Thanks for Nothing, Big Corporate Robber Barons
Okay, I finally got up the nerve to make the appointment for Asscam 09 (tomorrow & I’m terrified) only to find out that since it’s a diagnostic asscam instead of a screening asscam, it’s going to cost me a $300 copay because, inexplicably, it’s considered an outpatient SURGERY.
Seriously?
The woman from the insurance company says it’s because they invade your body. Well, if that’s the case, those transvaginal ultrasounds they give you when you’re pregnant should be considered surgery, too. I’m sorry but I consider having a big old phallic-shaped device poking me in my lady bits to also be pretty damned invasive (and not nearly as *fun* as it sounds).
My complaint in a nutshell? We have the VERY BEST plan offered by my husband’s employer and we pay a small fortune the equivalent of our mortgage payment for it every month and they won’t cover a freaking colonoscopy 100%?
Frankly, that alone is reason for me to reconsider having it done, although I’m sure that’s EXACTLY what my insurance company is hoping for because if I don’t get it done, then they won’t have to pay for ANYTHING. I guess it’s never occurred to them that an asscam is a hell of a lot cheaper than treatment for advanced colon cancer or some other horrid potential diagnosis down the road. To hell with all that fancy, highfalutin’ logical thinking…
Health care reform CANNOT come soon enough, IMO.
And for anyone who has questions about said health care reform (like my mother-in-law, who has been convinced by her nutjob friends that old people will be EUTHANIZED instead of receiving medical care —I SWEAR TO GOD) here is an excellent rumor-busting resource that comes from the White House.
I know that may not hold much water with some people but in this case, I personally trust the White House more than insurance lobbyists and other special interests who stand to gain from things remaining as they are — which is totally ƒu©k¡πg BROKEN.
Just sayin…
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If you have kids and have ever posted a pic of them on your blog or on Flickr, you should really read this post because…well, because I said so. And because really, who wants pix of their kids labeled with porn tags by a search engine?
My insurance company did the same thing when my gyno found a small lump in my breast during my yearly exam. I was due for a mammogram anyway, but because it was diagnostic instead of screening, I paid a lot. And it was time for my yearly mammogram anyway, why charge me? i never did figure that one out, but i felt scammed.
It defies common sense. You would think they’d WANT to catch things early and save money.
Well said! I can’t even have a rational discussion about the issue anymore because I get angry at how many people are buying the outright lies that are being sold about it. I am personally insulted at the way health care is handled in this country right now and I agree that change cannot come soon enough.
Meredith’s last blog post…Take Us Back In Time Tuesday
You could have a rational discussion if you were talking to people who were actually informed by facts instead of by talk radio hosts who are paid to stir up controversy where there typically is none.
Head? Meet brick wall.
are you seriously saying that they aren’t letting you cuss? If so, i’ll be awaiting my repremand any day now.
gorillabuns’s last blog post…it’s technotronic
No, they haven’t said anything so far but I’m almost never in the post rotation under the ads anymore. My best guess as to why is because I use profanity—I have NO idea what else it could be.
That is horrible. As much as I hate our wait times, I really do enjoy *mostly* free health care.
And, not to make light of your post, but boy, I spend way too much time on twitter, because I couldn’t figure out what ATsscam was…
Over here, a lot of people love to spout off about how awful socialized health care is in Canada but every Canadian I’ve ever talked to seems largely satisfied with it. No system is perfect but almost anything would be better than what we have right now. Mainly, I think insurance and employment should NOT be tied together, especially when so many people are losing their jobs.
OMG I thought I was the only one that had crazy grandparents that thought someone was going to put them to sleep next time they go for a physical. Thanks for the info, I’ll try to pass it along without getting disowned. It’s like campaign season all over again.
Also? Your site is the ONLY one of all the blogs that I read that is blocked by work. It is tagged by my job as both profanity and social networking. Probably why I don’t comment here as much as I did at the other site. ha. :)
Brooke’s last blog post…25 Years of my life and still…
Someone told me a while back that they were at a coffee shop with WIFI and my site was blocked for being pornographic, which I find mostly hilarious (because hello? PORN???) but also kind of annoying because I have no idea how to get off said list.
