Why do I need teeth again?

[firelizard5]

 Things you really, really don't want to hear at the dentists office:

• She's bleeding, I need more gauze. 
• That's not good. 
• It looks like I'm going to have to cut back your gums
• Now you may see some smoke coming from your mouth. That's normal. 

But the absolute, number one thing you don't want to here:

• It seems that the insurance has rejected your claim

Comments

[grammarcookie]

oh man, that's completely insane and fucked up :( i'm really sorry about that. can you at least try to negotiate with the dentist to get whatever rate they would have charged BCBS? (often, perversely, the insurance companies pay less than you would pay out of pocket.)

[firelizard5]

We are filing an appeal, but if they don't accept it, I will be sure to try it. At least the office was just as upset about it. They aren't going to make me pay until they get the insurance sorted out.

[grammarcookie]

That's good. At least with dentists, it's usually a small enough office that "the billing people" are the same people who look you in the mouth twice a year.

[elwood012]

*hugs*

I'm sorry. That is totally fucked up. 12 month waiting period for an urgent procedure ?!?

Have you tried appealing yet? Also, do you know what company is your nominal BCBS carrier?

[firelizard5]

Dental Blue, I believe. Most of the problem, paperworkwise, is that I am seeking treatment out of my home state, which makes everything super-ridiculous. We re filing an appeal, though. They did pay a smaller claim before, from the same dentist, so there is hope! In all likelihood, they will pay eventually. This is just a stall tactic to try to get me to drop the issue. Bah.

[grammarcookie]

several similar things happened to me when i had student insurance, culminating in me almost not being able to get birth control because i couldn't afford a pap smear and doctors at the time were still totally regressive and requiring paps before a new prescription. thank god my dad's a doctor and could just write me a prescription -- otherwise i might have gotten pregnant, yknow? -- but it felt like cheating at the time. i'm so fucking privileged to have a doctor in my family, it often makes me wish i were marrying one or becoming one myself. ugh.

[neldluva]

*big hugs* Ugh, that is so incredibly sucky. And as someone now in what seems like an illicit affair with insurance companies, ick. Insurance? Not as nice as it sometimes seems.

(But that fiasco with your BCBS just seems nuts. I thought they were pretty good about paying bills and stuff. Maybe it varies from state to state? In any case. Good luck with wrestling with them. Maybe you can convince them to help out without that huge pile of debt or the 12 month waiting period. That's just plain ridiculous.)

[firelizard5]

It does vary from state to state. My primary problem is that I live in North Carolina, but am insured in Georgia, and the dental insurance is through Nebraska (no idea why), so we end up in a giant paperwork tangle of death!

Love the icon.

[neldluva]

... That is stupid. Really, really stupid. That doesn't even make sense. But oh well, whatever it takes to get out of paying your bills, I suppose.

Thanks! It is my standard "oh crap, things are bad" icon. And an upside-down turtle seems especially applicable.

[scifiben]

Isn't there something in the new healthcare law that would make this illegal? Or at least a provision that would allow President Obama to go to the local BCBS offices and punch someone in the face on your behalf?

Also, maybe there's some other health plan you could switch to that is slightly less inimical to human life?

[firelizard5]

Alas, the Obama-Punch-to-the-Face provision applies only to health insurance, not dental. Its a damn shame.

My current insurance is provided through my mother, so I don't really have a prospect of changing. I turn 23 next year, though, and get booted off, so I will do my best to change companies when I buy my own coverage.

[elwood012]

Did not know that RE dental insurance...

Anyways, due to HCR, you will actually be eligible to stay on your parents' insurance for three more years if you would like to/need to, but given how things have gone so far, have you inquired regarding insurance benefits at your current job?

[firelizard5]

Really? I thought that was one of the delayed bits of HCR.

I am not benefits-eligible, nor am I likely to get a job that makes me so.

[keitess]

... See, what I find most confusing about all this is that we have the same insurance provider. Why are they inveterate assholes to some of us and not others? Not that I'm complaining on my account - I like being part of the group that actually gets health insurance in return for paying them...

[elwood012]

BCBS is an association of 39 companies, so service can differ greatly between individual providers. Some BCBS providers are multi-state, while some are single-state. Some are for-profit, and some are nonprofit. Some states have only one BCBS affiliate (e.g. NC, TX), while others have multiple ones (e.g. CA, WA). But yeah, having a provider that actually provides services as advertised (or at least contractually or statutorily obligated) is good.

[firelizard5]

I think it is a deep-seated, personal dislike for me, as my mother has had similar procedures on the exact same insurance without hassles.

Also, they won't cover my tetanus shot.