How the Health Insurance System is Screwing People (and by "us" I mean "Me and Kim")

[digitaldiscipline]

Not directly, but the health insurance system is not making me very fucking happy, in a very personal way.

K, as most of you know, has been temping since her tenure at LPZ ended. She's been on COBRA in the interim, which is, as probably fewer of you know, FUCKING EXPENSIVE.

Fortunately, I work for a company that's cool enough to offer Domestic Partner benefits. Open enrollment, unfortunately, happens in November, but if you have what is considered a "qualifying event" during the year, you can add your partner at any time during the year.

Not being able to afford COBRA isn't a qualifying event. So, in theory, K could get health insurance through my job, but in practice, she can't. Which means her options are: be uninsured, or go broke paying for insurance.

The invisible hand of the market, as evidenced by all those independent insurance commercials that have proliferated? They're the next thing to fucking useless, because they don't offer stuff like, you know, dental coverage, or they have a shitty prescription plan (if they have one at all).

Anyone who says we don't need to correct some serious goddamned shortcomings in the way medical coverage is provided in these here United States is cordially invited to KISS MY ASS.

Comments

[etcet.livejournal.com]

I think you got in during the "grand opening sale".

Simply filing the paperwork doesn't do anything but lay the groundwork for streamlining getting her on it come open enrollment time, unfortunately.

[critus.livejournal.com]

Shit. I just looked up the federal COBRA assistance deal and, like unemployment, it only qualifies if you were involuntarily terminated. :(

[etcet.livejournal.com]

Yep. One more way the entire edifice systematically ensures the nice people, who play by the rules, get the shit end of the stick at every turn.

No real surprise that I'm bitter about the entire process, really.