I’m not as comfortable with losing my private insurance. I know the link you sent has a woman (and our president) saying I’ll be able to keep my insurance “if I like it.” Think about it; why would my employer continue to pay my health insurance if the government has a plan that costs nothing? There would be NO incentive to do so. I may be a nutjob, but I’m with your mom in the fact that the bill currently in Congress is not going to be good for us as it is written right now. However, I an intelligent person, so I don’t fall for every scare tactic I hear on conservative talk radio (That euthanasia thing is ridiculous. ), nor should you believe everything you hear “straight from the White House.” I’m appalled at the behavior of some lunatics at town hall meetings, but not everyone who questions the bill(s) is a radical. We need to educate ourselves by going straight to the source; the bills themselves, not leaving it up to interpretation by those with ulterior motives.
Mrs4444’s last blog post…Like a Chicken with My Head Cut Off
I think the videos provide a good resource for dispelling some of the silly rumors that I keep hearing, like the euthanasia one, for example.
And trust me, my mother-in-law’s friends ARE nutjobs. The emails she gets from them on a daily basis (and insists on forwarding to me despite my repeated requests that she not) are of the “Obama is a Muslim terrorist with a fake birth certificate who wants to put old people to sleep” variety. They are seriously NOT grounded in anything resembling reality…
Questioning health care reform is one thing and some healthy skepticism is certainly advisable in all matters political. However, the intentional distorting of facts, with the sole purpose of scaring people into a (largely uninformed) frenzy goes way beyond either of those. I’m 100% in favor of people doing whatever they need to do to form educated opinions, regardless of what side of the fence they are on.
In any case, please don’t take the opinions expressed here personally. I’m close friends with enough Republicans to know you’re not all like my MIL’s crazy friends ;)
GET THE @SSCAM DONE!
If we have to we’ll have a scopin’ Janet’s @ss fundraiser. Maybe we’ll raffle coveted front row tickets to the show… who knows. ;)
If I thought I could monetize this travesty, I *so* would!
Best part of this post?
I just spent 10 minutes wondering what an “at a scam” was before it finally twigged.
12ontheinside’s last blog post…Is it 5 o’clock Yet?
lolololol…when I read this, I almost spit my coffee all over my keyboard. It never occurred to me that it might be read that way. (Just trying to please the ad gods, ya know?)
I had a scope in June and another in July. The June one got scheduled at the hospital - so I had to pay a $125 co-pay, for “surgery”. The July one was scheduled at the doctor’s office - where there was a $30 co-pay. Crazy.
They did it at your doctor’s office? That’s how I wanna roll, dammit *stamps foot*
My head hurts thinking about American Healthcare - seriously it does. Move to Canada please.
katie ~ motherbumper’s last blog post…It’s Monday and I’m Bejeweled
If you tell me what I need to do (am lazy also, you see) to make that happen, I will SO move to Canada!
A$$cam hurdles. You has them. Could it be a sign?
I take it as a sign that Humana sucks sweaty dog balls. Is that what you meant?
That is EXACTLY what I meant. Good catch.
This is precisely why I don’t have health insurance. A-holes. And kudos on cleverly redirecting my anger when I found out that @sscam09 was something entirely different than I expected. Stupid insurance companies. Now I have just one more thing to be mad at them about. Also, are you sure about the not euthanizing old people thing? I thought we settled that. Or I dreamt it. Anyway, in my dream, it worked out quite well. Except every time we killed an old person, a goat was born that looked like Pia Zadora. No one could figure out what to do with those. But I’m pretty sure that wouldn’t happen in real life.
Mayopie’s last blog post…Oh, I’ll leave you alone
But did the goats SING like Pia Zadora? Or marry really old RICH guys like Pia Zadora? Or disappear into OBSCURITY* like Pia Zadora? The devil is in the DETAILS, Mayopie.
