Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Blindsided

I'm feeling very blue...and upset...and scared.  All of these emotions are a bit unusual for me as, if you haven't figured out already, I'm a very optimistic person.  My optimism, however, has been shaken.

On Monday, I got up to be surprised to find my husband in the kitchen....He had gone to work, only to be called into an office and to be told that he was no longer employed.

So now, here I am....a stage IV cancer fighter struggling with trying to figure out how COBRA works for a company which self-insures.  Praying that my husband, who is now 52, can find a new job and quickly and that the new job will insure me.  Knowing that fighting it is silly as nothing can be proven.  Knowing that money is what makes the world go around and anyone who thinks any differently, or thinks that there isn't a problem with health insurance/health care in the US, is really sticking their heads in the sand.

Short of that? I'll try to find a job....which is problematic since I can't walk well anymore nor can I be on my feet for any length of time because of the issues with my pelvis....and in this economy, finding a job for someone who was once a museum curator and has these problems...well....it's going to be a struggle...providing I can even do it.

So yah, like this quilt, I have the blues and the greys....The little quilt is an optical illusion quilt in a pattern called "tumbling blocks" or "baby's blocks."  It was made by an Amish woman in the 1980s.  I recently sold it on eBay.  I'm guessing I'll be doing a whole lot more of that.

3 comments:

  1. I'm sorry that this has happened to you. I lost my job during treatment and I was the one with the insurance, and paying almost all of our home bills. My husband has his own business and was trying to get a second business off the ground. I'm still unable to work because of disabling side effects of treatment. We're currently paying $1500 per month for the COBRA for the two of us, and it will run out in June.

    In Oregon they have portability coverage that you can apply for when your COBRA runs out, it takes you without limitation. Also, in Oregon we have the Oregon Medical Insurance Pool that will supply insurance if you are considered uninsurable, these will still cost us about $1400-1500 monthly, but at least I would have insurance. We're also looking at doing one of these plans for me alone and putting my husband on a separate plan with a higher deductible. There is also the FMIP (Federal Medical Insurance Pool) I have a friend that got that after she was diagnosed with Stage IV Ovarian Cancer. There are some options, but they all cost. Are you disabled and receiving SSDI? If so you are eligible for Medicare once you have been on SSDI for 2 years.

    I hope you find something, and that your husband finds a job soon. May God open an even better window for you guys1

    Linda

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    Replies
    1. Thanks so much for your comments, Linda. I have not gone the disability route...I don't really want to yet, although I am recognizing that I am getting more and more limited. I cringe at Medicare...I had a friend who all the doctors in the area couldn't figure out her primary cancer. They all agreed that ending her to M. D. Anderson was her only hope....except she was on disability and Medicare...she could only see people in the county. She died before anyone could figure out a way to get her to Texas.

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