March 15 was the last day of my job in NYC because soon I would be starting a new adventure in (way too) sunny Southern California. Once you quit your job, you have health insurance until the end of that month unless you strike up some kind of deal to keep it. My deal would cost me over $200 a month so that was a big fat hell to the no. I'm still pretty young and fairly healthy so I thought "What's a few months without health insurance?". I'll just get a job and get health insurance through them. Somewhere between April 12 and April 15 - when I flew from NYC to Houston to Dallas and then drove from Dallas to El Centro, CA - I got hemorrhoids. *cue dramatic music*
If you don't want more details on that, skip this paragraph.
Hemorrhoids aren't the most unpleasant of diagnoses but they are quite uncomfortable. The pooping blood was a little alarming at first but it's mostly the infrequent bowel movements that can ruin a day. What would most often happen is after I would wake up and throughout the day I would have to suddenly use the bathroom. I was (and am still) going about 4-5 times a day. At night there is always the sensation that I have to go. It's not a strong but it's strong enough to keep from being able to sleep soundly. Some days I thought I could just endure. Others I knew I wouldn't be able to work a job while this was still going on. I was barely sleeping and my sleep schedule has become way to erratic.
Back to health insurance.
I believe it was April 22, one week after arriving into CA, that I was doing extensive research on health insurance. I found a few suitable options. Since I had no income, I was able to apply or something called Medi-Cal. I spent the rest of the day filling out all of the forms, gathering the necessary documents, and researching health insurance. That Sunday, I received an email saying that I did not qualify for some form of health insurance. "Ok. Whatever. I already knew that..." It also said that someone would contact me if they needed any additional information. I believe it was Wednesday or Thursday that I still hadn't heard back from Medi-Cal so I decided to look up who I could call and I found some agents. At this point, I was ready to pay for one of the $50-$100 a month options that I saw so that I could just get my issues resolved and wasn't sure why I was already jumping through so many hoops.
I chose an agent at random because I didn't think one would really be better than another. I called. No answer. Figures. I called back later and his secretary/assistant/someone that works for him answered. She said that he was with another client and that he would call me back. I waited until Friday and still hadn't heard back so I chose a different agent and called. She picked up right away and was very helpful. Unfortunately, all she said was that agents were just there to help someone fill out the online forms. She also said that it would take at minimum (MINIMUM) two weeks for the information to be filed depending on the social worker's case load and how backed up they were. She said to wait another week or so and maybe give them a call to help ease it along. Fantastic.
I got a call that Monday, May 2, from my social worker stating she had received my paperwork and was wondering if I was still interested in the process. Yes! Yes! Yes! (Side bar: turns out I had received a letter in the mail with info the week before but since we had just moved there we weren't exactly privy to checking the mail regularly yet.) I spent that week playing phone tag with the social worker and gathering all the materials I needed to turn in to complete the process. She never answered when I called but she did always call me back which was nice. That Friday, I thought I needed to make an appointment so I called early to try and set one up. She never responded so I thought I should probably just go hand in all of the paperwork anyways to get it rolling. Turning in the paperwork was almost exactly like waiting in line at the DMV. You go to the counter, you get a number, wait for the number to be called, do your business, leave. And, of course, as soon as I got home I realized I forgot to turn in my proof of residence. But it was a Friday afternoon. I was exhausted. That could all wait until Monday.
That Monday, May 9, I got a call from my social worker at the earliest time in recorded human history - 8:22am. She was out on Friday and returning my call. How nice. I still don't have a job yet so you can bet that I'm staying up late and sleeping in. It was a good chance to check in though. I told her I turned in the information and that I would be stopping by later with my proof of residence and she said that now I would just have to wait to receive information in the mail. Ten days later I received information about healthcare and that I was approved and that I would have to choose one. I called my social worker terribly confused because I wasn't sure what I was choosing or even how to do that. The next day I received the holy grail. My health care packet with all of the information I need! It gave info on health care, where to find more info, how to choose, what benefits, etc. The part I was supposed to mail in to choose which health care plan was all in Spanish but besides that it was all good. Plus, somewhere in the packet it said I could just call so I wasn't too worried. But at this point, it was already Friday afternoon and the office was closed so I spent the weekend reading the material.
Monday, May 23, I call to choose health insurance. It's very quick. They are very friendly and helpful and answer all of my questions. I had to choose a Primary Care Provider (PCP) so I chose one that was close that's main focus was Internal Medicine (and cosmetic surgery??). The representative said it would take about 7-10 days for me to get my insurance card and it would come with more information. Since the following Monday was Memorial Day, I figured (hoped) I would get it in the mail on Tuesday and push the ball further on Wednesday.
Everything arrives on Tuesday as planned except my PCP is listed as someone completely different than who I chose. Not wanting to put up a fuss (especially since nothing else has really been smooth) I went with it. Wednesday morning, June 1st, the day my insurance is set to begin, I call to set up an appointment. The receptionist informs me that this doctor only takes Molina insurance (the one I chose) on Monday mornings and Tuesday afternoons. WTF??? That's sketch... But she said that I could go and fill out the new hire paperwork. I went to do the paperwork and she's looking up my insurance and apparently it isn't activated yet. She can't set up an appointment until I have insurance. Ok. Fine. I go home, call the insurance, and try to sort it out. They let me know that there was some kind of hold but it should be fixed now. I call the doctor but it's still not fixed. So, I ask when the next appointment would even be and they tell me it's early July. Hells no. Good-bye. I call the insurance again to switch my PCP. Apparently it was set up to be automatically assigned which makes no sense. They were helpful and switched and I was like "Yay!". I call the new doctor to set up and appointment but they can't give me an appointment until my insurance says this doctor's name... But the good news is there is an opening the following Monday. I'm exhausted so I wait until the next day, set up the appointment, and then go about my business.
Monday, June 6, the day of my appointment. It's been 45 days since I signed up for health insurance... I can only imagine a scenario in which I have less money and/or my symptoms were worse. My appointment was at noon but I arrived early because I had to run some errands. I walked out at 11:58am. The doctor was very straight-forward and quick. I was prescribed some meds and I was on my way. I didn't know which pharmacy to choose so I chose Walgreens because I'm at least familiar with it. An hour later, I go to pick up my meds but Walgreens doesn't take Molina. What? And they made it seem like they wouldn't even give it to me. They said I could transfer my prescription to the Rite-Aid across the street. I called the Rite-Aid at least 10 times that day to get it transferred. Of the 10 they answered maybe 3 and finally the last time they said it would be handled and I could pick it up later that day. I would receive a text letting me know it was ready. It was late, I had no text, and so I just waited until the next day. I called about 4-5 times and finally got an answer. The last time I called I was heading out the door to go anyways but they let me know it was ready. I picked up the meds (which cost $0) and my journey was finally complete!
Takeaways:
- Ask a lot of questions. You can never ask too many questions.
- Confirm your doctor, pharmacy, and anything associated with your health uses your insurance. If not, ask what kind of insurance they do take. You can never have enough info.
- Start the process early especially if you aren't fortunate enough to have a job that provides health insurance. You never know what could happen.
- I'm sure there are more.
