Greener Grass

Often I have heard comments about people on SSI, SSDI, or other forms of social welfare support that boil down to, "It must be nice to not have to work." Lately I've been schooled in why that's anything but the case. The greener grass is actually concrete covered with green paint. Or maybe it's a green, slimy pit of quick sand.

Reading this entry, you are probably going to become bored and/or confused. Since this is simply a condensed version of my "greener grass," you might want to give some thought as to whether or not it is a kind of green you wish to envy.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) made a mistake whereby they noted my bank accounts multiple times making it seem like I had more than the $2000 I'm allowed to have in assets. And, yes, I can't have more than that or I lose my SSI and good health insurance.

I invested effort in resolving this to the tune of seven letters, about seven hours in the SSA waiting room, and hours organizing materials. It took that just to get someone to delete a few bank accounts from the system. It also cost me the $50.00 they garnered from my benefits while I took the six weeks to get them to correct their error.

Now to the second SSA problem. I have a life insurance policy that I recently discovered had a cash surrender value SSA counts as an asset meaning it is considered a part of the $2000.00 maximum I'm allowed to have. This meant I was over that maximum and had to spend about $1300.00 in less than thirty days and it could only be on certain types of purchases. It was a major pain in the neck, took hours to do, and required help from various friends to accomplish. Last week I discovered all that was unnecessary because I consider the life insurance policy to be for my burial expenses. So now my savings account is very small making me nervous and it didn't have to be this way.

Then there's my prescription drug coverage. I was told my antidepressant would no longer be covered in the name brand version. Since I have a bad reaction to the generic, I called my drug plan to ask some questions. I was told the 100mg and 200mg versions would be covered in name brand, but not the 150mg tablet I needed to constitute my 350mg dose. To me, it seemed like a no-brainer to get them to cover my dose as well.

I warned my doctor's office about this in December and they chose to wait until I needed the medication. Now they are having trouble getting authorization. In trying to sort that out, I discovered I had been misinformed about 200mg and 100mg tablets being covered. *bangs head against wall*

In the meantime, I have a transitional override to get my meds. Sounds simple, but somehow the pharmacy who could do my insurance in December can no longer accomplish the same feat. The computer "rolls over" at the first of the year and has dropped a byte throwing a wrench into the works. I discovered this after waiting forty-five minutes at my pharmacy.

A couple of phone calls and an hour later unearthed the factoid eaten by the computer: my father is retired. Yes, it was that simple yet impossible to figure out.

Believe it or not, I actually have an easier situation than many because blind people are often protected in ways other disabled people do not enjoy. My grass might be a slimy, green pit of quick sand, but theirs is inhabited by leeches and jellyfish.

Worrying about money these days seems to be a universal, but there are degrees. Some are concerned about how to pay for their car, house, and vacation. Others fear not being able to make rent, eat out, or buy a friend a birthday gift. Still others worry about affording adequate health care and food at the same time.

Next time you think someone's grass funded by social welfare is more lush and verdant than yours, consider what costs come with such luxuries. I guess if you love jumping through hoops and using a machete on red tape it will be right up your alley.