Back on the phone with Anthem BlueCross

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This is what, the 12th time I’ve had to call these people in 4 months?

Today it’s about receiving a couple of bills that make absolutely not fucking sense. I’m sooooo Tired of dealing with this bullshit!

Then there’s the little annoyances that tend to get you (alright ME!) amped up before you’ve even gotten into a hold queue wating for an agent that will probably fuck your shit up worse than it already is.

I swear every time I speak to one of these people they claim that everything is happy and good to go and then a month later I get something generated from a computer that makes it obvious something is still horrifically fucked up.

So in order to blow off steam before I actually talk to a human, here are the irritations in the order of encountering them.

Item One

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Bills (one each) for portions of a policy. Contained within these 3 page bills is one page with explainations of how I can have an interpreter and a phone number for the Department of Insurance.

This page is printed in Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Korean, Russian, Japanese, Arabic, Armenian, Punjabi, Khmer, Hmong, and Persian.

The main bill is all printed in English and I’ve identified as being an English speaker, so I’m somewhat annoyed by the waste of 3 pieces of paper every month.

Actually it’s 9 pieces of paper every month because they are supposed to be billing this directly from my checking account.

What they’ve been doing is billing my account then sending me 9 pieces of paper telling me that they’ve billed my account.

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Item Two

Of course nowhere on this bill do they have a phone number to call if you have questions about billing. Instead they say you’re supposed to call the Member Number on the back of your insurance card. Only problem is:

THERE IS NO MEMBER PHONE NUMBER!

There is however a customer service number that puts you into the insanity of a voice prompted computer system that doesn’t understand standard spoken English.

Eventually I just start hammering around on random numbers until I get into a hold queue.

Item Three

The reminder that all representatives are still busy played every 30 seconds. Yeah I kinda figured out that you guys are busy BECAUSE I was on hold listening to shitty hold music! How about extending that notice to once every 90 seconds?

Then I hear someone answer the phone. Wow! I was only on hold for 45 minutes this time.

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I get to a very nice man in the Philippines. Yeah, the Philippines who is able to answer my questions. Really?

The folks in the Philippines are a very nice and gracious people but why aren’t we talking to Americans?

You know out of work Americans who are struggling to feed themselves and THEIR families?

Item Four

Anyway, the nice man explains that the two bills I have saying that payment is immediately due are because Anthem failed to debit my checking account again.

Apparently these bills are trying to catch up for 2 months of payments that are in arrears. He offers to bring the accounts up to date but wants to do it via a credit card.

I decline. I’m growing more suspicious of Anthem.

I mean really, if they can’t keep it straight that I’ve given them permission to take their payments right out of my checking account; this is the 4th time they’ve screwed this up since November, can I really trust them to pay for services to my Doctor?

Item Five

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The nice man tells me that one of the bills is for Dental insurance.

Uhhh, I cancelled that back in Feb. Then he explains… It’s for pediatric dentistry.

SAY WHAT? I thought that’s why my damn medical insurance when up after the fucked up implementation of Obamacare!

(I swear, if ever there was something that needed to be aborted, Obamacare fits the bill).

But since they’re sending me a bill for it separately, It occurs to me that I can refuse to pay the bill.

Item Six

As I’m thinking over this insanity It occurs to me the cost of my meds is 300 a month without insurance. If I go to Tijuana or use a Canadian pharmacy I could perhaps get my generic drugs cheaper. Even if I stayed in the American pharmacies I’d still save money.

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I wonder if I were to simply cancel the whole damn shebang and let our fucked up government BILL me for not having insurance if I’d be better off paying out of pocket.

I wonder if I can get a catastrophic policy just in case I end up in the hospital?

I find myself thinking of tropical beaches out of the US once a year taking a “Medical Vacation” to Indonesia, or Curacao.

The thought of a once a year checkup combined with warm sand and excellent diving is a cloying one.

I wonder if the math would work out.

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I’ve got till the 10th to decide what I want to do. I suppose I’ll think it over and run some math. Perhaps I’ll shop around for another private insurer who actually can keep the payment and billing straight on a month to month basis.

Public opinion and the NBA

Sterling Banned from the NBA over private racist comments??? Say What?

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While it’s not an excuse, he is an old man. He was probably raised steeped in racism.

When we discuss a kid who carjacks someone amid a hail of gunfire, we say “The poor kid. He’s a product of his environment.”

However when a rich white man makes comments in private we refuse to see that he is as much a product of his environment as the carjacking kid. What’s the difference? The white guy is supposed to know better?

When these events become public we demand punishment, we deprive the rich man of income, we sanction him, and force him to sell his property (in this case a franchise).

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Hell I remember separate water fountains, bathrooms, and diner counters that were off limits to any person of color. I’m 30 some odd years younger than Mr Sterling. There’s that old hackneyed saying about Old dogs & new tricks. Perhaps that’s a bit true.

I’m not suggesting that what  he said was acceptable.

