But my medicaid won't pay for it....

[PaulY]

Yes, you do sound unhappy these days!

I'm a bit unhappy myself... mainly because I just got back this afternoon from having a root canal done ($875), and tomorrow morning I have to schedule getting the tooth crowned (another $900). This is after I paid $600 just 3 weeks ago for my dentist to do a filling on the same tooth, which apparently aggravated the nerve/root, or whatever.

And I don't have any dental insurance!!!

Anyway, your post got me to thinking that maybe I can get some of this Medicaid stuff, to go with my "designer" Wrangler jeans, of course, and the make-up I'm wearing today (to cover up my swollen jaw from the root canal).

So, I go to the Pennsylvania State Medicaid Assistance website to see what, if any assistance I might be qualified for. (Of course I have to have a computer to do this, but I don't have to tell them about the new $3,000 laptop I just got as a Christmas present).

They're mainly interested in my resources (such as my now depleted bank account after I paid the dentist) and my income levels, to qualify for the various Gummitt assistance programs.

I can own one vehicle without negatively impacting my elegibility, and I assume my wife can own another one also, which she does. Both our vehicles are new, but they don't ask for make, model year, etc. so I don't tell them.

They ask how much rent I pay, and I tell them that I pay approximately $2,000 per month, which is the honest truth. They don't seem interested to know that this rent is for the winter months that my wife and I spend for our condo soaking up the sun on south Florida beaches.

I tell them my total monthly pension and social security income, and the fact that I've already got medical insurance (which I'm able to purchase from my former employer - but they don't seem to care where I got it and how much it costs).

When I provide all the info they ask for, they imediately tell me that both my wife and I qualify for medical assistance! EUREKA!!!

With that knowledge in hand, I'll just have to see if I can get them to pay the cost of my next eye exam, and that new pair of Smith Optics polarized sunglasses I've been yearning for. They're real Glare Killers in South Florida, and I'm thinking the tortoise frame would look nice with that European handbag (another Christmas gift, understand).

John

You cannot be serious about this post, can you? In another post you were bragging about your early (age 55) retirement, chasing trout in Montana and now you are whining and expecting the taxpayers of your state to subsidize your medical expenses. What did your last fly rod cost you? Did Pennsylvania Medicaid foot the bill? Should they?

I just paid $2000 out of my own pocket for a root canal/crown. And I had to arrange 2 dental appointments around my work schedule. It took three weeks to get the work done because unlike some in this country, I have to work for a very comfortable living and I am proud of it.

You won't find any sympathy here.