1.  Chase Bank

Yes, I hated Chase Bank. Yes, I said they raped me because of the credit limit and interest rate slam. But that was yesterday and all I can do is move forward. I am still paying the monthly payments that were set up as part of the Hardship Program and even added the other Chase card to the program as well. The card was already closed and it doesn’t affect my credit score negatively; in fact if you’re having problems paying your bill I would actually recommend a Hardship Program. It lowered my interest and payments and the balance owing on the second card was actually lowered as well.  So although we’re not dating, we’re at least friends. Not BFF’s but at least I don’t break out into a rash when I think of them.

2. Canceling Satellite

I still think canceling Dish Network was a great decision. I’ve saved $70 a month for quite a while now (almost a year) and have lived just fine on DVDs. I will admit that once in a while when at my parents’ house or a someone else’s normal homes, I do miss cable television shows. Never enough to add it back though and pay the monthly fees.

3. Canceling the Land Line

What land line. I’m about to throw away the land line phone actually because I don’t ever plan on having one again. Saved at least $30 a month and this I can say I don’t miss it at all. In fact, I will go as far as saying that I think land lines in homes will become a thing of the past. Cell phones are more than capable of handling phone needs. It almost doesn’t make sense to have a phone at home AND a cell phone. I never did try a pay as you go phone, which would probably be cheaper, but since getting the iPhone I’ve become way too reliant on it to change anything.

4. Savings

I am still adding money every month to my savings account with ING. Ever since they had that contest that I didn’t win and I signed up for the automatic monthly transfer, the savings has been growing. Let me tell you, even though I forget about it, when I do think about that savings account it feels good. Knowing that you are saving instead of wishing you would each month is almost as awesome as finding free money. Almost but not really.

5. Debt

Things are getting paid off so I can see a light at the end of the financial tunnel. My medical bills are almost paid down as well as the dental bill (after setting up payment arrangements and asking for discounts). My credit cards need more work but I’m paying those down as well. Nothing is in collections and nothing has late payments so my credit score is well on its way back up.

Other News

I bought a pair of tall BearPaw boots. Kind of a cheaper version of the Uggs that I wanted, but now that I have them I don’t even want Uggs. These BearPaw boots are awesome and comfy and the warmest boots I’ve ever had. I can wear them with leggings and not freeze to death even though I live in American Siberia. I’m considering getting some for my daughter also.

I’m back in school to finish a couple degrees. I need to not only reduce my debt, but I need to make more money as well and furthering my education can only help. I know what you’re thinking. School loans are going to bring me back down into a black hole in a few years. I plan on having everything in order by then though so all I have to focus on is the school loans. I’m confident it’ll be okay.

Am I still bankrupt? I pay my bills, I feed my child, I’m happy, she’s happy. Yeah, I am kind of still bankrupt but I really can’t complain. It’s getting better for us and it’ll get better for you.

Really.

So What Have I Learned About Medical Bills?

There are some important things I have learned about paying down medical bills which made it easier and faster to take care of.

1.  Contact the Medical Facilities:  Let them know that you will be paying your bills. Don’t wait until they send them to collections to try to figure something out. Most everyone I have spoken with regarding medical bills has been very understanding and actually friendly.

2.  Ask About Hardship Programs:  One of my bills was cut from thousands to hundreds by qualifying for a program with the hospital that had something to do with charity. If you ask the facility if they have any hardship programs like this, you may get lucky and have your bill cut drastically.

3.  Set Up Payment Arrangements:  If you deal with the medical facility they will set up a payment plan with you that you can afford. You can also have it automatically debited each month from your bank account usually which worked out well for me. Keep track of the statements though so you know when you can have it paid off.

4.  Don’t Kill Yourself Paying Medical Bills:  My coworker and I talk about this all the time. She has 3 kids so she pretty much has indefinite medical bills with the clinic. Set up payment arrangements that fit your budget and don’t kill or starve yourself trying to pay them off. There will almost always be medical bills, unless you’re lucky enough to never ever have an illness, rash, cough, or anything broken. Your chances are less likely if you have children, by the way.

