Re: WTF? Bill for tobacco counselling? (sorta longish)

Freekin' unreal. Time to switch doctors. There are too many out there that
its not worth dealing with a bozo.
--
Rick Piatt
Smoking Pipes since 1997





"Bill Burney" <bburney@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:WBMJf.24242$no3.14857@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
I make it a rule not to post when I'm upset. It usually leads to
embarrassment. Today I'm breaking my rule.

I got a bill today from my doctor's office for $23.50. I apparently
incurred the charges back in December when I went in for a checkup.
Now, the way this is supposed to work is: I go to the counter and pay
my $20 (the insurance copay), I see the doctor (Dr. Creepy - don't get
me started on him) and at some point he tells me that he wants me to
lose weight and get a stress test. Then he says, "Are you still smoking
a pipe?" to which I reply, "Yes" and he asks "Can we talk you into
quitting?" to which I reply either "No" or "You can try, but you'll just
be wasting your time and mine."

Several years ago, on my first visit to Dr. Creepy, we settled this
argument. I told him that I had done my studying, I knew the risks and
I had decided to continue to smoke my pipe and I would let him know if I
decided to quit. And that pretty much brought the discussion to a halt.

Back to the bill. There is a copay (which I paid) and the rest of the
charges are supposed to be paid by the insurance company, as long as the
service is covered. So, what was the $23.50 for? Looking over the
bill, there are two charges: one for the checkup, and one for "Tobacco
Counselling" in the amount of $23.50. It appears that such charges are
not covered by my insurance. I'm shocked!

Tobacco counseling seems to be a lucrative line of work. Two questions,
less than a minute, that works out to about $1400/hr. Yeah, I could do
that.

"You smoke?"
"Yep."
"Wanna quit"
"Nope."
"Okay, that'll be $23.50."

I guess I'll have to wait until Monday, but I'm gonna cloud up and rain
on somebody, starting with the insurance company. Maybe I can get them
to slap Dr. Creepy around for me.

Bill "insurance: the unholy marriage of lawyers and accountants" Burney


.

Relevant Pages

  • Re: WTF? Bill for tobacco counselling? (sorta longish)
    ... I got a bill today from my doctor's office for $23.50. ... incurred the charges back in December when I went in for a checkup. ... Several years ago, on my first visit to Dr. Creepy, we settled this ... charges are supposed to be paid by the insurance company, ...
    (alt.smokers.pipes)
  • Re: WTF? Bill for tobacco counselling? (sorta longish)
    ... I got a bill today from my doctor's office for $23.50. ... incurred the charges back in December when I went in for a checkup. ... charges are supposed to be paid by the insurance company, ... Tobacco counseling seems to be a lucrative line of work. ...
    (alt.smokers.pipes)
  • Re: WTF? Bill for tobacco counselling? (sorta longish)
    ... I got a bill today from my doctor's office for $23.50. ... incurred the charges back in December when I went in for a checkup. ... charges are supposed to be paid by the insurance company, ... Tobacco counseling seems to be a lucrative line of work. ...
    (alt.smokers.pipes)
  • Re: WTF? Bill for tobacco counselling? (sorta longish)
    ... ask him if he would like to start smoking a pipe. ... I got a bill today from my doctor's office for $23.50. ... incurred the charges back in December when I went in for a checkup. ... charges are supposed to be paid by the insurance company, ...
    (alt.smokers.pipes)
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