So there is some pretty big news to report: W has health insurance. Just typing that fills me with so much calm. Massive moment of exhale. Ready for the bonus news? I also now have health insurance! Shocking. I didn’t even apply for coverage but I guess I qualify and well, holy fuck. I have insurance.
Now here is where this moment may not translate for some of you. There are some people that have never known what it is like to not have health insurance. They are covered by work or a spouse, they get money taken out of a paycheck, they pay a co-pay, they have some sort of plan in place to hopefully protect them should something awful happen with their health.
I used to be one of those people. When I was working a billion hours a week back in a previous incarnation of my adult life I had health insurance and it was a total blessing that I did not fully appreciate. Until I could not get coverage. At all. Even when we were in a position to pay for it I could not get it. Being turned away is something that hardened me.
And honestly, I had grown used to winging it. Saving up so that I could afford to meet with a doctor. Using coupons to get pap smears. Becoming a bit of a spaz about germs and friends with illnesses because I couldn’t afford to see a doctor to get antibiotics.
It’s just a mind blow that a safety net is in place for both of us now.
Of course the final stretch of the insurance quest was not event free. There were a few more set backs, a few more phone calls, more faxes, hours of crying and feeling stupid. When the letter arrived in the mail last week I waited for the feeling of elation to come. I was surprised when it did not. Maybe because I knew there were a few more steps to go.
Being eligible for state insurance was what I was fighting for. That is what I have been going back and forth with for over two months- just fitting into the category of eligibility. Now that we were eligible we had to get enrolled into a plan.
And then we had to find a doctor that was seeing new patients. Then we had to find a doctor that would take state insurance.
I spent nearly three hours this morning on the phone. On the phone with people within the state’s office, with people at the insurance company’s office and about 60 various doctor’s offices.
I was told, “no” so many times. SO many. And I cried a lot. This shit makes me tense and emotional. And it should be easier. I should be selecting a doctor for W based on the doctor not based on whether or not they had “slots still open for state insurance cases”. Way to make a Mom feel like scum.
Because it kind of sucks to hear, “YES! We are taking new patients…just not your son.”
I am learning that fighting is a huge part of parenting. Who knew? I certainly didn’t.
When I finally landed on a pediatrician’s office that was accepting new patients AND the kind of insurance we now have I felt drunk with relief. I gushed profusely to the administrator taking my call. Thanked her with gusto and tried to make the good news call tape over all of the shitty bad news calls of the morning.
It took even longer to find a primary care doctor for myself and a few times I wanted to just stop looking because it felt, I don’t know, like I was pushing my luck or something. Again I was met with a hearty round of calls that flustered and saddened me. YES! to new patients. NO! to patients with state insurance.
I found one practice that was affiliated with a very respected hospital and felt a bit hopeful when I was told YES! and then ‘Please hold’. Surely they wouldn’t keep me on hold that long if the answer was going to be anything other than,”come on down!’ I was wrong. No “slots” for me. But they told me to try another office and that ended up being the magic number.
Again I felt such massive victory at being told YES! and YES! The doctor’s office is a bit further out than I would have preferred, but whatever.
The result: W has a wellness appointment on February 16th and I have an annual well woman exam on February 17th. How cool is that? Very.
{ 49 comments… read them below or add one }
YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so happy for you!!! And you have appointments fairly quick. 2 weeks for a new patient is really fast around here. W will not be as hapy after his shots, but momma will be less stressed about this thing.
This makes me so angry I could absolutely scream.
I know what a feeling of relief that must be! I was unemployed for awhile and was turned down for insurance over something that is both not a big deal and very common. Which is why we need health care reform like yesterday. Except some people out there aren’t getting the message that though it may not be a problem for them now, they have absolutely zero control over whether it will be a problem for them in the future. Sigh. All we can do is hope!
I’m really glad that you guys are all set.
I am so doing the mother fucking happy dance for you guys! It’s a HUGE deal!
Fantastic news! I am so thrilled for you and W!
