VICTORY!!!

I'm happy to report a minor victory for The Little People. The insurance lady called me back this morning (I KNOW! Prompt service that is greatly appreciated from the Big Bad Insurance people!), and everything is taken care of! She called the provider, and they were the ones that made the error, so I will be issued a new EOB and will owe nothing! Hurray!

Thank goodness, because I was really not looking forward to parting with my $265, OR looking for a new girly doctor. Take my word for it guys, it's not the easiest thing to do to find someone you like. Or, I should say, don't mind having ~down there~ poking and prodding.

So, all's well that ends well! Thanks for your comments and support.

Wes, I would be all for government sponsored/provided health care if I didn't ever have to 'file' anything with anyone! Where all you had to do was show up for your appointment, and maybe pay a co-pay or something. I don't mind a flat rate at the beginning of the appointment. It's the paper work and huge bills you get slapped with after the fact that are enough to make you a crazy person!

The Biggest Scam Going

Health Insurance (which is an oxy-moron, if you ask me.)

So, I've been having insurance issues for several months now. I changed jobs back in October, and thus changed insurance providers (of course). Once I received my new insurance cards, I called my girly-doctor to make sure that they took my new insurance and to schedule my annual exam. They assured me that yes, indeed, they took my insurance, and I made an appointment for 6 weeks away (the earliest she could see me--after all, her priority appts. go to the preggos, which is fine with me). The was late Nov., the week after Thanksgiving. I go, everything's cool, I pay my co-pay, and even have some lab work done. I get the Explanation of Benefits (EOB) for what I think is my exam, but what turns out to be my lab work. No biggie, it does not surprise me that the hospital my Dr. is affiliated with is slower than the private lab they send everything to.

So then I get an EOB in January from my OLD insurance, stating that they did not pay the $265 because I was no longer covered by them. Duh! Still haven't gotten an EOB from my new insurance for my exam, and then I get a bill from my Dr. in the amount of $265. I realize what has happened....my Dr.'s office (and the extremely competent people that work there....note the sarcasm) filed the claim with the wrong insurance, even though I gave them my new card and information, and they even have it on file! I call the dr.'s office to clear it up, and the lady said they would promptly file with my correct insurance, so don't pay the bill you just got. Great, I wasn't planning on it anyway!

Fast forward to last week, when I finally receive the EOB from my NEW insurance (confusing, isn't it?), stating that my dr. is out-of-network and they won't cover my $265 bill, but that it will apply to my deductible. MWHA? This can not be the case! I have a strict In-Network-Only policy (luckily I don't really have an special doctor's I have to go to and I'm not really that picky), so if, when I called my dr. back in the fall, I was told that she was not in-network, I would have simply changed doctors. So I call the insurance company today, and sure enough it was listed as out-of-network. I assured the woman with the insurance company that my doctor was in-network, I even looked up her status today on the provider's website. She was very polite, said she would place an inquiry with the plan provider and call me back this afternoon with more information. (I still don't understand how you can have a plan administrator, who I called today, that is different from the plan provider, the people who actually pay your doctor when a claim is filed. It's all very strange to me, and seems like an absolute waste of time, paper, trees, people, and money. But anyway....) I appreciate her responsiveness, but still. I am going to be really pissed if my dr.'s 'network status' changed and the website just isn't updated. Because then I have to pay $265 for an exam that is completely routine and falls under the category of 'Annual Physical,' which my insurance clearly covers under their policy statement. Provided I'm In-Network. URG!!!!!

Health Insurance is a SCAM!!! Dealing with it is enough to drive you to the mental institution! Which, of course, isn't covered under your plan.

Overheard on the Subway

Teen Girl 1: Whatever, I was, like, 4 when you were born, and you were, like, 2. I've done WAY more than you.
Teen Girl 2: No, you were, like, 2 when I was born. That's not that much different.

HUH? What kind of crazy math do they teach in school now?

Smokey Haven

We're off to the Smokey Mountains tomorrow! I need a vacation!

See you when we get back!!

Bored

I'm bored. Bored with work, mainly. I like my new job, but it's boring. It's hard to make it to lunch some days, let alone 5 o'clock. I need something new to keep me entertained. There are SO many other things I can think of to do besides working. Especially now that it's starting to look more like spring. I love spring. We are having a taste of it right now. I actually went out this morning on an errand WITHOUT MY COAT! Crazy, I know. Makes me want to garden or something. But, rest assured, we'll get another cold snap in the next month or so and I'll be cursing Mother Nature.

Newbies

Hey y'all! Got some new blogs for ya to check out!. Go on over and say howdy!

Bubba's Mom and Bubba's Sis are two special ladies who raised my husband into the man he is today!

Confession

I love to watch 'This Old House.'

I am not a homeowner, but I LOVE old houses, so I still think it's cool that people go through the hassle and expense of renovating old homes. Old houses have character and stories to tell, and I just love old details. In my opinion, they really don't make 'em like they used to. My friend Gina is living the dream in Ohio, although some of her stories (like the absolutely tiny bathrooms) are a little scary. But the thought of taking a monument to the past and either restoring it to it's original condition, or having a vision of how to make a great old house even better, just really appeals to me. Must be the do-it-yourself person inside of me.

Of course, I don't actually have the funds to have such a house, but it's a dream of mine. Maybe some day.

Mother Nature Has A Wicked Sense of Humor

Today is March 2nd.

It's SNOWING in NYC.

Meanwhile, Texas is experiencing very abnormal temperatures (for this time of year) in the upper 70s and 80s, and in some cases 90s, depending on where you are in the great state.

Good times.

Water, Water, Everywhere

I find it continuously humerous that people from all over my office walk all the way down the hall to get water from the water fountain, which has very little water pressure and is most of the time not cold, instead of just going into the bathroom or kitchen and filling their cup/mug/water bottle from the tap. The water pressure is better, it's much colder, and it takes about half the time. And, you can fill your cup/bottle all the way to the top, instead of having it half-full because you had to tip it way over just to get the very-low-pressure stream of water to actually go into the container. "But," you say, "it's filtered. I'd want filtered water, too." I GUARANTEE you that the water fountain water is not filtered any more than the water in the bathroom or kitchen. It's the same set of pipes leading from the same connection in the building, which is the same water you get in your apartment if you happen to live in Manhattan. I could understand if it was water from one of those huge jug things, that actually IS filtered (and, has a different taste) but no, it's the regulation water fountain the building is required to install. And, it's NYC water, the best water I have ever tasted. I'm a conniseur of water, I know my water.

The humerous part comes in because these people are civil engineers, and should know something about how the building works, where the water comes from, etc. Basically, they should know better. But either they choose to ignore this information, or use the trek to the water fountain as additional exercise. I just think it makes them look stupid.