Thursday, September 11, 2008

And That's the Tooth!

I was supposed to get my wisdom teeth taken out this morning, but due to a family emergency on the oral surgeon's part, it got canceled.

And that ain't good.

We're getting laid off around the end of the month, and that means an end to my insurance. There's no way I can afford this surgery without coverage, so I really wanted to get these bastards removed in September.

I just called the dentist office, asked if I could maybe get an earlier date with the other surgeon, and they said it can be done on October 1st... which is the alleged day of the layoffs.

So it'll be tricky, tricky, tricky, timing-wise... I hope I can pull it off.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I thought our health insurance is going to hold up for the duration of our severance package, right?

That should last at least into November.

. said...

That's what they said, but I've learned not to bank on any severance until the check has been deposited.

sandybadlands said...

When we became staff, I believe they said our vacation days started accruing in January. At my exit interview, he said they started on our first day as staff. So I wouldn't be surprised if health coverage stops on layoff day, since that's what it says on the benefits website.

Lynn said...

Usually health coverage stops once you're laid off (or within that month, since you pay by the month.)

You can then do COBRA, which might be slightly cheaper than buying your own insurance.

Anonymous said...

Well, this is some depressing shit.

Can someone please tell me what the deal is with COBRA, about which I know nothing?

But I could've sworn that whoever said our health benefits would last through severance (Darren? Chris?) seemed pretty sure about it. I dunno.

Jesus, I HOPE it lasts.

sandybadlands said...

Yeah, Darren did seem sure...but so did that website.

I have the information about COBRA in my exit packet. Basically, we have the same insurance, but we pay for all of it ourselves. We can participate for up to 18 months after termination. The good part is that we can elect to continue with COBRA at any point within 44 days of termination and it's retroactive to the termination date. The bad part is that it's real expensive ($468 a month in my case).

. said...

Yeah, COBRA is generally expensive, and is only used when, like, you break a leg right after you quit your job.

My fear is that decisions about severance/benefits are more for corporate to make than Chris.

So, while he might prefer for us to have them, corporate would rather save money by saying no.

Maybe I'm pessimistic, but I'm not expecting any severance or benefits once our department shuts down.