5. Do Make Sure You Pay Your Medical Bills:  On the other hand, don’t ignore your medical bills. After all, you did receive a service and you do owe for that service no matter how outlandish the bill is. You also do not want your bill to be turned over to collections and placed on your credit report, nor do you want to have problems with the facility if you need them in the future.

In short, it is possible to keep up with the medical bills. I realize there are instances and serious illnesses that cause them to get out of hand for some, but if they are manageable you can certainly work it out. It may take a while, but it isn’t impossible.

You know it isn’t a statement because it isn’t thick with ads and miscellaneous sheets of paper. You suspect it’s notifying you of change that is most likely unfavorable (to you). In the last year, I have received many of these from Chase Bank, beginning with the jacked up interest rate and continuing to the decrease in limit to the “Congratulations! We’re now closing your account loser!”

Well, even though Chase Bank and I have made up, I was still afraid that somehow the mail had brought me bad news. Like maybe another credit card was going to rape me. Or maybe Chase Bank changed their mind about the hardship plan I had set up with them.

Fortunately, the letter began with “We have good news for you!” So I have to thank Chase Bank for reversing the heart attack that the envelope had initially inspired. In their words:

…Your recent payments have qualified your credit card account for our Reage Program and it’s no longer past due. As long as you pay the minimum due each month on your current balance, you will enjoy these benefits:

• no late fees;
• updated credit record to reflect your account is in good standing; and
• no collection calls…

First of all, whoever wrote that form letter was pretty much a genius. The way that it is worded kind of made me wonder if I had actually won something.

So What is the Reage Program?

Since I was pretty sure I hadn’t won anything, (they love me and we made up, but we didn’t actually get married) I decided to go forth and figure out what exactly the good news is about Chase Bank’s Reage Program.

First of all there is a difference between a reaged program like the one with Chase Bank, and the other, which is when people refer to collection agencies “reaging” an account to change the initial delinquency date so the statute of limitations on collection doesn’t run out. If a collection agency does this, it is a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act and should be handled completely differently (for starters, congratulations wouldn’t be nearly as appropriate a greeting).

The Reage Program with Chase Bank (or any other credit card company) however, simply means that they will remove the negative history and give you a clean entry on the credit report. In most instances, the account will be removed from the “adverse account” list and noted as “closed by consumer” which of course is better than “closed by credit grantor”. Unfortunately, it will not wipe off any previous late payments, but who can expect that? If your payment was late it was late.

So, it may actually seem like a minor change to an account that I’ve been tussling with for the last year, but it’s good to know it’s being resolved, and in not such a negative manner.

I will check my credit reports next month and let you know exactly how everything turned out.

On another note, regarding the dental bill I was bracing myself for, I did find out that my daughter’s medical insurance includes dental which will cover a lot of the expenses. I use the term “a lot” even though I have no clue, but going from anticipating full payment from my pocket, to whatever the insurance pays, to me is a lot. I couldn’t be more grateful.

“Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We keep moving forward, opening up new doors and doing new things… and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.”
–Walt Disney

Have a great weekend, everyone!

I will not keep you in suspense any longer, it is the cost of caring for teeth. Dental expenses. And I just found out that this necessity will cost around $500 for my daughter, plus cleanings and whatever else is added on. I’m guessing about $800 for both of us.

<sigh> Why can’t I just be the parent that says we’ll wait til the teeth fall out?

Here is why:

1.  Teeth Matter. When you are 6 and your teeth are jacked up, I’m guessing it has a long term effect on your self esteem. I don’t want to be responsible for that.

2.  Teeth Matter. We have teeth for the sole purpose of breaking down large chunks of meat and things and having rotten teeth or less than adequately performing teeth I’m sure affect that process negatively.

So, my only choice is to set up a payment plan and pay the dentist. I have to admit in comparison to my medical bills (which I am close to paying off) the dental bill is pennies. I was just crossing my fingers and hoping that we would never ever need to go to the doctor again for the rest of our lives, thus never ever incurring anymore medical bills.

