Medicare

While, at just age 65+, am still going through puberty, I can't get over how complicated/confused the "Medicare" process is -- at least in my case.

I don't know how many "baby boomers" there are, out there, bothering about Medicare, but in all my "If you remember the sixties, you weren't there" innocence, I never thought I'd have to "pay" for Medicare.

That's no. 1.

Well, it turns out that I do. Minimum monthly payment: $104.90. Plus more for "making" over "$85.000.01" a year.

I dutifully made my payments after signing up for Medicare, Plan A and B (does one really have any choice but to do so).

And here's no. 2.

On January 27 I got a notice of "Medicare Premium Due" from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that my "total amount due" was "$1,007.40."

"Yes $1,007.40."

What? I've paid my bill!

I got on the phone about the bill, ending up with an aggressive USG employee -- she couldn't stop saying, "don't interrupt me" -- until she acknowledged that there was a mistake in the billing.

Throughout this unpleasant conversation, I could not help thinking: "What if I were in a nursing home age 95, and I suddenly got a bill for $1,007.40"?

"Will you still love me = will you still need me ..." etc.

I make the above observations for the greater good and with, quite frankly, skepticism about "ObamaCare" -- in its implementation.