Now that the county has ONE insurer since Unicare has folded their tent in Illinois, Blue Cross has absorbed the total base of county employees. While this looks good on paper with Blue Cross being recognized nationwide, it’s not a good deal after all. To make matters worse, the county isn’t worried about bringing in any competition any time soon either!
Case in point. There has been talk at the bargaining table about what Blue Cross does not cover. Not all hospitals in the Chicagoland area accept HMO Illinois. Did you know this? The slick television commercials and radio spots lead you believe that EVERYONE just LOVES Blue Cross. Investigation tells you this is far from the truth.
Access the Blue Cross website from the link on the right. Try and look for a doctor in your area. Next try and look for a specialty doctor. Finally look for a specialist. IE: endocrinologist, cardiologist or urologist etc. Did you find one? Did you find your own doctor? Listed under their specialty? Did you find other doctors in your area? If you did, you’re better than most! Most didn’t get past trying to locate a doctor where they live!
We have been strongly encouraging the county to self-insure itself for years now, only to have our pleas fall on deaf ears. The cry for public health care is failing in part due to misinterpretation and misrepresentation by all who oppose it. Why? So the government doesn’t get into the health care business is the claim of those opposed. The county would save more money by self-insuring, but refuses to even investigate the possibility. So having every county employee insured under the same carrier is any better? Isn’t this the county in the health care business?!? Cook County employees have ‘universal’ health care!?! And we didn’t get to keep our doctors and hospitals! Are they (county) waiting for universal health care to become legislation? They’re not modeling it well if this is a sample group!
How many of the old timers still around remember when we had the ‘original’ Blue Cross plan which let us go to ANY doctor and ANY hospital WITHOUT referrals, and it didn’t cost you a dime? Yes, times have changed and so did health care. Now before picking a provider, you have to make sure that each and everyone of your doctor’s accept and are part of that plan. Too bad we didn’t know who’s in or out before open enrollment closed. Oh wait, that would have meant communication between the county and its insurers! Oh wait, insurer. Singular. One.
The doctors haven’t been in charge of health care for a long time now. It’s a shame that accountants are calling the shots. And medical malpractice insurance is going up. There’s just not enough money in the HMO’s. If you need a primary care doctor, there’s plenty of ‘choices’. Just don’t need a ’specialist’. You can’t have the one YOU want! He’s not in the HMO! Take heart though. There’s plenty of internal medicine guys around! What’s even sadder is that the county has settled for health care insurance which isn’t top rated for its HMO! My, how times have changed.