The time finally came for me to have to decide on what medical plan I was going to choose for myself as I no longer hold the job I used to hold, and my options are either find health care for myself, or pay extortion rates to fund COBRA from the last job. As anyone who has ever used COBRA before knows, it’s massively expensive and really not worth the amount they require you to pay.
So, I went on the health care exchange network, and let’s just say that they don’t give a whole lot of qualify information. Oh, they give information, but it’s a lot of numbers and charts that when you start to analyze it, well, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. I kind of wanted a list of what I’d actually be paying for, but because our system is so badly designed, the information is constantly hidden behind numerous clicks of continuous clicks.
I used to be with Priority Health (which was my employer’s plan of choice because, well, they owned it). Turns out, it’s horrible when you have to actually pay for it. Turns out, it wasn’t all that beneficial back when I actually had it. It was ALWAYS expensive, no matter how many “We’re the best plan around and here’s a six page document explaining why” notices we kept receiving from the company.
So, I’ve been trying to get actual information on which plan to choose right now, and let’s just say that I’ve been kind of going back and forth, trying to get that information. I called one plan to ask information, and after two hours on hold, I finally got someone who sounded like he knew less about their plans than I did. Not good.
So, that’s kind of where I am right now. Hopefully, I’ll have this fixed, in this century.
Edit: Got off the phone with Blue Cross/Blue Shield a few minutes ago. They solved the whole situation for me. So, no more complaints, which means I now have to go out of my way to find something to complain about. Sheesh.