I forgot about teeth though. Okay, I didn’t really forget. When those two teeth on the bottom came out and new ones grew in slightly crooked, all I could think about for days was the future cost of braces. But that’s way in the future, I figured by then I would win the lottery and wouldn’t have a problem torturing my daughter with braces. I did not anticipate a big dental bill already.

##

My teeth were oddly crooked when I was younger. My parents paid for braces. Actually, I had every piece of equipment for teeth that was invented at the time. Headgear, rubberbands, retainer, braces. All of it. I may have been a short step from that process where they just knock out all of your teeth and replace them with wood or plastic. Luckily though, my parents paid the thousands that were required back then for nice teeth. It does matter, by the way. And to them I am grateful.

##

I am not complaining. Not really. I just wish there were a list of expenses for children and I wish I had planned for those expenses 10 years ago. I’d have plenty by now for unexpected expenses. Just in case, I better start saving for those braces…

My biggest problem, of course was keeping track of everything. I’m eternally wondering if I’ve paid something, if I forgot to pay something or if I’m going to forget to pay something. Unfortunately, not paying or paying late isn’t an option for me on the medical bills, because this could result in voiding the payment plans or discount I’ve received on the bills. I definitely can’t afford to let that happen.

Tips for Keeping Payments Organized

Keep a Calendar: Whether online or printed, a calendar with big enough spaces to write when things need to be paid helps out a lot. I prefer printed calendars, and for a while even used just printed pages of each month of simple Word program calendar pages. Now I’m trying out a small monthly pocket calendar, but I think the daily spaces are too small for the things I need to keep track of.

Keep a Notebook: Even if you happen to be uber organized and file your statements religiously in the appropriately tabbed folders, it is still nice to have a notebook with account numbers for utilities, phone numbers, and other contact information. I wrote everything down in a small notebook that I carry with me today, while on the phone with each facility. Let’s face it, we aren’t always at home next to the filing cabinet when we need that information.

Keep Envelopes and Stamps Handy: This may seem strange because almost everything is accessible online now. Who still needs envelopes and stamps? I do, that’s who. I have one bill that does not accept payments online or over the phone and for this reason gets forgotten quite often. It does help to have the supplies I need right with me so I can write out the check and send it out while I’m sitting in the car or at work. My electric bill, for example does accept online payments but costs I think 3.95 to pay that way, which I won’t do. Paying online is convenient and nice, but I won’t pay anything extra for it. So, that bill has to be mailed in as well.

With all of the iPhone apps available, I’m sure there are pretty cool apps that can probably handle all three of these tips. I happen to not have an iPhone yet, though it’s at the top of my list of things I absolutely, really want and will starve for. There are also a number of computer programs that will regulate everything for you, but I don’t always have access to my computer. This, my friends, is why I carry around such a big bag (dubbed my “suitcase”) by many that know me. I need everything in that bag. Okay, maybe not the empty gum wrappers and Barbie sunglasses, but this is how I remember and keep track of my bills.

What do you do to help keep your bills organized? (And don’t worry if you’re using a method from the 90s, I’m still dragging around notebooks and stuff…)

And then I hit the lottery…

Not really the lottery, but I did find out recently that I qualified for 60% off of the actual hospital bills through some kind of charity program they have. I had called to set up my payment arrangement and was told about the program. After they sent me a form, all I needed to do was fill it out and attach copies of check stubs. To tell you the truth, I wasn’t expecting to qualify for so much. I was pretty surprised when I got the letter. Of course, that only applies to the bills at the hospital, it doesn’t apply to the labs or other clinics and testing and whatever else. I honestly couldn’t tell you all of the places I owe money to because of one surgery. Still, I couldn’t have asked for more from the hospital, well except for just downright free service, but that isn’t fair either.

I am but a hamster on the medical bill wheel of life…

My friend at work and I joke about the medical bill cycle all the time. She has three kids, so between their annual visits and checkups as well as hers and her husbands, she figures that they’ll always just have a bill at the clinic for the rest of their lives. I can relate to this completely, as soon as you’re almost paid off, you get sick or need some other kind of surgery.

