Ok, so it’s open enrollment for my work and I’m trying to get enrolled. And because we’ve been bought, there’s a new insurance provider, and so I actually (for the first time ever) called up for advice. I’ve been going through the provider’s website, and while if there’s an emergency I can go to Alaska Regional Hospital, I can’t find any general providers or dentists that they cover. I mean, my needs for a doctor are pretty much limited to “get allergy medicine”, but it’d still be nice to not have to pay for that. The PPO option *works*, but it’s not as good as the others (costs the same as the “Gold” coverage, but with a much higher deductible, yadda yadda), and last year when I did enrollment and went with the PPO, apparently I ended up with no prescription coverage, which, when Allegra is $160 a bottle, bites.
So I called up and asked what my best option was. It was clever of me to do so, because the nice man I talked to said I ought to be eligible for the good sort of out of network coverage (as opposed to the PPO version, which is not the good sort), so he’s looking it up and will get back to me once he knows how to enroll me in it.
For some reason, I find dealing with benefits to be really scary. Like dealing with taxes. I donno why. But since I have noooo idea how long my job is going to hold out, and because they’re obligated in some fashion to offer me insurance if they lay me off, I figured I’d really better get this taken care of with the best coverage possible right now. God knows if I’ll get another chance. o.O
It’s important you learn about this stuff, because soon you’ll be making so much from your writing career that you’ll quit your day job, and have to figure out your own insurance. Right about the time you incorporate as an individual for tax purposes.
Whether you look at the silver lining or the cloud in that (increasingly likely) version of the future is just one of those personal litmus tests.
As a former benefits person, the general rule is that if you’re working for the company and there is no PPO in your area, you’re covered anyway, and that includes prescriptions. Quite often you have to pay for the service and then be reimbursed by the insurance provider because the drug store or dentist or whomever isn’t going to find your company in its list of acceptable companies. But you -should- get your money back if you have to pay for services. So save your receipts and fill out a form and request reimbursemtn.
Uh – most insurance providers will cover -any- emergency at any hospital in the country, or even, for that matter, out of the country, provided you go to a PPO as soon as you can if further treatment is required. For instance, if you’re hit by a car at UAA you ought to be able to go to Providence across the street and have coverage. If you then require treatment beyond the ER and are in a condition to be moved, you would need to be transferred as soon as Prov deems it advisable. If your PPO in Alaska is Alaska Regional, you should be able to go there for any necessary treatment, emergency or not.
If your pharmacist is charging you $160 for Allegra, you should call around. That’s substantially above market price (for a 1-month supply– if you’re getting the uber-bottle, that’s another matter entirely) and there tends to be a lot of variation between pharmacies even in the same city.