Blog · January 29, 2021

Sick and Tired of “Health Insurance”

This past fall, seeing how our Health Insurance Premium was going to be going up to nearly $1,000 a month (which is crazy), we shopped around for a similar plan but that could at least save us a little money in the long run. We compared, called, sent emails, you name it, and when everyone said it was going to be OK, we switched.

Now, I know it would take a while to get everything set back up for Nicky. I just… I don’t know. I am so sick and tired of this “system”. Nothing so far has been approved. NOTHING. It’s been a month. I even had to shell out nearly $200 for medication that is usually covered just because of fiddly paperwork-and Nicky could not wait for “paperwork”. Did I mention that both the Medical Group and the Insurance have REFUSED to pay for bandages and any wound care products for the past 14 months??? I got a bill for $15,000 just from Dec 2019 to June 2020.

 I remember clearly when Nicky was born and it took 9 months for the insurance to approve my son being seen by Doctors that were familiar with his condition. Totally insane!!! It’s like… they didn’t give a $hit. We ended up with two bankruptcies trying to take care of him and we always had insurance. This would not have happened and I would not be in this mess with Universal Health Care. In this country it’s like I am constantly being penalized for having a disabled child. I did not choose his condition, he was born with it. Screw him, right? My son has a severe form of Epidermolysis Bullosa. He hasn’t worn shoes in 16 years. He hasn’t been able to walk since 2011, his feet destroyed by chronic wounds. We did not CHOOSE this. More about my fights in the book: http://butterflychildamothersjourney.com

Let me explain. I grew up in Europe where “medical bankruptcy” is not a thing, EVER. I want to sincerely Thank Kamala Harris for saying that “No parent should have to worry about going broke because their child is sick.” We have, and it’s a place some people will not understand the enormity of in the wealthiest countries in the world until it happens to their child. Unfortunately, the quality of the health care you receive often comes down to who fights the longest and hardest and insurers usually win that war, because they have resources dedicated to determining what care is warranted and what care isn’t, while you’re busy trying to cope with the emotional drain of taking care of your child or being sick and trying to juggle your job and your family. 

I honestly feel that people like my Nicky and the disabled in general are considered, for some, a drain on society. A nuisance. They are considered lazy and entitled. At this point I will take ANY benefit that comes my way to take care of Nicky. I will pay NO medical bills whatsoever other than co-pays. They traumatized me so much I absolutely despise them. They can all kiss my behind. If there is another bankruptcy in my future, so be it.

For years I was truly embarrassed over our bankruptcy because our mounting medical bills, I kept it a secret and never talked about it to anybody. It took me years to realize that I wasn’t to be shamed, that I was the victim. I was the victim of a system that wasn’t designed for children like Nicky. Insurances are for-profit and a child like Nicky cuts into their profits so they have to find a way to deny and circumvent and apply carefully crafted words into their policies as to screw people like us over. Co-pays are just a way for them to make sure their subscribers do not abuse their insurance. But for kids like Nicky their services are life or death situations and co-pays become a giant burden. I will not rest until EB becomes as recognizable and services are offered to families just like they are offered to parents of those with more common conditions.

Then there are people out there who think Universal Health Care is “socialism”. Well, if you call that socialism, I call Insurance Companies greedy leaches making millions over human pain. It’s despicable.
For those that refuse to get Health Insurance, know that you’re playing Russian roulette, and, quite truthfully, you’re part of the problem in our country. If MY premium is so sky-high is because hospitals have to overcharge to make up for the cost of taking care of those without insurance. So, thanks!
A friend of mine a while back told me the story of a man who got very sick (cancer) so he could not go to work and was in and out of the hospital. The worst part of it was when he got fired for missing so much time from work and not only he lost is income, he lost his insurance! How screwed up is that?

…and so it continues, my friends, my 24-year struggle navigating the delayed referrals and denials of the health insurance companies. I laugh so hard when I see the commercials ‘In the business of caring’… Muah, ha ha, really? You don’t fool me, you terrorized me enough to know better.

Futility can’t be good for my blood pressure, so thank you for letting me vent. I feel better now.

Now, back to Kumbaya and love and love and light.