Next in the continuing saga of a world gone bureaucratic …

""Anyone who has wandered posts on this blog (or my other exploration of a world gone insane), might notice that I have an arch nemesis. This bit o’ evil in the world is by no means my enemy alone, but I find myself with a visceral need to combat this menace at every turn, though sadly I usually lose the battles.

I speak of … shudder – even the name causes pain in the unwary … that vilest of human inventions …

BUREAUCRACY.

Yep, the demon is back in my life to do what it can to waste my already weakened psyche.

By battle resume is a long one. The longest standing battle is with that demon of the bureaucratic hord known variously as the D.M.V., the M.V.D, and the D.P.S., to mention a few of its aliases. I have long since admitted to defeat from this particular demon, and manage to avoid interaction with it by the simple trick of removing it from my life. The next demon … known as Verizon … I have a modicum of success against. But sadly, in the most recent battles it seems I am once again losing ground quickly.

The current evil beastie is known as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services (as can be seen by the name alone a creature of horror). Said beastie doing its best to invade the whole nation. I have mentioned once or twice previous battles with this monster, but it seems it is not done with me yet.

Having learned the hard way that yearly sacrifices (affectionately known as filling out forms)  are needed for this particular creature, I made sure to do everything correctly and quickly this year. And for a brief moment it seemed we had a truce going. But suddenly I get a letter saying that the demon had basically randomly changed its mind about things, that my last sacrifice is completely meaningless, and that I might need to say goodbye to the wonderful doctors that I am so close with now (after meeting them only twice in two years).

""

But here’s what really makes me laugh. They sent me my new insurance card for MassHealth, the new holder of my chains, which very distinctly says to "Carry  this MassHealth card at all times". OK. Makes sense. But right below that clear statement is and equally clear statement that says: "This card does not guarantee MassHealth eligibility."

So to clarify: You are no longer eligible for your old insurance, We have deemed you eligible for MassHealth, because we feel like it. We have sent you this card to prove you are a MassHealth member, but the card does not actually guarantee that you are eligible to be a MassHealth member even though we say you are eligible to be a MassHealth member because we feel like it.

Or to clarify the clarification: You may or may not have your mandatory health insurance. I think.

Long live the bureaucracy!!