The High Price of Questions

Back on June 20th, I went to the emergency room. I was having muscle spasms in my back. It was uncomfortable, not life threatening. We drove past two other hospitals to go to Medical Center of McKinney because it had happened before and we assumed (wrongly, it seems) that they would just be able to look up what they had done before and do it again.

The itemized bill came in July. It came to $929.34 before the insurance company adjustments brought it down to $293.43, not including the separate charges for the doctor. But I looked at the things I was being billed for. It doesn't matter to me that "the insurance company is paying" because ultimately, I pay them. I don't want to be overcharged, no matter who is paying. So I'm mentally checking off the items, Drugs/Generic - $13.29. That must be the valium they gave me. A little high for one pill, but I guess you've got to pay the staff to bring it to you with a cup of water. Emergency Room,  2 Units - $496.00. Am I being charged for two rooms? I only used one room. I must ask about that. Pharmacy-General, 2 Units - $86.98. That must be the two injections I had before I left. (If we go back and look at my blog about that event, we see that I had to be somewhat insistent to get those.) Then there was Pharmacy-Other - $333.07. Surely that's not the charge for the band-aid they put on the injection site? Must ask about that one. When I called, no one was actually sure what was meant by 2 Units of Emergency Room, but since the charge wasn't unreasonable, I let it go. But then we got to the Pharmacy-Other charge. I was told that it was for one 4 mg Zofran tablet. Really? $333.07 for one pill? But here's the rub. All they gave me was one valium. And that didn't knock me out. Remember that I had to ask for the injections because I still felt pain. You would think that with a $300 pill, I wouldn't have needed any injections. The $300 ER bill wasn't unreasonable, it's just that I did not get any pill other than the valium. I was perfectly willing to pay the bill, but I questioned the pharmacy charge. The young man I spoke with advised me to request an audit of the charges. I agreed to request the audit of the charges because I was certain that they had charged that $300 pill to the wrong account.

So now here we are, a couple of months later and I've just received a letter from them, still insisting that I had the $300 pill that I didn't have AND a decision that an additional $1028.00 needed to be added to my bill because it was ER level 3 instead of ER level 2. (Now I know what the 2 Units meant.) This is crazy. I had the audacity to question a $300 pill so they've slapped me with an additional thousand dollars. I called them to let them know that I STILL didn't have that pill and to ask what Level 3 meant. The young man on the phone "understood" my frustration over the pill, but didn't actually know what constituted Level 3. So I asked him how many levels there were. He thought there were three total. So it would seem that in the auditor's estimation I went from uncomfortable to near death and should be charged an additional thousand dollars. (Someone in a Level 3 condition probably needs a $300 pill.) And just for the record, I think I was probably more of a Level 1 when I got there instead of a Level 2, so to be elevated to a Level 3 is pretty remarkable. I'm thinking that if Level 3 is the most serious, you should be covered in blood and/or in cardiac arrest.

Here's the bottom line. I was never unconscious. They couldn't have given me a pill ($300 or otherwise) without my knowledge and cooperation. They need to be looking at whoever had access to the pharmacy that night, but instead they have added a thousand dollars to my bill primarily because they can. I don't know whether the insurance company will roll over and pay them or not. I'm told that I have no recourse other than to go to the facility and ask to see my records. I'm not sure what difference that will make when they're going to insist that I was near death and had a $300 pill. I think $1000 is a high price to pay to ask a question.

Like and Share

I love Facebook. It has allowed me to reconnect with classmates, former work colleagues, and long lost relatives. I've even made a few new friends.

I truly enjoy seeing pictures (and video clips) of my friends, their kids, their grandkids, their pets, their vacations, their homes and gardens and even what they've having for dinner.

I like it when my friends use the "check-in" feature on their smart phones. I can see that they're having fun and I can ask them if the restaurant is any good.

I enjoy reading about what you're up to. I don't actually care that you're doing laundry or mowing the lawn, but if you want to share that, I'm okay with it.  

I enjoy sharing a joke or a funny video. I enjoy stunning photographs. I like it when someone shares a "general interest" article. (I define "general interest" as non-political.) I don't even mind when my friends share political views that differ from mine.

However, I don't enjoy being inundated with political "junk". If you've got something to say, say it. I don't care what the political pundits say. If I want to know, I'll subscribe to their websites or go turn on the TV. You don't need to "share" everything your favorite news source puts out. If you feel compelled to share something from your favorite news source every now and again, that's fine. "Every now and again" does not mean hourly, or even daily.

