I Don't Even Know What To Call This Shitshow

For those of you who were unaware, I had an emergency appendectomy last summer. It was kinda cool because I got to ride in the WIT Police Dodge Charger with the lights and sirens on as we bombed down Hutington Ave. with no traffic. The part that wasn't cool was the billing system and the incompetence of the department that rivals that of executives at places like AIG, and how I am still dealing with these morons as the attempt to extort money from me. Here is the time line of events for the whole debacle, to the best of my memory.

July 1, 3:00 am - Transported to Brigham and Women's Hospital with severe abdominal pain. Coolest 5 minute car ride of my life.

July 1, 11:00 am - Surgery to remove jihadist Appendix. Doctor says I only had an hour or so before it detonated.

July 2, 1:00 pm - Released from hospital with a healthy supply of happy pills.

July 3 - Call Amtrak for refund of ticket dated July 1 because I was clearly in the hospital and not on the train. Refunded no problem without even requiring proof of hospitalization.

August 13 - Begin receiving notices from Consolidated Health Plans (the shitty health insurance company provided by WIT to cover me from my 21st birthday until graduation) that they will contribute to the bills for the various doctors and prescriptions. Also begin receiving bills from BWH for the amounts not covered (co-pays) by CHP.

September 2 - Receive notice from CHP that they will not be covering my $20,000 hospital bill for the actual surgery because they did not receive and itemized bill.

September 2, 2 seconds later - On the phone with CHP asking how they got "itemized bills" for everything else except this bill (ironically, the biggest). They say call the hospital.

September 2, 2 seconds later - On the phone with BWH, who says they sent it. I tell them to send it again.

October 24 - After several more calls to CHP and BWH hearing that they "didn't get it"/"sent it," I finally receive notice from CHP that they will contribute to the bill. However, my co-pay will be $3,500.

November 2 - Receive bill from BWH for $3500 co-pay. At this time I am an unemployed college graduate with no income and nowhere near $3500. Funny side story, the air bag they wrapped around my legs and pump to inflate and deflate them to prevent blood clots cost $621.93. That's bordering on entrapment because they never gave me an option and if I knew something that simple cost so much I would have gotten up and walked around to prevent clots.

November 7 - Contact BWH and tell them I am poor, very very poor. They say they will send hardship papers I can file with the state. I hope they will actually send them given their spotty track record.

November 21 - Sent hardship papers to state.




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January 15 - In a true testament to state employees (sorry A-Town), they finally figure out that I have no job (except now I actually do) and really am poor and I finally receive a decision on my hardship papers. This decision is also supposedly cc'd to BWH. Anyways, the state determined that I only had to pay $665 and they would pick up the rest. How nice. However, in the 3 months I was waiting I recieve 3 more bills from BWH asking for $3,500. Each bill got BWH a call from me telling them to remove their heads from their asses and that I was waiting on my hardship papers.

January 16 - Mail BWH a check for $665 with a copy of the hardship decision from the state, hoping to never hear from them again.

February 12 - Receive bill from BWH for $2,900. In some sort of miracle involving the space time continuum, the bill shows that they received my check for $665 dated 1/16/09 or 1/1/09. I ignore this bill since they obviously, according to their own paperwork, got my check before the hardship papers.

March 2 - Receive a collection notice from BWH for $2,900 which also states they may take legal action if I don't pay. I laugh.

March 18 - Call the number on the collection notice and basically call everyone in the system a bunch of morons, and if they want their money sue the state, not me. They tell me to send a (nother) copy of my hardship papers to the Free Care Department. I say thank you in a very very sarcastic tone.

Hopefully not to be continued.