Comments on: 9 Secrets Health Insurers Don’t Want You to Know http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/ Lifestyle, Wellness, and Fitness Articles from Health.com and Health Magazine Sun, 22 Nov 2009 04:40:38 +0000 http://wordpress.com/ hourly 1 By: Happy Jack http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-18718 Happy Jack Wed, 18 Nov 2009 23:22:17 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-18718 Medical Insurance Guidelines/Laws vary from state to state. Actually, when it comes to medical insurance we are all in the same state....CONFUSION! Each state has an office that would regulate the insurance companies operating in the state. If you have documented call dates and names of who you spoke with (or even if not), try to call the insurance commission for your state. No guarantees, but it is worth a shot. Good luck. Medical Insurance Guidelines/Laws vary from state to state. Actually, when it comes to medical insurance we are all in the same state….CONFUSION!

Each state has an office that would regulate the insurance companies operating in the state.

If you have documented call dates and names of who you spoke with (or even if not), try to call the insurance commission for your state.

No guarantees, but it is worth a shot. Good luck.

]]> By: Damaris http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-18712 Damaris Wed, 18 Nov 2009 20:58:12 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-18712 Wondering if someone can help me out with this one... My mother currently has health care insurance, but also recently started to recieve medicare. I wanted to put those two together and save around 500$ a month. However the health incurance company denied her because the paper work was submitted a month too late. If it had been submitted on time she would have been automatically accepted. That was due to the run around the health insurance company had given me by transfering me from department to department, and promising calls back. It took me a while to finally reach someone who was in the right department. It seems they themselfs didnt know where to begin. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Wondering if someone can help me out with this one…
My mother currently has health care insurance, but also recently started to recieve medicare. I wanted to put those two together and save around 500$ a month. However the health incurance company denied her because the paper work was submitted a month too late. If it had been submitted on time she would have been automatically accepted. That was due to the run around the health insurance company had given me by transfering me from department to department, and promising calls back. It took me a while to finally reach someone who was in the right department. It seems they themselfs didnt know where to begin. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

]]> By: Happy Jack http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-18005 Happy Jack Mon, 12 Oct 2009 13:40:22 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-18005 My comment is going to upset a lot of people. How did we (as a human race) ever grow our population into the "billions" over the eons that we walked the earth? Medical insurance didn't exist until recently (relatively speaking). Humans are the only species on earth that have medical insurance (unless we buy it for our pets). We are all just "peas in the pod". When an ant dies, the colony pushes him aside and keeps working. When any of us die, at age 30 or 100, the human race as a whole hardly feels it. The insurance industry is sickeningly corrupt, just like the legal industry, real estate industry, banking industry, and the proverbial "used car salesman". i.e., There are ethical AND corrupt people everywhere in life. Someone earlier in this forum stated "buyer beware". And that is simply what it all boils down to. I think the American public should boycott the insurance industry and "take their chances". I am 58 years old, out of work, and on the verge of having to sell my house. Age discrimination is a reality!! But I am blessed with relatively good health, there is no history of cancer in my family and my parents never set foot in a hospital until their lives were nearly over. I am blessed with good genes. So it is easy for me to advocate a "boycott" of the industry. And I am a hypocrite because I am struggling to pay for my COBRA provided coverage. Hell, if a reasonable option is there, I will take it. But when my 18 months of COBRA run out, I will be 60 and can't get on Medicaid until 65. I just might have to go uninsured ( because I have a mild,non-critical blockage in one artery, which the insurance companies categorize as heart disease. But I can walk for miles, run a mile or so, etc. I am also on Lipitor for cholesterol because heart failure took my mom out in her late seventies). And if I die at 62 for lack of treatment, the rest of the ants can push me aside. LIFE goes on !! We are NOT all created equal. Some are born with birth defects. Some of us succomb to cancer or alcoholism, or other infectious disease. Some die in infancy and some live to 100. Some are born with a silver spoon in their mouths. Others find a rusty fork up their butts. Bottom line? With or without medical insurance, the human race will prevail...unless of course we annihilate ourselves in a nuclear holocaust. Did I hear someone say....DINOSAUR?? My comment is going to upset a lot of people.

How did we (as a human race) ever grow our population into the “billions” over the eons that we walked the earth? Medical insurance didn’t exist until recently (relatively speaking). Humans are the only species on earth that have medical insurance (unless we buy it for our pets).

