The Insurance Debacle

The health insurance world is tough to navigate. It can be frustrating and overwhelming. Just this past week a perfect example of this happened to me. I was visiting my parents and saw some explaination of benefits on their table. They were for lab claims that were denied due to no prior authorization. The funny thing was, that the pre- authorization letter was sent to my parents a month back. They made a few calls to their insurance company and got very discouraged, so they just gave up and left it on their desk. That is where I came in. The day I arrived at their house, I decided to call the lab and the insurance company. We had a three way conference call. After two hours, we came to the conclusion that the claims were denied erroneously and would be reprocessed. By the time the call was done, I was sweating and my bladder was bursting. This call was not for the faint of heart. The next time I need to make this type of call, I will be prepared with a good meal and a bed pan next to me.