YAY for both of you having insurance coverage!!! i spent a little time in insurance “even tho you have $-to-pay” you dont qualify for private-pay purgatory…so i can relate a teeny tiny bit. you are a kickass momma and i would hate to be the person to get in W’s way for anyting in his life for the thought of *fighting* against YOU
love you both.
need to come visit you soon…
xoxo
MANY CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
^_____^
im glad you all have it just sucks when you have to fight through hell. i lots my private insurance from my ex when we divorced going on 3 yrs without insurance from anything because i am pre exsisting….
so you learn to wing it as you said…
much hugs to you!!!
Fantastic news all around! You are an ace fighter, that’s for sure!
So. Happy. I am a person who has always been fortunate to be insured, and I can’t imagine how scary it would be not to be insured, let ALONE having to worry about my uninsured child. I admire the effort you put in to this process, and I know it has been long and frustrating and I am THRILLED it turned out well for you and W!
FANTASTIC news x 2! Glad you are covered too! YAY!
Happy day! February is your month!!
I am so happy for you and W. It shouldn’t have to be that way. It makes me very angry that you had to do all of that. Universal health are should be a right.
I am SO happy for the both of you. Your hard work, lists and persistance has paid off. NO ONE should ever have to jump through the hoops you have just to have insurance and to see a doctor.
I am fortunate to have been covered by my employeer for many years now. I recall a time when I was unemployeed and learned I wasn’t eligible for private insurance (pre-existing condition). And for that short period of time I lived in a state of panic. I won’t take it for granted anymore. Thank you for the reminder.
I love happy endings!!
Perseverance! You did it! Yay, Momma – that’s what you gotta do to take care of yourself and your son! I know it cost you a lot of tears, but you won!
Now that you’ve used up all your events for the year on getting the insurance, it’s time for eventfulness to move on. I predict the next event will be your mom finding a great job!
Rock on!
Good job on following this through to its conclusion. I know how much work that is.
This is terrific news, and I am thrilled to hear it. Kudos to you for being a fabulous advocate for yourself and W; that is no small feat!
YES YES YES!!!!!
That is fantastic news! Good for you for sticking with it and getting to the right result. You should give yourself a ton of credit for fighting through this one. That is no small feat!
I, too, was turned down for independent health insurance for no good reason when I left my corporate job. The whole system seems to work against people who are trying to do the right thing for themselves, their families and their health.
Way to go Mom!
Yayyyy!
Your gratitude over your newfound coverage makes me feel humbled. And very, very lucky that I live in Canada.
I cannot believe the ordeal that was. I am glad you BOTH got your coverage.
Go Warrior Mama! What a relief this must be.
Sorry I’ve been such a lousy commenter. Been thinking of you. Mail on its way.
Finally Finally Finally. What sucks though is that it highlights the supreme bias that exists in public assistance. For the love of all that is good – we are all human beings? How hard is it for others to act like it?
Hurray!!! Both for W and you!!
And glad you found drs.
aaaaarghhhh! so pissed at the system. so very happy for you and W… congratulations and hurray!
Oh my freakin’ Lord–congratulations! That was a huge sigh of relief for you coming from my direction.
I’m thrilled for you. And I do sort of get it. We’ve dealt with insurance for one of my adult stepchildren who’s uninsurable due to a chronic condition (fortunately at great expense we’ve been able to keep coverage through COBRA and said stepkid does now have coverage through work, so I don’t *exactly* get it, but nonetheless…) and it stinks.
Amusingly enough (not) though I was looking forward to my only child being able to see his cousins this spring/summer, my brother and his wife, who live outside the US because — guess what? In my SIL’s native country they all have ready access to affordable health care — now cannot travel here (as they’d been planning to do) because she’s expecting again and, the pregnancy being a pre-existing condition, she now cannot get insurance that would cover her while she’s in the U.S. So either I have to get to the E.U. (they’ll have coverage anywhere there, no problem), or my only child has to wait yet another year to see his cousins.