*she DID disappear into obscurity, didn’t she? ‘Cause if she has something going on and I didn’t know about it, heads will roll. ROLL.
I’m glad you made the appointment. I’m sorry that the a$$hats are charging you such a large co-pay. But PLEASE go and get it done!
I’m a military spouse with GOVERNMENT RUN health care plan. A few months ago, I went and had a consultation with a cardiologist and a stress test. Why? Because I told my primary care doc that I have a history of heart disease and stroke in my family, that I am 41 and have never had a full physical, and I was starting a new exercise program and didn’t want to drop dead of a heart attack.
“Do you have any symptoms?” he asked. “No.” I replied. “Okay. Call this number in 24 hours and we’ll get your referral.”
Want to know how much I paid? Zip. Zilch. Nada.
Crappy GOVERNMENT RUN health care program.
And really, after the Terry Schiavo debacle, didn’t everyone get the idea that end of life counseling was a GOOD thing?
Now, off to check out Mayopie’s blog. She sounds seriously, seriously twisted.
Jennifer’s last blog post…Through my kitchen window.
Ooops. HE sounds seriously, seriously twisted.
Dangit!
Sorry Mayopie!
Jennifer’s last blog post…Through my kitchen window.
Damn…that’s some really crappy health insurance you have. NOT!
I’m happy for you and jealous of you at the same time.
And yes, that Terri Schiavo debacle should be reason enough for people to consider drafting living wills. Euthanasia… *insert eyeroll* The people who started that rumor are evil and the ones who believe it are just plain stupid.
Have you read or seen an interview with the ex-insurance CIGNA CEO Wendell Potter? It will make your head explode. Bill Moyers did an interview with him recently. It’s not to be believed what those companies do in the name of profit.
JJR’s last blog post…County Fair on a Summer Night
I love Bill Moyers. I’m gonna have to check on Youtube or PBS or something and see if I can find it. Thanks!
Take something to calm the rage before you watch the interview. It should be required viewing for every person who supports our current health care system. I got so angry when I watched it that I think my husband was worried about me.
http://www.pbs.org/moyers/journal/07102009/watch2.html
Jennifer’s last blog post…Through my kitchen window.
We should twitter about it. VIVA LA REVOLUTION!
IzzyMom’s last blog post…Thanks for Nothing, Big Corporate Robber Barons
When I saw the insurance EOB after delivering my baby I was surprised to see that my plain old vaginal delivery was coded as a “surgery” as well.
*sigh* Stupid insurance companies. Hope you get it all sorted.
Karen @ If I Could Escape’s last blog post…#welovethenhs
I am wishing happy thoughts for your anal invasion, both on the insurance, um, “end” and the um, procedure “end. Heh.
And thank you so much for linking to my post. No word back since I requested a full explanation of how it happened and how to prevent it, but I figured out the robots.txt way to deter the MSNbots and posted about it for others, too. And it wasn’t just me-Erin (@f_i_d_g_e_t) had the same thing happen to her. :(
Angel Smith @ CheekySweetie’s last blog post…Fathers, be good to your daughters
hopefully you get those insurance issues straightened out to your satisfaction….. sometimes I really do think that it’s like that Grisham book, where it’s someones job to deny as much and as many claims as possible….. I remember my father being absolutely beside himself because Blue Cross/Blue Shield would not approve an Aricept prescription for my mother, who had Alzheimers…. they said it wasn’t necessary….. never mind that her Doctor presribed it for her…… but what would he know?
kuba’s last blog post…Paul McCartney @ FedEx Field, Landover MD, August 1, 2009
dealing with insurance companies is such a time suck too … i’ve had to spend a ton of time getting things straightened out before. Good luck with your body invasion ;)
fiona’s last blog post…Wordless Wednesday ~ Zucchini
Those insurance companies are really a dismay. The government should really fix the health care program for everyone’s sake.