MEDICARE-D, NOT AS IT WAS INTENDED
Wed., May 22, 08:30 PM
Way back in 2006, I wrote about Medicare-D, a wonderful concept administered — in some cases — by very incompetent customer service. Certainly it was to be hoped that it was a temporary inefficiency, caused by the rush of people signing up for the first time. Don’t bet on it; other people had worse experiences.
In any case, I have been a client for seven years. It is good enough. However, I removed my husband from that company; I signed him up with a different one, because they kept getting confused by our similar names.
Over the years I have occasionally gone into the “coverage gap,” but now I use only four generic prescriptions. They make money from my account, because I pay my co-pays and they pay nothing. I have never used the payment coupons or Electronic Funds Transmission, because I pay online through my bank’s website. It had been working quite well.
In April I received notice that I “was in arrears” for two months. So, on April 19, I sent a letter, enclosing theirs for reference, giving them the record of my payments, starting from December (the January 2013 payment). Basically, it was “here is my procedure, here is my record, phone me if you want clarification.”
On Saturday, May 4, I received another letter. Phones not available till Monday. I phoned Monday morning, talked to a rep named Keenan who was about as clueless as anyone I have spoken to at this provider. He kept calling me “Sherry” until I repeated my name loudly.
Keenan knew nothing about my previous letter, just said they had no payments. I explained that perhaps they had changed their method of processing payments; he said that through January 31, 2013, I had paid with a check and a payment coupon. I believe he was upset because I wouldn’t let him finish reading his prepared responses; heaven forbid that he should listen to me.
He told me I had never set up online payments, and I explained — again — that I don’t use the EFT option and I never used the coupons. I suggested that if he couldn’t help, he should call someone who could. I also told him I would look into changing providers, because they are so inefficient.
Then I called the bank. The first rep I talked to realized that it was beyond her capabilities and transferred me to online banking, where I found absolution. There are records of the payments having been sent and cashed. I received copies of those checks — front and back — in the mail and forwarded them to AARP, certified. My cover letter pointed out that (1) the account number appears on the front of the checks and (2) the backs may tell them why the checks were cashed but not credited. I also made sure to mention that “Keenan” offered very poor service.
Everything the bank suggested I had already done: verified the pay address and account number. I canceled future payments. “Don’t think I don’t know about computers, just because I’m over sixty-five. I’ve been doing this since 1985.”
According to the Postal Service, my letter was received the morning of May 16. If I didn’t hear from a supervisor by the time I received the signature card, I would be on the phone again.
The bank was wonderful, the antithesis of the payee. In seven years, AARP has not advanced one bit. Its political agenda is helpful, but its customer service stinks.
Six days later, I took a deep breath and phoned them. And then hung up because they had switched me to español, and redialed. I insisted that I needed a supervisor. Even that was a struggle.
“I’m sure I can take care of this for you.” He cannot, for it is an ongoing problem. “Do you have access to my previous correspondence? Are you willing to take personal responsibility for nonpayment?” He got me the supervisor.
The supervisor was able to find the correction; the missing payments had been credited to my account. He could not see the letters, however, and it took him some time to ascertain what had happened. (Although only one phone number is offered, there is a difference between the payment department and customer service. Neither, of course, will take responsibility for the other.) It seems that my Medicare-D account number is my AARP membership number; the checks were applied to my AARP account. “Are you telling me that you are no longer able to process my payments as you did before?” He doesn’t know. I informed him that I expect confirmation in writing before I pay for June. “Ten business days…” Fine; I shall wait, and they have been warned that the payment will be late. Maybe I can add Medicare-Rx to the account number.
The saddest part of this whole business is that I have given them nearly $200 this year, and they have not paid one cent toward my prescriptions. Why keep the account? As long as I have a Medicare-D account, my co-pay stays low — very low. Without it, I would have paid more out of pocket than I have already. But I have every intention of shopping for a better carrier. How can a company say it provides a service without a clue of what that service is?
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