We are all just “peas in the pod”. When an ant dies, the colony pushes him aside and keeps working. When any of us die, at age 30 or 100, the human race as a whole hardly feels it.

The insurance industry is sickeningly corrupt, just like the legal industry, real estate industry, banking industry, and the proverbial “used car salesman”. i.e., There are ethical AND corrupt people everywhere in life. Someone earlier in this forum stated “buyer beware”. And that is simply what it all boils down to.

I think the American public should boycott the insurance industry and “take their chances”. I am 58 years old, out of work, and on the verge of having to sell my house. Age discrimination is a reality!! But I am blessed with relatively good health, there is no history of cancer in my family and my parents never set foot in a hospital until their lives were nearly over. I am blessed with good genes.

So it is easy for me to advocate a “boycott” of the industry. And I am a hypocrite because I am struggling to pay for my COBRA provided coverage. Hell, if a reasonable option is there, I will take it.

But when my 18 months of COBRA run out, I will be 60 and can’t get on Medicaid until 65. I just might have to go uninsured ( because I have a mild,non-critical blockage in one artery, which the insurance companies categorize as heart disease. But I can walk for miles, run a mile or so, etc. I am also on Lipitor for cholesterol because heart failure took my mom out in her late seventies). And if I die at 62 for lack of treatment, the rest of the ants can push me aside. LIFE goes on !!

We are NOT all created equal. Some are born with birth defects. Some of us succomb to cancer or alcoholism, or other infectious disease. Some die in infancy and some live to 100. Some are born with a silver spoon in their mouths. Others find a rusty fork up their butts.

Bottom line? With or without medical insurance, the human race will prevail…unless of course we annihilate ourselves in a nuclear holocaust. Did I hear someone say….DINOSAUR??

]]> By: Berny http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-17983 Berny Mon, 12 Oct 2009 04:16:21 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-17983 I'm an independent contractor and I can't get insurance, because I have a pre-existing condition. I’m an independent contractor and I can’t get insurance, because I have a pre-existing condition.

]]> By: S. Smith http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-17399 S. Smith Wed, 23 Sep 2009 02:17:36 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-17399 The advice to "always ask your doctor for generics" is foolish in the extreme. Many medications CAN safely be prescribed in the generic form but many others CANNOT! I asked my new physician to prescribe the brand name of my long-time medication because the generic didn't work very well. She impressed me with her knowledge that in my case the generic was NOT as good as the brand name! BE VERY CAREFUL with generic medications. When you renew your medications make sure you are getting the same medication you always have because in certain cases pharmacists can SWITCH to the generic and they do not always remember to give you the information! Look at your new pills and make sure they are the same color, size, shape, have the name stamped information, unless your physician has changed the dosage. You can always check with your physician's office to make sure you are taking the right pills/medication. (I always take my new eyeglasses back to my ophthalmologist/optician to verify the prescription was filled correctly. One pair, manufactured by a large national chain, seriously mismeasured my pupil distance and the glasses were making me nauseous!) The advice to “always ask your doctor for generics” is foolish in the extreme. Many medications CAN safely be prescribed in the generic form but many others CANNOT! I asked my new physician to prescribe the brand name of my long-time medication because the generic didn’t work very well. She impressed me with her knowledge that in my case the generic was NOT as good as the brand name! BE VERY CAREFUL with generic medications. When you renew your medications make sure you are getting the same medication you always have because in certain cases pharmacists can SWITCH to the generic and they do not always remember to give you the information! Look at your new pills and make sure they are the same color, size, shape, have the name stamped information, unless your physician has changed the dosage. You can always check with your physician’s office to make sure you are taking the right pills/medication. (I always take my new eyeglasses back to my ophthalmologist/optician to verify the prescription was filled correctly. One pair, manufactured by a large national chain, seriously mismeasured my pupil distance and the glasses were making me nauseous!)