Some of my friends have subscribed to (liked) sites that provide them with a daily inspirational message. That's fine. For them. If one of the messages really speaks to you and you want to share it, okay. But be advised that if I wanted to get that message EVERY DAY, I would have subscribed. The same applies to any and all sites you can subscribe to - including "causes". Abused animals and sick children seem to be the front running causes these days. But let me repeat that if I wanted to get those updates every day, I would have subscribed.

And some of my friends just feel compelled to share EVERYTHING that appears on their screens. It doesn't matter whether it's a recipe (far too many of those these days), a joke, a picture of a cat, an inspirational message, a plea to remember people in heaven, or a declaration of love for their spouses, kids, parents, or God. If it says "like and share", they do. I've had to limit what I see from these compulsive sharers. And I'm a happier girl for it.

By the way, please like and share my blog.

The Two Pink Bags

I wanted to win this bag. It was being given away in a drawing and everyone was given three tickets. We all had an equal chance. My plea went out to the cosmos - "Let me win the pink bag! Let me win the pink bag! Please, let me win the pink bag!!"


I should have been more specific. I should have said "Let me win the pink Coach bag!" Because in fact, I did win a pink bag, but not the pink Coach bag. The bag I won is a bit of a novelty item. It's a cooler shaped like a pink golf bag. It will probably hold a few bottles of water and some ice. Cute and clever? Yes. Cool and sophisticated? Not really. Something I'll use? Doubtful.

I just never take water with me to the golf course. You can get water and ice at most golf courses so there's really no need to take your own. (Unless of course, the free water tastes foul, but then you can buy bottled water.) So unlike the Coach bag, this is probably not something I'll use.

Apparently it's previous owner felt the same way. It came filled with bags of pretzels, nuts, cookies and trail mix. All of which had expiration dates ranging between June and September of 2010. According to my precise calculations, that is over three years ago. So the person who donated this raffle prize probably had it sitting in her closet for the last decade. Seriously, who pulls something out of the closet after three or more years and decides to donate it as a raffle prize when there are food items in it? It is sometimes hard to fathom that these people walk among us.

But anyway, since it's not something I'll be using, I'm planning on recycling it when my country club has it's Ladies Member-Guest Tournament next June. But don't worry. I've thrown all that out-of-date food away and I'll be filling it with fresh goodies.

The Nickel and Dime Tollway

We have far too many toll roads here in north Texas. You really can't go anywhere without paying, but because we have "toll tags" we don't realize how much we're spending until the credit card bill arrives at the end of the month. (For the record, we average around $120 to $160 per month between us.) We just go zipping through and they bill our credit card in $40 increments (paid in advance).

If you can't be bothered to get a toll tag, you can still just zip through and they'll send you a bill. You pay a bit more than a toll tag user, but if you don't use it very often, it's probably better than paying the $25 deposit and the $40 in advance tolls. As a consequence, there are no toll booths and the lines to get on and off are a result of traffic, not a toll booth line.

The state of Florida needs to watch and learn. Once we got off I-10 we had nothing but toll roads. We had to stop every mile or so to give them another dollar or three. Our tag didn't work in Florida. If we reprogrammed the navigation system to avoid toll roads, the travel time to reach our destination more than doubled. (This was true whether it was a 15 minute trip or a two hour trip.)

Most times there was a line to pay the toll. (Seriously, Florida is a major domestic tourist destination - I don't blame them for wanting to cash in, but speed it up!!) I'm not really sure how much time you save when you have to stop every other mile. (But I didn't want to spend the entire day finding out.)

At one entrance point, we were faced with the choice of having a working tag (which we didn't have) or the exact change of 75 cents. Exact change. Really? I suppose we might have had the option to back off the ramp back into oncoming traffic if no cars had been behind us, but that didn't seem like a good option. After sitting there and going through my wallet, the bottom of my purse, and all the loose stuff on the console we tossed two quarters in the basket and went ahead.

The buzzer went off. Lights flashed. I'm expecting a Florida State Trooper to show up at my door any day.

 

So You Want to Be a Taxi Driver?

If you want to be a taxi driver, my best advice to you is to go to Orlando, Florida. The qualifications are minimal. You don't need to speak English. You don't need to know where restaurants are. You don't need to know how to operate the cab's GPS system. You don't need to know how to work the navigation system on your phone, either. The only thing you have to know is how to turn on the meter. (You don't even have to know how to turn it off - even when you are hopelessly lost and have parked in a shopping center parking lot so your customers can find the place on their smart phones.)

