Bureaucracies are terrible
John E. Peterson
Thursday, January 25, 2007
OUR BUREAUCRATIC system is marvelous. It is marvelous because it is so complex that no one can understand it enough to mess it up or steal it from us. They could not mess it up because it is already a huge mess. They could not steal it because they would not know what to do with it. Permit me to tell you why I would make such gross statements. You would, if I had my way.
For some 35 years, I have been a member of the Blue Cross medical and health insurance company. Payment has gone directly out of one of our bank accounts for all those years. For some 20 years, we have also had Medicare. Merle has been included in both health plans for all of those years.
In our mail came a letter addressed to Merle Peterson Jr. It was from Conexis in Dallas, Texas. We had never heard of it. The letter said Merle Jr., would have to fill out a form to permit a bank draft for Blue Cross payment and send in a “voided” check to show them the account.
The next day, another letter came to Merle Peterson Jr., from Conexis. This one said she had to pay $302.50 by January 1, 2007, for her direct bill payment. Two days later, a big envelope with several papers full of information and a new Blue Cross card to Merle Peterson Jr., arrived.
Wow! What is this all about? And why is it all for Merle Peterson Jr.? She is not a Jr. in any fashion. I am John Peterson Jr., but she is not. I decided I would have to do some calling and find out.
I called the number for Customer Service on the Conexis letters. Nothing but recorded voices telling me to do this and that for about 15 minutes. Then nothing at all. So I called the Blue Cross number. I did get a nice young lady and she told me I should call the State of Kansas Insurance office. She gave me the number. She also explained that Blue Cross does what the state tells them to do and the state had Conexis in Texas handle all such things for it. Wow! Now that is bureaucracy! So much so that I cannot deal with Blue Cross, even though they are my insurer.
I could not get anyone to talk with in the State of Kansas Insurance office.
So I did what I should have done at the beginning. I called a person in the Human Resources office here on the ESU campus. She was wonderful!
First, she told me that Medicare is behind most of this. It now requires that payment on health policies be separate for spouses. I still do not understand what Medicare has to do with how we pay our Blue Cross. Just part of the bureaucratic system, I guess, but we must abide by the system.
This same person in Human Resources called the State of Kansas Insurance office. She knew people there. Then she called me back and explained more things, some of which she did not actually understand the reason for either. I sent in the required things. As I write this, we are waiting for acknowledgments and a change from Merle Peterson Jr., to just Merle Peterson.
A few days later, we each received a big envelope from Nashville, TN. It was from something called SilverScript and congratulated us on being enrolled in its prescription program for Medicare. Two days after that, we each received a huge envelope from Blue Cross. This told us about the benefits of our Health Care Program. The two had nothing to do with each other. I also found out that another Texas company, Caremark, handles the prescription part of our Blue Cross. And Delta Dental does the dental part.
So we each have a pile of this stuff. As nearly as I can figure it out, it comes from about seven different companies and agencies. How are we expected to figure it all out and what do we need to do with it?
I called Human Resources a couple of more times. It was very helpful, but the people there, too, have concerns about the complexity of the entire thing.
I have found out that the price of our Blue Cross has been reduced. That, of course, is good. I have found out that equal amounts of money for both of us are now withdrawn from the bank account. I cannot say that is good, but it is not too bad. But we still have not received our new cards with proper names on them. Who will send them? And when?
So! I have had a big, recent experience with our bureaucratic system.
In my 85 years, I have watched it just get more and more complex, worse and worse. I do not understand it. Just too dumb, I guess.
There you have my rantings about our bureaucratic system. I should say bureaucracies, I think, because there are many of them. It is with us. It is part of us. We must live with it. You would do your best to do so, as will I, if I had my way.