Medicare Red Tape

Today was such a beautiful day. Sun was shining and even though it only got up to 63 degrees it felt much warmer.  I was in such a good mood I even went to the laundromat!  I lucked out there were only two other people there and no screaming tykes :)

The reason I came back so soon from Houston was because mother had a doctor's appointment on Monday (blood work) and today (she would see her doctor).  Mother said that they had called on Friday and asked her to come an hour early to fill out paperwork.  I thought nothing of it since they usually make you fill out new paperwork each January even though nothing has changed.

When we got there I was asked by one of the girls in the accounting department if I could go into their office because there was a problem with my mother's insurance.  She said that Medicare was no longer her primary insurance, that it was showing State Farm to be her primary insurance due to a car accident she had had back in 1999!

I told her she in fact had an accident back then when a drunk driver slammed into the back of a car and that car slammed into my mother's vehicle when she was at a stop light.  Thankfully she, my uncle, aunt and cousin were ok.

How that accident that took place thirteen years ago is now showing up in her Medicare record is a mystery.  The clerk or whatever she is said that my mother's appointment would have to be cancelled until this was resolved because Medicare would not pay for it.  I was incredulous, they were more interested in getting paid than in my mother's health.  Did they forget that when they took her in as a patient they made me sign that I would be responsible for paying her bill in case Medicare or her secondary insurance did not pay?

She told me I had to go to the Social Security Office which is what we did Tuesday morning only the coldest morning to date.  There I was told that we did not need to have come, that the doctor's office should of provided me with the number to Medicare.

Called Medicare and spoke to three different departments.  I lucked out and got a lady named Anissa who knew her job well and told me all the steps I needed to take including getting an Exhaust of Benefits Letter from State Farm.  She also told me to tell the accounting department at the Oncologists office that I was working with MSPRC (Medicare Secondary Payer Recovery) and that they would be paid just like they had been paid for the past four years.

Our local State Farm office is owned by the husband of a friend of my mother's and she was very helpful as well.  Could not believe that a doctor's office would do that but told us that was not the first time she had heard complaints about them.  Unfortunately they are the only game in town as my mother does not want to go see another Oncologist in San Antonio or Houston.

This little error will take about 30 days to be resolved.  Thankfully my mother has been in remission for two years otherwise I would have thrown the biggest fit they have ever seen at that doctor's office.

Good night.  May you all have Terlingua Dreams.