The Benefits of 65+

The last time I remember actually wanting to be older was when I was 15 going on 16...could hardly wait to get a year older so I could get my Driver's License.  Many people wait with anticipation...wanting to be older at three important milestones in our lives: driver's license, legally drinking and being able to obtain Medicare coverage.  Sure, aging milestones are different depending on your priorities, but these three came to mind for me...especially lately when I have dealt with yet another medical insurance claim that was woefully inadequately covered by my insurance. Sometimes I just feel unlucky.  I pay my premiums, I try hard to decipher what is covered and what is not, and I still get...(excuse the French)...Screwed.  

My Husband, on the other hand has been enjoying the full benefits of Medicare for several years now.  Does he ever have to wonder...Will this be covered? Can I afford to take care of my health with preventative care testing? NO. If he does worry, I certainly don't hear about those concerns.  In any case....now that I am 60+ I don't necessarily want to get older, but when the time comes, my life will become easier when I can be covered under Medicare. Also, since my most recent debacle in the mystifying land of medical insurance...I am incredibly tempted to go without insurance completely.  What do my premiums pay for anyway!??!...not much I'm afraid. I will probably not tempt fate, because knowing my luck the day after dropping my insurance, I'd have a major accident.  So....I will just keep plodding along, try to stay as healthy as I can and avoid doctor visits.

With my latest insurance frustration, that is just what I was trying to be: proactive and healthy.  For years I have tried to do what was "right" for a woman and have an annual Mammogram. This year, and in previous years, I have been required to go back for a "second look" and this is considered by the medical community and insurance companies as a diagnostic mammogram. I have been through the emotional roller coaster ride of wondering if I had breast cancer or not.  It was such a relief to find out that no it was not cancer, just a cyst.  For that I am truly thankful.  Then the bills roll in.  Diagnostic mammograms are rarely covered by insurance. This makes no sense to me.  Women try to be proactive with our health, but then we run up against a medical billing community that stops us in our tracks.  I guess I get to a point sometimes that I feel like I can't fight the system.  I just want to cry, but I write instead.  Bernie Sanders really had some very valid points....the medical system in this country really needs improvement.

This is not a new development for me, I had a claim denied for reasons of "pre-existing condition"...and it was not.  I had the doctor's paperwork to prove it, but was saddled with a $13,000 bill. See my blog from 2/16/2021 entitled "What a Hot Mess...Health Insurance crisis in America".

I don't think I am just unlucky, or the only one with crappy insurance....I don't think I am alone in this frustration.  I just hope and pray that they will leave Medicare alone so it will still be there and functioning well when I arrive at 65.

So here's a cartoon to bring a bit of levity to a tough topic.  It is true, "you're never covered as much as you think you are."   Ain't it the Truth!! 

                                    

                         Julie E. Smith