The violation of his privacy was, to my mind more unacceptable. The news media running with the story, ginning up anger and public outcry is flat out wrong.

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The players and the team should be thankful that Sterling isn’t a scorched earth kind of guy.

He can’t do it now, but at the outset of all this insanity he could have fired the Clippers staff, then he could have fired the players. Effectively killing the team before the NBA had a chance to step in.

I don’t follow basketball. I honestly don’t enjoy it and don’t see the point. The after game interviews are nonsensical and I’ve got better things to do with my time.

What caught my attention was the manner in which everything came crashing down on Mr. Sterling.  How many federal cases has he been involved in over racist behavior? You know, refusing to rent to non-white people because they weren’t white?

Only NOW because a private conversation was publicized has the NBA decided it was important to punish this guy?

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It wasn’t about him actually being demonstrably racist in a public venue.

It was about him being perceived as racist.

If this is becomes the norm, we’re seriously screwed because this heralds the death of free speech.

I read this article, then in disgust, I watched Idiocracy

Draining reservoir after urination incident show tenuous grasp of science.

Idiocracy made more sense, and I felt better.

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David Shaff of the Portland water bureau should be fired immediately.

This is the guy who’s decided to toss 38 million gallons of water from an open air reservoir because one teenager pissed in it.

By the way this is the second time in three years Portland has done this over urine.

Let me stress, this is an open air reservoir.

As in open to the sky, as in open to birds flying over it; we all know what our cars look like during bird migrations. Not to mention all the dust, plant debris, dirt, insects and anything else that may fly over the reservoir and fall in.  I don’t even want to think about the mess that ducks & geese leave behind, you do know that most all birds void their bowels prior to taking flight right? Mr Shaff should be a hell of a lot more concerned about that.

Lets not forget the algae, and bacteria, that inevitably live in this body of water.

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 Even if this body of water wasn’t open to the sky, let’s assume is was somehow sealed and sterile.

The concentration of urine distributed across that volume of water would be so small as to be irrelevant. In fact, Mr Shaff would get more urine in his mouth performing oral sex with his spouse.

But, and I must stress this, this reservoir is open to the sky.

Since I have no doubt that there is an ecosystem of microscopic plants & animals in the reservoir I suspect that the material from the teenager’s few ounces of piss have already been metabolized into a generation or 100, of paramecium, or caused a minor algae bloom. In other words, the urine is gone, long gone. Consumed by the natural processes occurring in any large body of water.

The Portland water bureau should be more concerned about treating the water for waterborne illnesses than whether one guy pissed in it.  

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This whole stupid mess begs another question.

How do people with this level of idiocy manage to keep their jobs?

I’m sure Mr. Shaff has all the right papers, and diplomas. Clearly he learned all the fact and figures to pass his exams, what he apparently didn’t learn was common sense.

Instead of calling for people to be fired because of their honestly held religious or political beliefs, perhaps a better use of our time would be to call for the firing of people that demonstrate repeated incompetence.

Just Sayin…

Been out of it for a couple of days… All I can say is DAMN!

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My ISP was having some difficulties with packet loss and their problems were affecting my ability to get email and upload to the blog.

Paraphrasing Poltergeist 

“I’mmmm BAAACCK!”

The question is what do I talk about first?

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The Bundy Ranch v the BLM?

I hate to even think about what could have happened if someone had squeezed off a shot during that standoff. That’s how really bad things happen really damn fast. I personally don’t think Mr Bundy has a leg to stand on legally. OF more concern to me is that we had an armed standoff at all. 

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When you start looking at issues surrounding the Bundy standoff. You can’t help but stumble over reports of other events where one could say that the US Government is overstepping its authority and behaving very much like a totalitarian entity.

There are currently issues over land between Texas & Missouri due to the ever changing nature of a river that had traditionally marked the boundary line between the states and ranchers in the area. The BLM is taking an interest and stands to usurp something like 90,000 acres without compensating either the states or the landholders.

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The EPA is attempting to assert control over many bodies of water, including watering ponds on farms and ranches. They are also making noises about assuming control of dry or seasonal creek and river beds.

Meanwhile The Border patrol has become a nuisance to Arizona ranchers whose property abuts the buffer zone between the US / Mexico boarder They’re doing things like cutting fences or leaving gates open without so much as a “by your leave.” 

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These supposed events are concerning because they’re in general, never picked up by the main stream media but are reported in local area papers. On an individual basis these seem like minor local issues but when you view them from the “orbit” of the internet it does start to look like a quiet conquest.

With government oversight, come government control. With government control, come fees, fines, and increased taxation (whether it’s called a tax or not.) This seems to be the source of the underlying embers that almost burst into flames at the Bundy ranch.

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The FDA is being reported as sticking their noses into a long standing arrangement (100+ years) between Beer Brewers and farmers regarding grain. The Beer uses the grain to make beer, then the waste material is usually given to farmers / ranchers to mix with feed stock. This arrangement takes care of the waste without requiring anything other than a farmer / ranchers willingness to haul the used grain away.