Need I mention that I was deeply saddened by the recent election in MA?
Thank goodness! I’m so glad you both have doctors and appointments coming up, that you have health care. What a huge relief. I am so sorry for all that you have had to go through to get to this. I think it is so wrong.
Your story has made me even more appreciative of Australia’s Public Health System. EVERYONE can access a doctor locally. Many clinics “bulk bill” which means the government pays and so we are not out of pocket. (That said, my fav doctor isn’t a bulk biller so I pay her up front and claim about half back from the government). Our children only see Pediatrician’s in extreme situations and with a referral from our GP, so all the family attend the same local Health Practice. Nice that they have all our history in one place. Our Private Health Insurance system is rather expensive, but at least anyone can chose whichever Insurer suits them, as long as they can afford the monthly payments. It’s a priority for me, even when unemployed. Private Health Insurance covers surgeries and “extras” like chiro, physio, podiatry, psychology, dental and so forth). But everyone can attend our Public Hospitals (our local is fantastic and has taken great care of Mason when he had Pneumonia and Meningitis) and free bulk billing doctor clinics. Or chose to go to any Private Hospital and surgeon, or see any doctor or specialist you wish to, as long as you can pay the fee upfront.
WOOT!!!!!
That is awesome news – insurance x2 is worth celebrating! Sorry though that finding physicians who would actually take new patients with that insurance turned out to be such a hassle. And yes, parenting really does involve fighting, learning to be an advocate. For a wallflower like me, that was a big huge adjustment.
I can’t even imagine. It’s cold up here in Canada but it’s nice not to have to worry about stuff like this. I’m happy you got it all sorted.
That is very cool. I have done the no insurance thing when I was younger and mostly healthy but the idea scares the crap out of me now. 3 years ago I ended up with appendicitis not too long after changing jobs. I had had insurance for 21 days. If I hadn’t been covered yet my bill would have been like $25,000.
YAY for new health insurance! I hear you: I didn’t have insurance for 2 years before I got my job now, and then I started having issues 2 months later (at least the timing was good!) I would be terrified to leave my job now, because I’m not sure I could qualify for insurance because of my endo. It’s such a screwy system.
So YAY! I am so excited to hear that both you and W. are covered!
You worked it woman, and thank goodness this is wrapped up for you! Finally! You must be so, so relieved.
nice work!
Glad to hear things have worked out. I can not being to imagine not being able to see the doctor because of not having insurance. I feel lucky to be living where I am.
There must be a big pile of gov. red tape in your living room…remove promptly and celebrate!! YEEFUCKING HAW!
So very awesome, I am very happy for you. Sorry that you had to go though all that though, that’s just wrong
AWESOME!!!! And for both of you?!? That is way rad! Am un-insued for going on 8 years now…
FINALLY. I’m so glad to hear that you were finally able to get it all taken care of. Though it really sucks that you had to go through so much and it sucks even more that you had to call so many doctors before you found two that had a “slot”.
WOO-freakin’-HOO! I’m so glad you were able to get insurance too! I’ve only ever had health insurance for three months of my 24 years, but those three months? Were totally sweet.
Now you can pick up all that red tape and throw a red ticker tape parade, right?
Calliope I HATE the system that has made it so insanely had for you to get coverage. I am so happy that you finally got it. And I’m hoping this is only the beginning of good things coming your way. It’s richly deserved xxx
wow, breathing a collective sigh of relief for you here! Well done mama!!
Every time I hear about health reform in Congress and how it’s being thwarted I want to scream. This isn’t just something to make a speech about: it’s people’s lives. Thank God you came out on the other side. Jealous of your snow.
Yay!
HOOOOORAY!
What a RELIEF!
YAY for insurance for BOTH of you!!!!!! (But a big “boo” to a country that could put a mom through that kind of bullshit.)
Wonderful news! Congrats, and great job fighting! When A was first born, I think I spent the first three months fighting hard, and then the next year + fighting myself to be ok. You’re right, that’s what being a parent is all about!
phew. just. phew.