It's been such a long and winding road, with literally hours spent (driving of course) talking to countless agencies, getting a different story from everyone. Even the awesome broker who was so helpful in getting me my policy can do nothing when it comes to MediCal. His only advice was to try to make an appointment to see someone in person.
So I called back and did make an appointment for next Thursday. But as I had feared, all of this stems from that cryptic letter I got last December about B's health care now including a $2800 "share of costs" - yes, I am now required to come up with $2800 every month before the government will kick in anything towards B's coverage. And this is supposed to be healthcare for low income people? Huh?
So basically I have to go to the office next week and battle my case - say my income has dropped significantly (it has), and hope they take my word for it (I will draw up a new profit & loss statement and bring my last few bank statements, which show almost no income at all).
My only other alternative is accepting this huge share of costs, which is like having a $36,000 yearly deductible, or paying out of pocket for really lousy policies for both B & T which would run me about $400 a month and hardly cover anything, with huge deductibles, co-pays, etc - basically leaving me extremely vulnerable in case of either of them having an emergency or illness (and what are the odds of two little boys having an illness or accident? Pretty damned good!).
So, my plea to MediCal simply has to work. It just has to. I mean, for Christ's sake, if that program isn't for broke single mothers of two or more kids then who the hell is it for??
That's completely ridiculous. $2800 A MONTH before you get any assistance at all? WTF? Who came up with this plan?? You definitely need to fight it and see if you can find ANYONE who can explain to you in a way that makes sense how and why you'd have to come up with that amount of money. You won't be able to. Good luck with the appeal... This is nuts!
ReplyDeleteThat just doesn't make sense. No one is expected to pay $2,800 per month...can you get a second opinion on the subject? There's just no way that can be right.
ReplyDeleteI could be wrong, but I think that the reason they can do that is that on MediCal routine care (such as well checks and immunizations) are free. I remember reading about share of cost in the paperwork (my mom said that was how it worked in Nebraska too) and was worried when my kids transitioned about where we would fall.
ReplyDeleteNow I find myself constantly worried about making enough money to pay the bills and not have to worry about running out of money each month, but not too much money so that I lose the kids' coverage.
I hope that your plea works.