On My Soapbox: Insurance

Okay, I'm gonna step up onto my soapbox today and rant a little about something that has always driven me crazy: insurance companies.

Insurance drives me nuts. Here are the main reasons why:

1. They're very complicated: I have a bachelor's degree from a well-known university and I edit foreign students' theses and dissertations; I'm no dummy. But I still have a hard time deciphering my benefits booklets.
2. They're very expensive: premiums eat up a disproportionate amount of our paycheck! Our dental premiums were raised so high and our maximums were lowered so much that we decided to risk it and drop the insurance. (Even if something catastrophic happened and we all needed major dental work, we'd only be out $1500 without insurance. That's a bet Lance and I are willing to take.)
   
3. They don't seem to know what they are doing: I would say that 50% of my medical bills have insurance mistakes.

My major pet peeve is the billing. So much money and time is wasted on insurance mistakes! I have to call my insurance company (who shall remain nameless, but starts with an "S" and ends with an "agamore") at least once month. Here are a few of my favorite examples:

1. When Spencer was born I was charged by the insurance company for the full amount of a second epidural. (They would only cover one.) Why? Because the first epidural I got didn't work - I was numb on only my right side. My insurance insisted that since the anesthesiologist billed them twice, I had to pay for one. I informed them that under no circumstances would I be paying for a botched epidural. It took me a month of fighting, but I won.
2. When Josh was born I was charged for a day in the hospital that I never had. (I left a day early.) Granted, the hospital shouldn't have charged the insurance company for that day, but should it really have taken me six weeks to convince my insurance company that I wasn't there that day and that I wasn't going to pay for 20% of it?
3. My dental insurance tried to bill me for two crowns, when I only had one. Nice try. That seems like a pretty big error, doesn't it? I mean, really!
4. When Spencer broke his arm (the second time!), I got a really large bill from the orthopedist. It showed that our insurance didn't cover any of the cost. What the??!? After much investigation it was discovered that the insurance had made a mistake in a code on their end. Grrrr....
   
5. And the reason for my tirade today: Today I received a bill for the immunizations Josh had in December. For some reason the insurance only payed for some of the shots instead of 100%. (And it was really weird; on some they paid 80%, on others only 40%. One was only 37%.) So I called them up and asked them why. After being on hold for five minutes (no really - I kept track) they told me they had no idea why it wasn't paid in full. NO IDEA. What is up with that? At least the man I talked to had the decency to sound a little embarrassed.
   

So my question is, am I the only one who has problems with insurance? Do I have really bad luck, or does everyone else go through the same things I do? (Or, more scary, do most people have these billing problems but just not know it, and pay the wrong (often higher) amount?) And if I'm not alone, how in the world are these companies still in business?

Maybe I'm just a tich crazy, but socialized medical care is sounding better and better to me.

Okay, I'm done. Steppin' off my soapbox and returning to my normal daily activities. No more ranting and raving.

But sometimes it just feels really good to stick it to The Man.

1 and 1

Last year my little brother Kevin (of Superman vs. Harry Potter fame) and I bet lunch on the Super Bowl. Foolishly, Kevin bet against the Colts because for some inexplicable reason he is a Bears fan. Okay, it's explicable - he served his mission in Chicago. But he and his faulty allegiance then had to buy me lunch. (The most expensive Panda Express lunch in history, but that's another story.)

I decided to do it again this year. Problem was, I didn't really care who won. I'm not really a big Giants or Patriots fan. (Truth be told, I'm not a huge Colts fan either; it's just that if you live in Indiana and are a fan of anything other than the Colts you are made to wear a big scarlet "J" for Jerk on your sleeve for the rest of your life. Or so I've heard.) I was leaning towards the Giants just a little since they were the underdogs and because of Eli Manning (again, the Colts tie-in), but I really didn't care.

So I called Kevin up and since he was rooting for the Giants I decided to go with the Patriots. Well, it wasn't much of a choice; it's not really a bet if you both want the same team to win.

So now my perfect record is marred, much like those dang losing Patriots. Well done, Kevin. Lunch is on its way.

It's The Madsen Show!

Primary wasn't that exciting today; pretty normal.

But Sacrament meeting was oh-so-exciting, thanks to the boys. Apparently our new calling at church is to entertain the congregation.

Back story: Josh has become a Daddy's boy lately. All day long he walks around the house looking for Daddy. "Dada? Dada?" And at church he absolutely must sit on or next to Lance, no excuses.

So I knew there would be trouble when Lance helped bless a new baby in the ward today. I was right - Spencer was acting up and Josh kept screeching "DADA!! DADA!!" I literally had to clamp my hand over his chubby, little, full of razer sharp teeth, mouth. (Sorry, Melissa, for my noisy boys during Mia's blessing!)

I knew there would be even more trouble when Lance went up to bear his testimony. He took Spencer up with him, which at least gave me a fair and fighting chance of containing Josh. (My favorite part of Spencer's testimony was "I know that the church is flue." Still workin' on that pesky "tr" sound.)