Our first experience with an Orlando taxi driver was when we wanted to go to BJ's Brewhouse at The Loop. The Loop is a shopping center in the Orlando/Kissimmee area. It is so big that it is on both sides of the road. In fact, if you Google "The Loop Orlando", you will learn that The Loop is the "most unique and exciting shopping, dining and entertainment experience in Florida". You would think that a cab driver would know where it is. Amazingly, they do not. But given that the cab driver in question couldn't tell time, I'm not sure why I was surprised. (We'd asked for the cab at 8:30. He turned up at 6:45. No one was ready.)

Enough of that cab company! We'll try another one. We decided that I should call because everyone else has a British accent. (Not sure why that makes a difference when the taxi drivers don't speak either American or British English.) Anyway, when I called, I gave him our address in Orlando and told him that we'd like to be picked up in time to arrive at Tarantino's Italian Restaurant at 7:30. Then I asked him what time he needed to pick us up. The answer? 6:30 or 7:00. That's a half hour difference. We're not going across country. I would expect a 5 or 10 minute range, not 30 minutes. We just had to be on high alert because we didn't actually know when he was coming.

He picked us up a bit before 7:00 and as it turns out, he had absolutely no idea where Tarantino's Italian Restaurant was. When it became clear that he didn't actually know where he was going, (driving around the block multiple times is always a dead give-away) Mark and I got out our smart phones and started giving him the address and directions, which for some reason he was reluctant to take. Apparently his navigation system said the address didn't exist. I'm not sure whether he had the city wrong, or whether his GPS system maps were outdated. He also had a smart phone. What was the problem? Smart phones in the hands of not-so-smart people = not that useful.

"Look, the blue dot is us and the red dot is where we're going. It's just about a half a block from where we are now."

 We did get there in the end, but it was a painful struggle. 

I thought about all the times in my life when I've had to rely on a cab driver to get me to a hotel, a restaurant, or an airport. When you're a tourist, you don't usually know where you're going. If this had happened back in the dark days before smart phones, we'd have gone hungry. 

And just so you know, we passed on the monetary tip. The only tip I have for these drivers is to get familiar with the area. There's more to Orlando than Disney and the airport. 

Too Hot for Golf

It was our intention to play golf. You don't haul two sets of golf clubs 1200 miles for no reason. But when we got there it was just too hot. (At least for me!) So what can you do when it's too hot to play golf?

1. Sit on the beach. There is a refreshing ocean of cool water waiting to cool you off.

2. Go for an open cockpit biplane ride. The big fan in the front keeps you cool.

3. Go kayaking through the shady part of the swamp.

4. Go for an airboat ride. The big fan in the back keeps you cool.

But I do think we'll plan the next Florida trip for November or December when it's cooled down a bit. Florida has some beautiful golf courses and I'd like to play.

Our First Mistake

We left on a Thursday so we could spend some time on Friday in Tallahassee with a cousin I haven't seen in 36 years, which by the way was a great visit. We left Tallahassee on Saturday morning headed for Cocoa Beach to get in a few days of beach time before meeting up with Mark's cousin in Orlando.

I'd been checking pricing and availability on the web and it looked like we had loads of choices. And a whole week wouldn't cost you as much as one night in Boston. But we didn't book it online. I've been a bit hesitant about "oceanfront" descriptions ever since I took my son to Disney World 50 years ago and the "oceanfront" hotel was at least two blocks from the beach. At least these days you can actually look on a map to see if it's on the ocean or not. But then sometimes even though they are on the ocean, they are so far away from all the restaurants and activity. So we thought we'd keep our options open and choose a hotel when we got there. Make sure it was close to restaurants and things that we wanted to do. And we wanted an oceanfront room so we could hear the surf at night.

What we didn't consider was Labor Day. (Because we typically start our holiday after my family reunion, Labor Day is typically a travel day.) So when we arrived in Cocoa Beach, after spending far too long on the "nickel and dime" tollway - (seriously, you have to stop and give them a dollar or more every mile) it became obvious that we were not going to get ANY room, much less an oceanfront room. Even the hotels/motels that were blocks away from the beach were full.

We ended up extending our search and found an oceanfront hotel in Indialantic, about 40 minutes down the coast from Cocoa Beach. We couldn't get oceanfront, but we did get a room with an ocean view.

And once all the people who were just there for the holiday weekend cleared out, we were able to upgrade to oceanfront. So we're going to consider this a serendipitous mistake.