Years ago, a young man was diagnosed with an aggressive but very treatable cancer. Suddenly quite ill, the drama of his illness was great. Friends and family rallied round, keeping him company 24/7 at the hospital. Meanwhile, an opened letter sat on his desk:
his insurance bill that he was planning to pay later that week.
Two weeks later his medical condition was stabilized, treatment for his cancer was underway, and he was discharged home. That's when he went to his desk and saw the unpaid bill.
"I'm sorry, Sir. Your insurance has lapsed," the insurance company told him. And it had.
He was uninsured throughout his illness and recovery.
This true story has stuck with me all these years. I'm sharing it with the hope that this man's misfortune motivates you to assign someone to check your mail if you are ever incapacitated.
Don't just say, "Yeah, you are right. I need to do that. I should do that." Please, before the sun goes down tonight, arrange for someone to check your mail and pay your bills if you are ever incapacitated.
I pay 2 bills before all others...My Mortgage and My Health Insurance Premium. When I became too sick to worry, I put both on Auto-Pay so I wouldn't have to worry. This, I highly suggest!
Peace B
Posted by: Brian (DocSwill) | January 12, 2010 at 05:13 AM
EXCELLENT suggestion. Thank you, Brian. With hope, Wendy
Posted by: Wendy S. Harpham, M.D. | January 12, 2010 at 06:15 AM
I do that with my health insurance too: it's automatically deducted from my checking account every month, so I never have to worry about missing or late payments.
Posted by: Finn | January 12, 2010 at 09:50 AM