Really, I do. And being the only girl in my family has been a real perk, let me tell you. Other than the overprotection I experienced during most of the time spent under my parents’ roof, it’s been good. Well, it was…up to a point.
There’s one thing I think most of us can agree on. The fact that there is a part of being a girl that we’d rather do without. You know what I mean. The Yearly. (Not to be confused with the delightful, The Yearling. This ain’t no deer.) But we all do it. Strip down, brace yourself, and focus intently on the ceiling tile.
A few weeks ago I had mine. Everything was good. I’m healthy as can be (maybe a little too healthy, but I’ll save that story for a few years from now). My test results came back in the mail about a week later and I was given a clean bill of health. And then I pretty much forgot about the whole thing.
Until I received a letter in the mail yesterday. It was from the doctor’s office and I have to admit that my first reaction was one of alarm. Did they detect something later? Had something during my exam raised concern? I ripped the letter open, dreading what was there.
What I found was dreadful, but not nearly as frightening as I had imagined. It was a bill. For $120.
Well, shoot. What’s that for?
I read on. In the middle of the page, underneath all the digits and totals and subtotals and claims and tax and yadayada, it said I needed to contact my insurance provider because they had refused my claim.
What on earth for? I know this exam is covered.
Right there, in small print, the reason they had denied my claim:
Elizabeth, please contact your benefits coordinator to have your correct sex listed with [insurance company].
Umm…what? The sheer ridiculousness of this request baffles me. I mean, I know that everything has to be in order, but really? I made the phone calls, found the hiccup, and got everything changed in about 15 minutes.
The part that really gets me though is the fact that this is the one exam that the doctor should just be able to use her judgment on. I know they can’t but the whole this is preposterous.
I’ll end this post with the tweet I posted about the situation:
MissWisabus: Insurance denied claim 4 my well woman exam bc employr lists me as MALE. You’d think w/ front row seat in stirrup sect. the dr could verify.
No related posts.
Oklahoma girl through-and-through. Writer, aspiring domestic goddess and totalitarian dictator. Taking on the world one carb-induced coma at a time. Founder of GodlyGals, a ministry for women established in 2002. Co-host of Picture Shows & Petticoats. 
that’s pretty darn funny! I wonder what man has gone in for a prostate exam and had an opposite letter as you?
YIKES! my motto for 2010 is “This Ain’t Working!” I shall file this under Medical as “something ain’t working!!”
Because there is obviously a lot of men running around named “Elizabeth” getting those types of exams. It’s a legitimate concern.
My pharmacy thinks I’m a man. Probably because my dr listed my name as “Ronnie.” A bit disconcerting to get medical advice from someone who doesn’t even know what sex you are.
haha:) that’s so funny!!! Glad it sorted out quickly.
Yeah…we (doctors) aren’t allowed to use our critical thinking skills anymore. We just do whatever it is that the insurance companies and government tell us we should do. If we try to do anything different, we get fined, have our reimbursements withheld, and sometimes prosecuted. God bless America.