Next year will be better…

I think I said this last year, not sure but I feel like I’ve had everything checked and worked on this year that could possibly be worked on. I don’t think I’ll have any reason whatsoever to be in a hospital, or test for so 2010 should mean a lot less medical bills, right? Like I said…I think I said that last year.

I guess what I’m figuring out is life is life. I’ve learned to live with the fact that I’ll have these perpetual medical bills. I do what I can, work out the payments that can be worked out and sometimes I even get a little lucky and get 60% deducted. The day I post something like “Woo hoo all medical bills are paid in full,” or “Yeehaw, I don’t owe a soul for anything medical,” well that’s the day someone better check on me. I’m either lying or I’ve bumped my head…and need to go to the hospital…

So, I paid $30 for my copay and $20 on the bill. I move down the hall to the lab, get my blood drawn, and am told “okay, you’re all done.”

“What? That’s it? Am I supposed to have an actual appointment or something?”

I went back to the checkin area to find out if I was actually done. She pulled up her screen and said, “Yep, that’s it for today.”

Wow. Do you mean to tell me I just paid a $30 copay for that? And $20 on a bill I could’ve ignored longer. Plus I’ll have a bill from the lab. Hell no. Someone is going to see me, diagnose something, take my blood pressure, or weigh me.

Of course I imagined starting a riot in the waiting area. My inner self is actually the Incredible Hulk. Outer self just kind of pouts and leaves in a daze to ponder how a person can ever survive with medical bills. There are no coupons for blood tests, no buy one blood test get one free, no shopping around for a cheaper blood test. There isn’t even a season where medical bills are cheaper. If you’re sick or have an illness, you either stay sick, die or pay the medical bills.

What is even sadder for me, though is that I actually have insurance. Maybe it isn’t the greatest because I don’t feel like it pays anything, but I’m sure if I didn’t have it I’d be in even more of a mess. For that I am grateful. There are some budget battles that you just can’t fight. Guess medical expenses are one of them.

Look over your bill as soon as you receive it to make sure there are no errors or extra charges. Fortunately, I’ve never found any errors on any of my medical bills. Unfortunately, the amount I’m responsible for has always been correct (would be nice to be able to decrease the bill with an error).

Organize the medical bills. In the past, I became overwhelmed with statements from different clinics and different divisions of the same clinic. I may receive a bill from the lab and one from the clinic and one from anywhere else that provided anything, even though it was all the same appointment. I know, silly that I didn’t expect that, but I ran into problems wondering which bills I paid and which ones I didn’t.

Spreadsheets are effective if you manage bills and things that way. Otherwise just different folders with the name of the provider or clinic is just as simple. This way you can keep receipts, phone numbers, account numbers, and a record of payments and appointments. I mention keeping receipts as well as mileage records because sometimes medical expenses are tax deductible. Check with your accountant at tax time but in the meantime have all of the information just in case. Plus it’s just good to know when and what you’re paying.

Make sure the amount you’re responsible for is correct and that any insurance you may have has already been applied.

If you can’t pay the entire bill, call the medical facility and set up a payment plan immediately. Not only does this prevent interest and late fees (if you stick to the payment plan), you may find out another discount is available.

For instance, a couple years ago I called to set up a payment plan and was told that I may qualify for a hardship program. All I had to do was fill out a form and send in a check stub. I didn’t think I would qualify because honestly, it seemed the equivalent to winning the lottery. To my surprise though I did and my bill for that particular medical facility was decreased by almost 60%. It never hurts to ask and you will probably not be told about any such program unless you specifically ask.

I suggest setting up the immediate payment plan even if you don’t qualify for any discounts though to save money on the bill. I am also a huge fan of direct debit or automatic payments just to make sure I don’t miss one. Sometimes the entire payment plan will be cancelled if you miss a payment.

These are the main suggestions, if I think of anything else that may be useful I’ll post it. Right now I have to sleep off some of this medication. The grogginess and sleepiness has caused me to have a completely unproductive day. I’d say that deserves a discount, right?