Monday, March 9, 2009

Let the circle be unbroken

After getting my second refusal letter in a row for medical tests I had done from our insurance company, I gave in and called to get the mess straightened out.
Do I have my authorization for treatment and the refusal to pay statements together? Check.
Do I have enough time to wait on hold right now? Check.
Enough patience and energy to deal with bureaucrats? Apparently not.
I will summarize so you don't fall asleep from sheer boredom. They were refusing to pay because my social security number was "incorrect" on the forms; which means it was MY social security number and not Sgt. G's. The stupid woman is arguing with me about where his social security number needs to be. I think if it asks for the patient's SS#, the doctor's office and hospital were both correct in putting my # there. They had then put Sgt. G's SS# in where it asked for the policy holder's SS#. This would make sense to anybody, right? Not to my Tricare lady. She is not allowed to make that connection on her own and needs Sgt. G's social where mine is. Okay, whatever.

Me: So, can you guarantee that when this paperwork comes back to Tricare that it will come back to you personally?

Tricare lady: No, but I assure you, it will be fine.

Me: Really? Because I am pretty sure that most insurance claims people would wonder why my husband needed a PAP smear and an ultrasound to check for breast cancer.

To top all this off, when I called the hospital to have them make the changes and re-bill my insurance, the hospital billing department woman responded with this:
"Tricare has denied payment already? Well isn't that interesting. We haven't billed them yet."

And the Circle of Absurdity is complete.

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