Red Tape

GRRRR!!  The University of Washington, where I’m scheduled to have my mastectomy, sent me  a letter with three questions to ask my insurance companies before my consultation on April 2nd. It arrived Friday afternoon.

 

So, immediately after getting the letter, I called United Health Care since their office was still open, to ask the three questions. The gal there said they go by Medicare guidelines and she couldn’t answer my questions (Medicare would have to do that) so, by that, I presume she meant that whatever Medicare covers, the supplemental coverage with pick up the balance.

 

Since it was 5 PM by then, I called Medicare first thing this morning and spoke with a lady named Audja (spelling might be wrong). She told me Medicare won’t give me any information or answers about which procedures they cover, or which hospitals they have contracts with, and that the provider must call the Medicare Provider line to get that information.

 

So, I have put this info into a letter and am mailing it back to the UW today.

 

I’m wondering why the UW doesn’t already know that this is the protocol. And if they know it, why did they send me this letter?

 

I’ve spent all weekend waiting to have these questions answered so I can relax again and they can’t be answered for me yet. Now I’m all shook up again…

 

 

It’s red tape like this that requires stamina and resiliency that shouldn’t be required when people are seeking medical help. The underlying issue is enough; it shouldn’t require additional outlays of stamina just to get the basics squared away so someone can move forward.

 

I’ve jumped through all the other required hoops: getting a gender dysphoria diagnosis confirmed by two professional practitioners (a licensed therapist and a doctor): I’ve lived as a man for more than two years, changed my pronouns everywhere online I can (Facebook, etc.). And it get that these are crucial steps to take, to be absolutely sure we’re not conflicted. (At age 68, not an issue in my life but it might be for a very small percentage of  people who are significantly younger. Better to be safe than sorry when it comes to irreversible surgery.)

 

Now that I’m thisclose (missing space intended) to having my surgery done and over with — just as I’m approaching the tape that runs back and forth across the finish line — I get a letter with questions I cannot get answered…and I’m just so sick of waiting for other people to tell me what I can and cannot do with my own body to bring it into compliance with who I really am!

 

It’s like slow torture.

 

I want a resolution.  I want the waiting time to end and the rest of my life to begin.

 

This is absolutely no fun. No fun at all.