Why I hate insurance companies, reason gazillion
Wednesday, February 24, 2010 at 7:30AM Remember that person who made the really brave step and entered rehab? Whose friends and family have been struggling to be strong and hopeful for the past week while maintaining a certain amount of privacy for the person?
That person's insurance company has decided they only need out-patient treatment and have effectively ended their in-patient treatment program, sending them home yesterday after a whopping 7 days of a 28 day program completed.
I am so angry about this that I could explode. Having spent nearly 10 years working in the benefits area of Human Resources, I have spent a lot of time arguing with talking to insurance companies, a lot of time seeing how their methodologies work behind the scenes, how their profit-driven business model makes decisions.
And, frankly, it disgusts me most of the time. A drug and alcohol counselor confirmed for me that what usually happens is the insurance company waits for the person to relapse and will then cover in-patient treatment for a longer period of time.
In the meantime, however, there is no regard for the friends and family who are being torn apart by what's going on, by the worry that their loved one isn't ready to be home yet, and that a relapse is possible, or maybe even inevitable, nevermind the threat the addict poses to him or herself and their community should a relapse occur. The policy is so irresponsible and selfish that it is literally making me sick to my stomach as I type this.
Why is it even feasible to start someone on a month-long program, with all the steps and stages built into that idea, and then remove them from it at day seven? It's like handing someone a bowl of raw eggs and saying, "Here, I made you a cake." Except raw eggs are only a component of a cake and when eaten on their own, dangerous.
None of us fully know where this person's head is at, which is the most frustrating and worrisome part. They aren't happy to be home, which is a sign unto itself. They wanted to complete treatment and their family was looking forward to being a part of the process.
But now, they all have to face this before they're ready. They thought they had weeks to work through more of the ideas and issues. Yes, there will be out-patient treatment, but it won't be the same.
I'm glad the person did at least get those seven days of treatment, though. A medically supervised detox was possible and the groundwork was laid for truly successful treatment and rehabilitation. Let's just hope that groundwork is enough to sustain the work ahead.
Reader Comments (1)
unfrickinbelievable! fingers crossed that the seven days will be helpful in turning this person's life around. nothing like getting the rug pulled out from underneath you!