March 7th ~ Monday Moratorium

Didn't have the heart to issue this memo to occupants of this house today:  COBRA healthcare benefits have ceased, so nobody get sick.  No coughing, no sneezing. No injuries or infections... until further notice.  That's an order!  Oh, and that goes for your little dogs, too.  (Sorry we can't get your vaccines, Shaddy.)  Those with chronic medical conditions and illnesses who are currently treated and cared for by an M.D., please bear with me while I try to figure out what to do.


Today is the four month anniversary of the hubs being unemployed, and I would love nothing more that to be able to say that all is well.  Because, obviously it is not.   I've heard it said that individuals should have 3 or 4 months income saved in the event of job loss... I've even heard 3 to 4 years worth!, but how absurd is that, right?  We were fortunate enough to have had a couple of months severance to get by on.  (Did I mention it's been four months since my husband's been home looking for a job?  Yeah.. I think I did.) Do you know what the premium for health insurance alone is?  Under COBRA, for a family of five living in Colorado:  $1,653.48.  Yup.  Bet you didn't know.  Without insurance, someone like myself who has illness medically managed with prescription medication (as do four out of five in our family), basic monthly costs breakdown to this:  Office visits ~ $83.00  Rx ~ $265.31, or $4,179.72 per year total. (Time to pray for a cure for bipolar disorder, fibromyalgia, asthma, chronic fatigue, etc.)  Guess what our average monthly family household expenses added up to these last four months...?  Our monthly Cobra payment times four (not including food, fuel, non-utility bills).  To put it another way, had the need for medical insurance not been such a great priority, my family would have had cash reserve for another month, maybe month and a half.


 ~ Can't help but wonder if the hubs will finally be working again between now and mid-April?  Moot point - being as we did pay the premiums while we could and now we don't have money to pay for health insurance or anything else other than a couple weeks worth of food.  God, please help us. ~ 


So, tonight I pray:  That I feel better by tomorrow.  That those of us on prescription medication have enough until we can afford next refills.  That I be able to arrange for some of us to receive free follow-up care.  And, that our doggies stay healthy.   I ask that you pray with me for all people experiencing this very same hardship.  Peace.