Ha! x-post! YEP!

Complain, minor in comparison to what others are going through - but I had a minor operation recently. Because of deductible my main insurance did not cover it (applied deductible). However I have dental insurance which provides some coverage. Lab who did biopsy billed main insurance. They refuse to bill dental insurance. They claim "ethical reason". That would be "double billing". I said how is it double billing - First insurance did not pay a dime. Lab said "applied to your deductible so you have less deductible left, so applying to your deductible is giving you something of value, and collecting from your dental insurance is thus "overcollecting". I asked how much of the applying the deductible they are going to apply to reduce my bill since is was "of value". I'll end up paying it and sending directly to my dental insurance. But as an excuse for not billing an insurance company, it is the biggest bullshit I've ever encountered. If someone has two insurances and the first does not pay billing to the second is routine. And both insurances were submitted by my dental surgeon when the lab tests were ordered.

Yep, no problems with paying for healthcare in this country. None whatsoever.

But if we did not have a system based upon private insurance, we might have to deal with red tape and bureaucracy.

Which reminds me--my PCP suggested I get a gastric bypass to deal with my diabetes. Since it's being prescribed for a medical condition and not "just" for weight loss, he thinks the insurance will pay for it.

That said, I'm wondering about living with the bypass. I know you only have to eat a few bites to get full, but how soon are you hungry again? Would I need to be eating every hour? If you get to a place you're happy with and get it undone, do you have to rely on willpower to stay there? I am familiar with my willpower, and a chocoholic at the Godiva plant is similar.

This is the first stage of my mulling, so I'm gathering information while I may.

...And that would be WRONG, Typo! @@

Also, still not a major complain to what other experience but...

OK my current insurer will stop providing individual plans in July 1. I was going to be forced into the high risk pool, because no way can I score well enough on a standard questionare to qualify for insurance. But our legislature passed a law that essentially requires insurers to take people who lose their insurance due to this particular insurer discontinuing coverage. However - I have to include a certificate of credible coverage through June 30 to get the new policy. And I have to submit my application by June 21 to be covered in July. Fortunately once I pay my June insurance on June 1, I can probably get a certificate. So I probably will be able to do that. But jumping through the hoops it takes not to become uninsured is not low stress. And I stil won't know for sure that there is not some loophole that will stop me from qualfiying. Basically, they can turn me down for any policy that is not as crappy as, or crappier than my current policy. So that means there are only three insurance policies in Washington State that I qualify for, and two of them are catostrophic. So if there is a loophole I overlooked with this policy, I will end up with catastrophic coverage, and 10,000 or whatever deductible. And that high a deductible will be hard to deal with cause I end up using a lot of health care thanks to various conditions. Plus with catostrophic coverage you end up charged the uninusred rate which is three or four times what insured people pay for the same care.

I'm watching a TV movie that stars the likes of Clive Owen, Kidman, Strathairn, Duvall, Posey, Brooke Adams, Joan Chen, Peter Coyote, et al. I'm not used to HBO movies. Do they typically draw this sort of talent?

I'd seen the ads, but somehow not processed it was going to air on the small screen.

Yes, because it typically also results in an Emmy.

Is it any good, ita? I clicked by it the other day but didn't stop for long. I could have sworn I saw Tom Cruise under a bandage, too.