Now, the FDA is wanting to regulate this equitable arrangement in the name of public health even though there has never been an instance where the public or the animals have been harmed. Some old traditions bacme old traditions due to the test of TIME. It’s not in the best interests of Farmers or Ranchers to engage in an activity that is detrimental to their livelyhoods. So does the FDA really need to be involved? Probably not, but you can expect for their fees and inspections and whatever the hell else they’ll do to drive up the cost of a beer, and possible the cost of food too.

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The newest revelations about the IRS internal memos?

Just WHO is Lois Learner afraid of? She claims she’s in fear for her life and that’s why she doesn’t want to testify. REALLY? Can’t her employer The United States Government protect her & her family? Or is it the US Government that she’s afraid of?

The Ukraine?

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Does anyone really believe that Vladimir Putin is concerned in the least about what President Stompy Foot thinks? Don’t get me wrong Putin is not a nice guy but he’s doing what he things is best for his country ( Or Himself) and he’s not in the habit of asking permission. 

Potential for World War III?

There have been some writers comparing the flashpoint issues for WWI and WWII to what’s happening in the Ukraine.

I’m not sure that I completely agree with their assesment that WWIII could be in the offing but the correlations are interesting to read. I doubt Putin would move it to an all out war against NATO but hey no-one thought a strange little houspainter would end up Chancellor of Germany either.

President Obama’s trustworthy polls?

This one cracked me up. Approximately 60% of Americans believe that Obama is actively lying to them one way or another. Now that’s really gotta piss President Finger waver off.

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The President was on TV again today defending Obamacare and as usual took the opportunity to reiterate that Republicans are BAD and that their continued desire to revisit Obamacare isn’t in the public interest. Whoo Hoo 8 million people signed up. Lets see, there are approximately 313.9 Million people in the US. Does that mean a whopping 3% of the population signed up. Whoooo impressive!

I’d have been more impressed if this 8 million had ALL been previously uninsured people instead of poor schmucks that lost their insurance and had to find something on the exchanges.

I’d have been more impressed if there wasn’t a recent editorial by a lady that had called something like 92 doctors in New Jersey only to find out that her shiny new obamacare card wasn’t being accepted because the doctors didn’t want to deal with the smaller payments obamacare would provide for their services, and the increased overhead and oversight from the government.

I’d be more impressed if, instead of Pres. Stompy shaking his finger at Republicans he’d actually listen to what the vast majority of Americans are bitching about regarding having their health insurance screwed with.

I’d really be impressed if ALL of Congress, including that idiot Harry Reid had to sign up with Obamacare through the exchanges. (Hey Harry, let see if you’re smart enough to use the damn internet shall we?)

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I have no idea what the hell is going on anymore. I feel like I’ve walked through the looking glass into bizzaro world.

In short, HOLY CRAP BATMAN!

Don’t know what to think…

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The BLM sending guys to a ranch with guns?

Tasering a guy? Tossing a woman to the ground? Establishing a “Free Speech zone?” REALLY? Are you fucking kidding me?

Supposedly all this over a tortoise?

Additional information being reported that the BLM has shot & killed more of the tortoises than cattle ever trampled?

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The ranchers family has been in the same place, grazing the same land for over a hundred years?

Other stories being reported about the BLM tossing two Shoshone women off their land for having a few horses, goats, and cows. The women in question were supposed to be subsistence level farmers and had nothing other than their home and animals.

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His death followed his wife’s mysterious death in a single car accident on a desert road near their home.

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These are the kinds of stories we’d expect to hear coming out of The old Soviet Union, but these are stories from America.

We have examples like Ruby Ridge, and Waco where all may not be as was reported and our Government may have over stepped constitutional boundaries.

Oh let’s not forget Wounded Knee 

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Native Americans look at the government with considerable suspicion and they’re justified in doing so. How many treaties were broken?

How many times did our Government take back land because the powers in that government wanted what was under the land?

Based on history, I find myself asking what is it the BLM really wants and why do they want it? 

Reports have surfaced implying Senator Harry Reid is somehow involved. I dismissed those reports until Senator Reid made the statement “It’s not over” regarding the Bundy ranch.

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If he’s not involved why make the comment? Surely a Senate Majority Leader has better things to do with his time, unless he had a personal interest in the outcome the the range war between the Bundy’s and the BLM.

As I’ve read the material becoming available online ( and I admit readily that digital data is not reliable ) I’ve come to see that the BLM may in fact have prior claim.

The land in question was aquired via the Treaty of the Guadalupe Hildalgo. However the Bundy family has been grazing on the land in question since the 1880s. 

Who has rights to what is something that the courts have decided or will decide.

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I’m a lot more concerned about the force shown by the government and their apparent willingness to use that force without hesitation.

I’m concerned about the slow response of the media to the escalating confrontation.