]]> By: jakesdad http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-17139 jakesdad Wed, 16 Sep 2009 18:43:20 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-17139 “Don’t do anything over the phone. It takes forever and when you’re done there’s no record of it, so it didn’t happen,” I got bit by this one yrs ago when I had a bad cycling accident on a Sunday. I called the 800 # on my ins card & they told me to go to X hospital, get checked out & have them call back w/results. ER diagnosed me w/a broken collarbone & an AC separation but when the hospital called them back they basically said: "WHO showed up to be treated for WHAT? we have no record of this! this isn't pre-autorized! he's on his own!" & I got stuck w/a $1K ER bill! normally I would have known better than to trust them/done it in writing but when you've just gone over your handlebars @ 20 MPH, can't lift your arm above parallel to ground & are 3 mi from home w/a wrecked bicycle it's not the 1st thing to cross your mind... they deserve what they have coming... “Don’t do anything over the phone. It takes forever and when you’re done there’s no record of it, so it didn’t happen,”

I got bit by this one yrs ago when I had a bad cycling accident on a Sunday. I called the 800 # on my ins card & they told me to go to X hospital, get checked out & have them call back w/results. ER diagnosed me w/a broken collarbone & an AC separation but when the hospital called them back they basically said:

“WHO showed up to be treated for WHAT? we have no record of this! this isn’t pre-autorized! he’s on his own!”

& I got stuck w/a $1K ER bill! normally I would have known better than to trust them/done it in writing but when you’ve just gone over your handlebars @ 20 MPH, can’t lift your arm above parallel to ground & are 3 mi from home w/a wrecked bicycle it’s not the 1st thing to cross your mind…

they deserve what they have coming…

]]> By: Bradley Taylor http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-16690 Bradley Taylor Mon, 24 Aug 2009 16:11:37 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-16690 The author of this article, its editor and its publisher should all be ashamed to print "Secret #1" If a test is medically unnecessary and you just want it to "put your mind at ease," then you should pay for it. Telling readers to LIE to their physicians to get the test is unethical, immoral and one of a hundred reasons why medical care costs in this country are out of control. As a health writer, you should know better. The author of this article, its editor and its publisher should all be ashamed to print “Secret #1″ If a test is medically unnecessary and you just want it to “put your mind at ease,” then you should pay for it. Telling readers to LIE to their physicians to get the test is unethical, immoral and one of a hundred reasons why medical care costs in this country are out of control. As a health writer, you should know better.

]]> By: Marc http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-16688 Marc Mon, 24 Aug 2009 15:33:50 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-16688 So much to digest her; just three quick observations: 1) I keep reading about Canadians coming to the U.S, for healthcare. The UCLA Center for Health Policy notes that millions of Americans -- including one million from California each year, many with insurance -- go to Mexico for cheaper and good quality surgeries, dentistry and pharmaceuticals. 2) People who throw around words like socialists healthcare really need to return to 8th grade history to understand the true definitions of socialism and communism and fascism (I guess that policeman who protects you is also a product of socialism: shared costs for one department regardless of income. C) Latest report: average insurance premiums will double in ten years, far outstripping inflation and income increases. And you want more of the same? So much to digest her; just three quick observations:
1) I keep reading about Canadians coming to the U.S, for healthcare. The UCLA Center for Health Policy notes that millions of Americans — including one million from California each year, many with insurance — go to Mexico for cheaper and good quality surgeries, dentistry and pharmaceuticals.
2) People who throw around words like socialists healthcare really need to return to 8th grade history to understand the true definitions of socialism and communism and fascism (I guess that policeman who protects you is also a product of socialism: shared costs for one department regardless of income.
C) Latest report: average insurance premiums will double in ten years, far outstripping inflation and income increases. And you want more of the same?

]]> By: josh http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-16686 josh Mon, 24 Aug 2009 13:55:24 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-16686 probably the most sain thing I have read all day...Why cant more people use simple commen sense probably the most sain thing I have read all day…Why cant more people use simple commen sense

]]> By: joshua http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-16685 joshua Mon, 24 Aug 2009 13:29:14 +0000 http://living.health.com/2008/03/07/nine-secrets-health-insurers-dont-want-you-to-know/#comment-16685 If it's commiting fraud without getting caught, especially to a health insurance company that you have been paying premiums, then by all means be logical..... committing fraud is a much easier sentance then suffering painfully until you die without coverage..... If it’s commiting fraud without getting caught, especially to a health insurance company that you have been paying premiums, then by all means be logical….. committing fraud is a much easier sentance then suffering painfully until you die without coverage…..

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