Thank You, U.S. Congress
Thu., August 1, 11:02 AM
Money – it bothers me sometimes that I’ve been practicing all these years, and I still can’t seem to get it right. The best I can do is look at others’ problems and think “there but for the grace of God…”
I went to work when I was seventeen. I paid my own college fees and worked full time for a while so that I could afford to go to business school.
I believe I was saved from serious debt by two things. The first was the example set by my parents. They set priorities without ever saying a word, as when we were the last family in the neighborhood to get a television set, but the first to have an automatic washing machine. And they always paid for what they bought, never bought anything “on time.” As they said, if you didn’t have the money for something, you saved until you did. That way, the bank pays you interest instead of the other way around.
The second factor forming my “financial philosophy” was my eighth grade math teacher, who devoted an entire unit to banking. He taught us how to use a bank, how to open an account and make deposits, how to write checks and balance your checkbook. He explained the concept of interest and showed us how to compute it. When you realize that most people don’t encounter courses in personal finance until they’re adults – and after they’ve made some poor decisions – you have to give this teacher high grades for subject matter, even if you didn’t like his style. He was fond of walking around the classroom, shooting questions at unsuspecting students who messed up when he asked “how many yards in a foot?” He yelled at kids who weren’t paying attention. He called everyone by last name only, even the girls. And I’ve never forgotten him.
Thankfully, either Husband or I have been able to cover our health costs through employer-assisted health insurance most of our married life. When I lost my last good job, around ten years ago, the COBRA laws were in effect. I was drawing pretty good unemployment insurance, but it cost me two checks a month to pay the COBRA. So I began accepting some temporary jobs; even the "worst boss ever" paid better than unemployment. By the time the COBRA ran out, Husband was eligible for Medicare, and I just took care of myself and hoped I wouldn’t get caught.
I finally went with the temp agency I work for now in large part because they offered minimal insurance (completely self-paid, but at least I had something for an emergency). Last year I decided to leave the assignment I had worked for two years. That is perfectly acceptable when you’re working for a temporary agency. As a matter of fact, I had done well there, quietly earning their commission for them while they had minimal administrative work. However, things must be bad all over. They couldn’t place me in another spot, and they didn’t even return my phone calls. The next thing I knew, I was informed that I was going on COBRA. Then they cashed out my 401K (not that there was all that much in it). In effect, they terminated me because they couldn’t do their job. I’m still really mad about that.
Even though I am once more working with this same agency, I don’t put in enough hours to qualify for their lousy insurance, and COBRA doesn’t last forever (it’s supposed to be a bridge between jobs, I think). So I began shopping around for private health insurance. There’s plenty of low-cost private insurance around – if you don’t have diabetes. I finally asked an insurance agent for help. I have good health insurance now. It will cost me about $10,000 a year.
That’s not quite as bad as it sounds, because it will cover a lot that I’ve been paying out of pocket. And though I’m not old enough for Medicare, I am old enough to draw Social Security.
As I’ve said, I started paying into the Social Security system when I was seventeen. I have enough credits, though my payments are reduced somewhat because my thirty-five-plus years are not consecutive. Women who do the all-American, stay-at-home mom thing are penalized. Nevertheless, I can certainly collect a fairly reasonable amount. It is, however, somewhat less than $10,000. Yes, I have other savings. I will manage.
Still, Congress can't even figure out a way to help me pay for my prescriptions. Doesn’t it make you wonder why I was an honest, hard worker for all those years? It’s my own fault. I’m not smart enough to be a crook.