About a minute after Lance started speaking, Josh started yelling. And pointing. And trying to wriggle off of my lap. (Trying to keep a wriggling Josh on your lap is like wrestling a baby grizzly bear: noisy and dangerous. Someone's going to get hurt. Usually me.)

Josh started his usual "DADA! DADA!" screaming, while using his massive Joshie strength to break free of my kung-fu grip. That's when Spencer decided to up the ante; from up at the pulpit, where he was standing next to Lance, he started to yell back at Josh "Shhh!!! Daddy is talking, Josh!" and "Be quiet! Daddy is trying to talk!"

By this time I felt like I was in the center of a three ring circus. There were polite, non-malicious giggles all around as I continued to wrestle the yodeling toddler with super-human strength that is my son. At least I saw the humor in the situation; it was pretty funny. I was trying so hard not to laugh that I had tears in my eyes. People probably thought I felt the spirit.

Lance finally finished and came back to our pew, and of course both boys wanted to sit on his lap right then. They practically tackled him. And of course more yelling and fighting. More muffled laughter could be heard all around us.

Just doin' our part to keep things interesting. We aim to please. :)

Church All Weekend

Lots of extra church this weekend. Because we're extra righteous.

Just kidding. It's because we're extra popular.

No! It's because our ward was all about the activities this weekend.

We were at a Primary activity for 2 hours this morning, and an Elder's Quorum activity for 2+ hours this evening. And tomorrow we'll have the customary 3+ hours of church. (Not even including the 18 minute drive there. And back. Yes, I know exactly how long it takes to drive to church. Don't pretend you don't. Because everyone knows exactly what time they have to leave for church before they'll be late!)

Spencer's bedtime prayer this evening included, "And thank you that we could go to church and play with friends and go to church and go to church again and play with friends... and go to church again."

Amen!

My Little Man

Even though Josh has been walking for several weeks, it's only been this last week where he's been walking more than crawling. (Before he would still crawl if he wanted to get somewhere fast.) He's even more underfoot now, if that's even possible. (And, apparently, it is.)

It still surprises me every time I hear him coming and then see him walking - I keep looking for him on the floor. My little rugrat has turned into a real toddler. (And about time, too. Sheesh! He's 16 months old and probably 30 pounds, for cryin' out loud!)

I always get a little sad, though, when my babies start walking. Because then they aren't really babies anymore. They don't want to cuddle or be held or give loves (kisses & hugs) - oh wait. My kids never wanted to do that.

Never mind.

But you know what I mean.

It almost makes me a little baby hungry. But nothing a Sunday at church surrounded by other peoples' babies can't cure! (Sorry grandmas & grandpas.)


In other news...

It snowed a good six inches here last night and this morning. Spencer and I just spent the last hour shoveling the driveway. (No, we never did get the snowblower. But my back is wishing we had.)

I also pulled Spencer on his sled up and down the street at least a dozen times. Half of those were running. (Well, jogging - it's hard to run in boots!) Spencer kept yelling "Faster, faster!" while I pictured him back there, holding onto the sled with one hand and cracking a whip with the other. I'm not saying I did this on purpose, but we took a few turns a little too sharply, dumping him into rather large snowbanks. Fits of giggles followed for both of us.

It was good to get out, since Spencer missed both days of preschool this week because of a bad cold. (I needed to get out just as much as he did!)

Best Of The Day

Best Quote: Spencer, when told to put his socks on, "But I can't... I just don't have the energy."

Best Dinner: Beans and Cornbread (Beans here and cornbread of my own design)

Best Tantrum: Josh, who freaked out for 20 minutes when I wouldn't let him eat sour cream strait out of the container. (So instead I put a huge dollop on his beans and he just ate that. Is that a win-win for us? Kinda?)

Best Workout: Changing Josh's poopy diaper (and I really did go work out tonight!)

Best Excuse for Not Picking Up Toys: Spencer, "I can't! I hurt my finger playing Wii!"

Best Retort to Above Excuse: Mommy, "Then use your mouth."

Best... er... Most Productive Use of My Time: Finishing several chapters of the book I'm reading

Best 30 Minutes for Maren: The nap I took while Josh was asleep and Spencer was playing Wii (and apparently injured his finger)

My Four Year Old Is Cuter Than Yours...

I get Spencer's birthday pictures in January because it's so much easier than having one more thing to do in December. Plus, they're always super busy with everyone's Christmas pictures, so it's hard to find a good appointment time. Plus (and most importantly), I can usually find an outfit for him during the January clearance. (Priorities priorities...)

(Side note: Lance calls Spencer's sweater the Freddy Krueger sweater. I guess he has a point, but I still think it's cute. Besides, it reminded me of his coming home outfit.)

Awww.... what a cute baby he was!

And what a cute four year old he is!