coffin to make sure no overzealous mortician cut off the legs or any body parts from my loved ones.  DP keeps getting ticked off at me because he insists they can't do that without permission but that doesn't disway me from what I have to do.  I also told him "he" has to check me out when my time comes.  If anything is missing, "I Want It Back!"   Just my personal feelings on this issue and that certainly includes checking to make sure the "eyes" are still there!   

It might still be an issue, Laura, because most of the expense of organ replacement is in the surgery and lifelong medications. 

A man in Delaware was on the organ recipient list, but he couldn't receive an organ (double lung transplant) until he had the money to pay for the surgery and ongoing medications.  His insurance company refused to pay for this surgery, so he had to resort to donations and raffles.  He was fortunate in that his friends and employers had a lot of contacts and the wherewithal to put the word out and make it a nationwide raffle.  Others aren't fortunate enough to have those contacts.

It's easy to think that because we worked hard, did well with our careers and have good life insurance that other people should be able to accomplish the same thing.  The truth is, people don't always succeed because they had a bad life, they have below-average intelligence, their skills are no longer marketable, their employer has crappy insurance, they contracted a fatal disease, or a host of other reasons.  Having a government-provided "safety net" for such occasions is a great idea for our society.  To think otherwise is to say well, you had a bad run of luck and you don't have rich friends, so you deserve to die.  Sucks to be you!

I don't think this is how a majority of Americans feel.  It can't be, or they've lost their humanity.

E

Medigal - I hope that if any of us return for a next life, we get a new body. Since we all are on this website, chances are the bodies we have now aren't all that perfect. Surely if your religion gives you a next life, you would get a next body too? Or do you know anyone who came back to stay using the same old body that failed?

Laura - I know you don't believe that.  You have a good heart.  It was rhetoric to get my point across.  Back when I was first eligible to vote, I thought the same way - pull yourself up by your bootstraps and just get 'er done!  Life experience has taught me that not everyone has bootstraps or the resources to get 'er done.  Not everyone makes enough to save a significant amount.  All of us need help at some point in our lives; I see no problems having a government safety net to provide that.

Who among us is expecting everyone else to do it?  And do any of us, trying our best to stay alive and battle cancer, have that much time to create a new organization?  As someone said, a lot of us already give to charities and individuals that need it; we can't give to everybody.

I we had single payer, this wouldn't be an issue.  I, personally, wouldn't mind paying double my current insurance rate if it meant that every citizen has health care.  It's a good investment of my money.

E