Livid

There is an enormous wrinkle in the plan that may mean that I cannot get surgery for 6 months.
At the advice of a benefit specialist who helped me to find out about MCHA and was coordinating my application, I cancelled MinnesotaCare, intending to get on MCHA. I was told by her that you can't get MCHA if you have another insurance, and I needed the certificate of termination in hand before applying.
BUT, it turns out that you can't get on MCHA If you voluntarily leave your existing plan, even if it doesn't meet your needs. MCHA is allowed to exclude me for 6 months based on pre-existing conditions.

The benefit specialist that I worked with now says she didn't realize that I'd only exhausted my *inpatient* benefits, not all of my benefits, though we *specifically* talked about this ad nauseum on the phone. She also specifically told me that I needed to cancel MinnesotaCare *before* applying to MCHA. She knew that I was covered and that I was leaving voluntarily.

It turns out she was dead wrong about having to cancel MinnesotaCare. A person *can* have both Minnesotacare and MCHA at the same time, and MCHA will make up the difference. This is according to MCHA. She admitted that she hadn't known this until today. A major ***ing oops.

Now I have but one hope of having this surgery done in the next 6 months: go crawling back to MinnesotaCare and hope that they'll take me. Of course, I have Cancer, so it wouldn't be in their best interest to do this, financially.

If MinnesotaCare takes me back (and I may need to reapply fresh all over again and wait a month or so to hear the decision) then I still need to get out of them something that I have been unable to get, since no one person feels authorized to give it: a letter stating that I have reached my $10,000 inpatient benefit. MnCare thinks it's HealthPartners (who administers MinnesotaCare for me) department.... and HealthPartners thinks it's MnCare's department.

Before hanging up on my insurance "advocate" at Gallagher benefit Services, I informed her that her oversight and misinformation, leading to a drastic delay in surgery, has almost certainly shortened my lifespan.

At my own hand, acting on misinformation, I currently do not have any health insurance whatsoever. I voluntarily cancelled the only plan I had.

Mayo Monday, Color Rant

Its been a nice weekend off -- no phone calls or plans to make,
nothing really to be decided or planned, so I've been giving myself
permission to take it easy.

I went to benefit yesterday for Ed M, Minneapolis Irish music
forefather, who passed away unexpectedly from undiagnosed liver cancer
a few months ago. When they caught it, the docs gave him 6 months and
he lasted 30 days. It makes me glad that mine was caught as early as
it was. The benefit was held at the old Kieran's Irish Pub (A
Minneapolis Irish Music landmark for 20 years). Kieran's just recently
moved to be closer to the new baseball stadium, but the old pub is
still open under the clever name of "The Old Pub" for lunch and happy
hour. They opened on a sunday just for this, all proceeds from alcohol
and food sales was donated by Kieran (who still owns it), all
waitstaff worked for tips only, there was a very nice silent auction
and a raffle with thousands of dollars of donated prizes. Several
bands donated their time, including the new Tim Malloys, minneapolis
music legends boiled in Lead, and a Van Morrison tribute band 5-piece
called (for some reason that I've never been able to figure out) St.
Dominic's Trio. They're decent, but the problem with being an
authentic tribute band is that no one would ever buy your album if you
made one.

A and R -- Ed's widow and 8 year old son -- were also there, of
course. She has clearly lost a dangerous amount of weight but I can
tell has great support through this. She seems to be hanging in there
very well and was very glad to see the big turnout.

Among the fundraisers was a guy selling armbands. I knew that breast
cancer was yellow, but I never really realized that (someone) has
decided on a color scheme for ALL of the cancers. Lucky me, this is
the color I get:

http://www.choosehope.com/product/cancer-sucks-wristband/1226?cancer_color_id=Uterine+Cancer+-+Peach

Peach? Peach?! How about black, mofos. Or at least yellow. Breast
cancer should be pink, colon cancer should be brown, *uterine* cancer
should be yellow. Or perhaps all cancer should just be black. Other
color options I can think of: testicular cancer should be blue, bone
cancer should be white, brain cancer should be grey -- and it is,
thankfully.

I got one of the "Cancer Sucks" armbands in memory of Ed and also for
myself. Though the color is kelly green (liver cancer), it also makes
sense for a Irish musician who has cancer, so that's what I'm telling
myself. But I think I'll get a zillion of the black ones and give them
out. Take back black, I say. Who says the melanoma peeps get to have
all the cool stuff?

Today I head out to Mayo to see Dr. Hunter. To Review, I do have
health insurance, through HeathPartners, and I'm well covered for the
surgery and chemo, etc. But Mayo is out of network for them, so I
chose to do my second opinion with perhaps the best guy on the planet
for this exact type of cancer. His consult fee will be out of pocket
but then (assuming he gives the green light to Dr. Ungawa and his
plan) I'll be back in HealthPartners fully covered for everything else.
Another recent development speaking of insurance, though:
MinnesotaCare (which is who I get my coverage through) has slightly
changed their tune: They originally said no, there's no chance to
switch from HealthPartners to UCare until open enrollment in the fall.
Upon hearing my arguments last friday on the phone -- the Mayo
procedure will be less invasive and involve less hospital and recovery
time (read: cheaper) -- they have now said, "maybe" I can switch
before fall. This is an exciting maybe, because if so it would mean
that all of my current docs would still be covered... PLUS ALL OF MAYO
CLINIC, at 100%. UCare the is the way to go, for anyone who has the
option. So I'm hopeful.

Anyhow, Mayo today with R and G, another painful uroscopy (its a 3
foot long hose with a camera at the end and is the diameter of a
pencil, people) and then hopefully some good feedback. Once again, its
unlikely I'll be able to do the surgery with this guy, but his opinion
is worth it.

And yes, Cancer sucks. Right now I feel like I should be billing
someone for my time and the time of everyone who is helping me. If you
let me know where I can send the bill, I'd be much obliged.

Setbacks and discoveries, not all bad.

So some frustrating news today. Apparently I can't switch to UCare
until November (MinnesotaCare only gives you one time a year to
switch). Though apparently my primary care physician can write a note
to HealthPartners asking them to consider covering me. But that takes
2 weeks to get through the system over there at HP. And there are no
guarantees.

I may not have any option other than Dr. Ungawa and HeathPartners. It
would be almost completely covered through HP, but Ungawa wouldn't do
the procedure laparoscopically (where they make only a small
incision). The Mayo doctor, whom I shall call Thompson S. Hunter can
do laparoscopic surgery. Doing the incision traditionally will be
nearly a cesarian-size scar and a longer recovery.

The last item means that there is a case in favor of using Dr. Hunter.
Today on stolen breaks from teaching I coordinated with Dr. Ungawa's
office to send my original pathology slides to Dr. Hunter, which they
agreed to do. So they're winging their way to Rochester even as I
write this. I had to lie about my hard deadlines in order to get them
out today. I don't feel bad about that.

Tomorrow I will drive to Dr. Ungawa's office in Edina, get the CT scan
CD and written report and then drive it to Rochester myself, since Dr,
Ungawa's office has no way of overnighting things. At all. Ever.
Apparently. So a trip in the convertible to Rochester is on the
docket, immediately after I get my bone scan done tomorrow. Hopefully
its sunny, at least.

Off to see my primary care physician. This is the first chance I've
had to see him since this avalanche began, its hard to believe it was
just last Friday that I got this news.

This health stuff is a full time job!