The Battle Rages On

It has been over ten weeks since my surgery and I am still facing a battle on a daily basis.  It is a battle that we have struggled with almost every day since being discharged from the hospital.  My wife and I have felt anger, frustration and discouragement over this fight.  At this point, there doesn't seem to be an end in sight.

Don't worry.  Physically I am doing fine (you can go ahead and breath now).  The battle we are facing now is the battle with our health insurance company.  And a battle it is.  For years we have had a supplemental insurance plan that would help pay bills in the case of a critical illness.  In case you are wondering, yes a liver transplant qualifies as a critical illness.  

Within a few days of being released from the hospital we submitted the proper paper work in full.  My wife went above and beyond and not only gave them all information they needed, but also provided information on our past policy and everything else they could have possibly needed.  Now almost a month later, the insurance company is still giving us the runaround and refusing to pay what they contractually owe us.  

We have made phone calls on almost a daily basis, as well as letters in the mail and emails.  Each time we speak with them, they find a new reason to deny our claim.  We then submit the paperwork to dispute their reasoning, so they find another reason.   Round and round we go.  First it was pre-existing condition, then the fact I was not active at work on January 1, then the fact that they were questioning my disability (the fact that my wife used from their contract to overcome the 'active at work' denial), and now they are back at pre-existing condition.  SERIOUSLY!?!?!

To get an idea of how much time we have spent dealing with this company, all you would have to do is look at my cell phone bill.  I usually do not spend much time on the phone.  My phone conversations are generally short and sweet.  On average I use less than 100 minutes a month.  In the month after my surgery, I racked up over 400 minutes on the phone.  The majority of that time was with the insurance company.

It is frustrating on so many levels.  The policy is very straight forward.  It should be a simple case and yet they try to find every reason to deny it.  My wife and I feel like we are doing their jobs for them.  Getting policy numbers, doctor reports, hospital bills and sending them to the same person five or six times.  At this point we feel like it is a battle of wills.  They are hoping that we will back down.  They do not know who they are dealing with.

We know that we will not back down.  We know that we will do everything we can to get what is due to us.  Unfortunately, not everyone has the same will and determination that we do.  We have found stories all over about people who have been in very similar situation, only they gave up fighting.  The insurance company beat them down until they waved their white flag and surrendered.  That will not be us.  We do not even own a white flag.