Medical Benefits and Medicare

12/6/2013

Life was so much simpler when Jeff was working for IBM and annual enrollment for benefits was just not a big thing.  We reviewed our choices from the last year and made changes, most of which were very minor.  We always figured if it ain't broke - why fix it!  

Okay fast forward to this year and no longer can we "tick" off boxes and then move on to something way more exciting then benefits.  Everybody needs them, but signing up for them is about as interesting as watching paint dry.  Jeff's status with IBM is now as a retired (even though he didn't want to retire) employee and our benefits change.  We now get retiree benefits until Jeff is 65 and then he'll have Medicare.  Since I won't be eligible for Medicare until next December, I think I remain on Cobra until that time.  Or something like that - you really do need an advanced degree in something (and I don't know what) in order to make any sense of all of this.  Signing up for benefits this time next year will be easier - Medicare for both of us.

As I mentioned earlier about needing an advanced degree to know how to enroll for our current benefits, you also need to have that same degree to keep track of your"EOB'" statements.  I think during a normal year making sure you get reimbursed for all of your medical bills is not a big thing.  And for us that has always been the case.  This year keeping track of our (me basically) medical bills has become a full time job.  I keep a stack of un-reimbursed bills here at my desk and I carefully monitor receiving payment.  If we were talking about a couple of bucks then it would be no big deal, but we are definitely not talking about a few bucks here and there.  I hope that by the end of this month we will have received any medical bills that some clerk has forgotten to send to us!

I don't know what the weather is like where you are - but I can tell you that it's gray outside my window and makes staying inside a good thing.

Enjoy Friday and your weekend.

P