Medicare

[BigRedBuster]

I didn't put this under the Obamacare thread because I'm not claiming this is part of that pathetic excuse of....excuse me....dream legislation.

 

But, something came up this weekend that just is an example of crap that baffles me.

 

My mother in law turned 84. So, we had all of her children to our house for a birthday party. She is living in a nursing home.

 

About two months ago, she had surgery on her hip. I guess Medicare picks up a large portion of expenses for 90 days after such a surgery. When we went to pick her up, the administrator told us she can only be gone for two hours. WTF????

 

When we questioned her, she said that if she is gone for more than two hours from her facility, then Medicare will stop paying everything they pay after the surgery.

 

I was pissed and totally baffled by this. So......this 84 year old lady can not leave a facility for more than two hours to be with her family on her birthday who came in from long distances to see her in a more comfortable setting than a nursing home?

 

Decisions on rules that are made by people who are far away from reality drive me crazy.

 

I just had to vent. This is pathetic.

[carlfense]

I didn't put this under the Obamacare thread because I'm not claiming this is part of that pathetic excuse of....excuse me....dream legislation.

 

But, something came up this weekend that just is an example of crap that baffles me.

 

My mother in law turned 84. So, we had all of her children to our house for a birthday party. She is living in a nursing home.

 

About two months ago, she had surgery on her hip. I guess Medicare picks up a large portion of expenses for 90 days after such a surgery. When we went to pick her up, the administrator told us she can only be gone for two hours. WTF????

 

When we questioned her, she said that if she is gone for more than two hours from her facility, then Medicare will stop paying everything they pay after the surgery.

 

I was pissed and totally baffled by this. So......this 84 year old lady can not leave a facility for more than two hours to be with her family on her birthday who came in from long distances to see her in a more comfortable setting than a nursing home?

 

Decisions on rules that are made by people who are far away from reality drive me crazy.

 

I just had to vent. This is pathetic.

Did you ask the administrator to show you the relevant regulation or did you take his word for it?

[BigRedBuster]

At the time, we did not have time to do that....we had the family at home waiting for her. It also wasn't me who was there being told this. It was her son. I'm just the inlaw.

 

But, let's say what she said wasn't right...what benefit would it have been for her to tell us that? Before the surgery, we had her out many times and they loved us to take her out. We had her out to our house once since the surgery and again, we got along great and the nurses there were happy we took her.

[carlfense]

But, let's say what she said wasn't right...what benefit would it have been for her to tell us that? Before the surgery, we had her out many times and they loved us to take her out. We had her out to our house once since the surgery and again, we got along great and the nurses there were happy we took her.

I didn't mean to imply that he/she was lying to you. It's just always my first instinct to go to the source.

 

The administrator is probably right, and further, there is probably a very understandable reason why the regulation is written the way it is.

 

That said, I don't expect that to lessen your frustration . . .

[BigRedBuster]

This is the crux of most people's frustration with government that some don't seem to get.

 

I am almost positive that this regulation was put in with good intentions. Blanket regulations absolutely suck many many many times when you get it to real life situations.

[carlfense]

This is the crux of most people's frustration with government that some don't seem to get.

Ah. There it is. Do you think that this sort of issue is unique to government? Stated another way . . . would you be as frustrated if it were a private insurer refusing to pay if a patient didn't comply with certain conditions?

 

I am almost positive that this regulation was put in with good intentions. Blanket regulations absolutely suck many many many times when you get it to real life situations.

True . . . in both the private and public sectors.

[BigRedBuster]

Do you think that this sort of issue is unique to government?

 

Absolutely not. I find it everywhere. But, federal programs are rampant with this type of regulations that sound good in Washington but suck when they get out to the real world.

[carlfense]

But, federal programs are rampant with this type of regulations that sound good in Washington but suck when they get out to the real world.

And yet, somehow, Medicare is still dramatically more efficient than private insurance.

[BigRedBuster]

Your love of everything government is extraordinary.

 

I'll give you another funny story that came out this weekend. I know a guy who owns a building in a small town that has a federal government agency renting it. He has had it for years.

 

Now......the government is required to cut back expenses...so. They now announced to him that they will only be renting X,XXX square feet due to a mandate. This agency is now mandated that they can not rent over that size of office space.

 

The problem is, this is the only building in this small town that works for them and it is over that size. He was told first that he needs to put up a wall making one of the rooms smaller. WTF??? So, this guy is supposed to put up a wall making the room smaller, and then only charge the government for the space that is usable now that the wall is up. There would be then dead space behind the wall not used.

 

This guy flat out told the manager he wouldn't do it. She then came back and said that then what he needs to do is charge them for rent up to the maximum amount and the rest of the space will be rent free. Oh...btw.....you can up the per square foot charge on the space he is charging for to cover it. When he flat out was baffled by that and told her he doesn't want to do business that way, she said...."Well, that's the way the regulation is written."

 

Welcome to our wonderful government.

[carlfense]

Your love of everything government is extraordinary.

Not everything but I do acknowledge some basic facts.

 

 

I'll give you another funny story that came out this weekend. I know a guy who owns a building in a small town that has a federal government agency renting it. He has had it for years.

 

Now......the government is required to cut back expenses...so. They now announced to him that they will only be renting X,XXX square feet due to a mandate. This agency is now mandated that they can not rent over that size of office space.

 

The problem is, this is the only building in this small town that works for them and it is over that size. He was told first that he needs to put up a wall making one of the rooms smaller. WTF??? So, this guy is supposed to put up a wall making the room smaller, and then only charge the government for the space that is usable now that the wall is up. There would be then dead space behind the wall not used.

 

This guy flat out told the manager he wouldn't do it. She then came back and said that then what he needs to do is charge them for rent up to the maximum amount and the rest of the space will be rent free. Oh...btw.....you can up the per square foot charge on the space he is charging for to cover it. When he flat out was baffled by that and told her he doesn't want to do business that way, she said...."Well, that's the way the regulation is written."

 

Welcome to our wonderful government.

Is this in response to my comment about Medicare efficiency?

[BigRedBuster]

Your love of everything government is extraordinary.

Not everything but I do acknowledge some basic facts.

 

 

I'll give you another funny story that came out this weekend. I know a guy who owns a building in a small town that has a federal government agency renting it. He has had it for years.

 

Now......the government is required to cut back expenses...so. They now announced to him that they will only be renting X,XXX square feet due to a mandate. This agency is now mandated that they can not rent over that size of office space.

 

The problem is, this is the only building in this small town that works for them and it is over that size. He was told first that he needs to put up a wall making one of the rooms smaller. WTF??? So, this guy is supposed to put up a wall making the room smaller, and then only charge the government for the space that is usable now that the wall is up. There would be then dead space behind the wall not used.

 

This guy flat out told the manager he wouldn't do it. She then came back and said that then what he needs to do is charge them for rent up to the maximum amount and the rest of the space will be rent free. Oh...btw.....you can up the per square foot charge on the space he is charging for to cover it. When he flat out was baffled by that and told her he doesn't want to do business that way, she said...."Well, that's the way the regulation is written."

 

Welcome to our wonderful government.

Is this in response to my comment about Medicare efficiency?

 

 

Did I say it was?

[carlfense]

Did I say it was?

You did not. It seems a bit out of place but I'm sure it's all very logical to you.