Thursday, September 10, 2009

Idea for an article to write. Yes, I will totally file plagerism on your ass if you take my ideas - Copyright ME and FOREVER.

Can you tell I have been having a really bad day? Anyhooo...

The American Health Care System aka "Don't worry about it - We'll take it out of your Ass Later."

In May, I lost my MIL after her third bout of cancer. Don't worry, this isn't going to be yet another article on socialized medicine, the failures of the American Health Care system, problems with EPA policies or Champion International Paper selling Walmart supplies while letting an entire town die of cancer. Those are old tap dances with the devil. This morning, I'm thinking of a probate consultation with a perfectly lovely gentleman lawyer about cash-ish and what happens if you don't have any.

I still haven't figured out how any of this is my responsibility, or why I'm determinedly dog paddling across the deep end. Moving on...

I was there because a disabled veteran over a certain age shouldn't pay taxes on the land that he lives on. Stand firmly on that fact because shit is about to get really wierd...

He can be a squatter on land that isn't in his name because he's lived there for so many years. If he stays -as a squatter - he owes the full amount of taxes.

A reasonable person would say, "He lived there with his spouse and she owned the land - so it's his." NO. That's not how our current model of HEALTH CARE paid for by TAXES, but not socialized is all about.

When the spouse dies, the power of attorney that is given to take care of business expires. Any changes have to go thru probate court. Probate court will cost around $1500 to file -- to get out of $700 per year of taxes. Ok then, bad math -- that shouldn't be logical, but as he says, "So, there ya go."

During probate court, it will come out that the credit card companies can file claims about paying for the hotel rooms he stayed in while she was dying. All of the companies from Better Home and Gardens to the truely evil Capital One will come in and say, "She owes us money." Each claim drives the costs of probate court higher. In case I didn't say this strongly enough, credit cards are entirely EVIL, and Capital One is a raging demon with a pitchfork in one hand and a raging hard on in the other that will... eh, let's not finish that thought. I'll go on record and say that the highest three levels of Capital One should be lined up for a firing squad, with the top execs shot in the left testicle and then drawn and quartered. I'd pay... Nah, I'd chain the tractors to their legs myself and I don't even have an account with them.

Back to the ranch, or lack of ranchhouse. I still haven't explained why the system paid for by our tax dollars is actually entirely capitalist instead of socialist. I'm actually intimidated to total up the cost of surviving 3 bouts of 3 different cancers. You see, my MIL actually made too much money to get any help. And, the St Regis Paper company is entire defunct. They aren't there to pay for what their poison did to her. Champion/International/whatever they call themselves this week bought the "cleaned up Superfund site" as a way to get out of paying taxes. (dum, dum-dum, dum, dumb) They are currently arguing in court that it is perfectly reasonable for a genetically healthy, non-smoking person to have 2 different forms of breast cancer, and then ovarian cancer. And, sorry, you can't get insurance and you can't get help because you work part time at the Cass Lake Times at barely a quarter over minimum wage. For the sake of clarity, bills from the first cancer, bill from the second cancer, total mastectomy, checks where the doctor feels entirely free to say things like "It's your fault that you're fat", and the big plastic catheter in the chest. This third round, I've seen one bill for over $300,000 and one for just a few hundred dollars from the anesthesia service, nursing service, and, and, and... She's been squeezed to get blood from a stone for decades, this article is a way to tell all of them to try to chip gold out of the headstone, ya'll. Good luck with that.

But, the saga isn't over with death. Nope, that just isn't how America works. When she could finally put life on credit cards because she wasn't working all; when she could finally get help from the NOT-SOCIALIZED taxpayer funded health care - it only created more problems. You see, the state of Minnesota won't try to throw our squatter FIL out of his wife's house. The normal vulture creditors have 3 years to put all of this into probate. Discover card actually asked, "Are there any assets?" "Do you want the 10 year old tv?" and "Was there an insurance policy?" I actually laughed in that poor woman's face. "Yup, $1000 and already spent $1800 for a small service cremation and funeral." Pretty sure Discover gave up calling, Citibank and Capital One are still harassing our squatter.

The lawyer flat out told us that the state has a perfectly reasonable claim to try to get the Medical Assistance funding back out of her "estate". So, if FIL falls down the stairs or keels over laughing at Rush Limbaugh - the state gets everything. The only reward that I get for helping our squatter is that feeling of do-good-ed-ness, the craft paint, and the Lane Bryant clothes. There's no question of inheritance. You may as well call our taxpayer funded - NOT SOCIALIZED - health care system the "Estate Tax for po' jackpine savages" or "We'll take it out of your ass later" policy.

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