I worked from home, today. During my lunch break, I went to the dentist's to pick up the document they had prepared for me. Then, I stopped at the dollar store (in the same mini mall as the dental clinic) to buy two boxes of quart sized freezer bags and, since they had a door mat that I liked for $1.50, I bought that, too, for the inside of the front door (will put it out for the almsgiving; the current door mat will do for the time being, but it is looking a bit worse for wear after being used for at least the past 3 years).
I had been dithering over which dental plan to choose before our open enrollment period ended. The plan I am on currently (a Dental HMO), has low monthly premiums, but, of course, doesn't cover a lot of treatments or minimally covers them. The PPO coverage includes better benefits, but costs 5 times as much! I was weighing the pros and cons over and over again, but, eventually made the decision to go with the PPO. It goes into effect next year. Once the decision was made, it was a matter of calling and making the change.
I continued with my paperwork after I finished my office work for the day. I spent more than the 30 minutes I had planned to do and went through another big bag of papers and tossed what could be tossed (another grocery bag full) and filed the rest. The filing wasn't done to my usual standards (by date, with most recent in front, etc.), but for now, just getting the papers in the appropriate folder is sufficient. I told myself that in this instance, it doesn't have to be perfect; "good enough" is OK. I will go through and redo the files, later, when I next file something in them. Or, at the end of the year, when I have to make new file folders for the new year.
I watched some TV while I worked on the papers and files. We didn't get any trick or treaters down our road, today. It didn't even feel like Halloween.
Today, I am grateful for:
- Rain!
- Being able to work from home
- Being able to make a decision on the dental insurance
- Having a choice of insurance in the first place
- Making progress on my backlog of paperwork
Tuesday's To Do List:
- Go to the dentist's to pick up a document - DONE
- Make a decision about choice of dental insurance - DONE
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- Make an additional phone call about another medical bill - POSTPONED
- Bring the trash cans in - DONE
- Water the indoor plants - DONE
- 30 minutes of paperwork - DONE (Spent a lot more than 30 minutes on it!)
Wednesday's To Do List:
- Go to the office
- Make the phone call about the medical bill
- 30 minutes (or more) of paperwork
- Wash dishes
- Do the litter box
How was your Tuesday? Did you get any trick or treaters?
I'm surprised you didn't get any trick or treaters. We had a few and I was left with some treats to enjoy myself!
ReplyDeleteI think you are wise to go for the PPO plan. Even if it does cost more it sounds like it will be quite a comprehensive plan and will hopefully work out to be the best option in the long run. X
Did Lily dress up and go trick or treating? Glad to hear that you were able to enjoy some treats, yourself. :)
DeleteYes, I think the PPO plan was the best choice. As I told one of my friends, "It's six of one and half a dozen of the other!" You either pay less up front and more out of pocket, later, or, you pay more up front a less out of pocket, later. But when you average it out, it all seems to come out the same, more or less. :)
This was the first Halloween in our new house and I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I didn't count, but I'd say we had about 25 trick-or-treaters.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like a good number of trick-or-treaters for a school night. Did you have a lot of candy left? I'm glad I didn't buy a big stash of candy!
DeleteAt this stage of your life and knowing you need additional dental work I think you were smart to choose the PPO plan. This will allow you to get all the dental work you need to where hopefully you only need to visit the dentist for routine cleaning. Getting this done before you retire is important. As a retired person my health insurance does not include any dental coverage. I am careful to always brush my teeth after eating and no serious problems thus far. I go for a regular cleaning every 6 months. Hubby has limited dental coverage with his health plan (means they don't pay for much)
ReplyDeleteGood you are on a roll with your paperwork. Hubby has finally worked on his home office and cleared paperwork, much of it to the trash can. Need NY son to visit more often as I think he wanted a tidy office for his visit!
Sandy, yes, it is with retirement looming ahead of me that I decided to go with the PPO plan. At this time, I don't know what my benefits will be once I retire, but it would be a good thing to have all the necessary work done before that, don't you agree?
DeleteFunny how we always tend to clean and tidy our homes when we expect visitors, isn't it? That need to create a good impression is very strong! Maybe NY son can visit once every 3-4 months to help keep the house tidy! :)
Hi! Our dental plan was capped at $1500 benefits (per person) per year, but now our retirement dental plan is $1000. Dental plans are almost not worth it. I learned by trial and error that if I need a crown, for instance, on top of my 2 yearly checkups/cleanings, and then I need something else such as a root canal or another crown, to hold off one until the next year's benefits. We always have our cleanings/checkups covered at 100% and the other stuff 80% but now the other stuff (crowns, etc) is 50%. We never thought twice about our coverage limits until we got older and started needing things like crowns! Enjoy your rain! Andrea
ReplyDeleteAndrea, your plan sounds a lot like the PPO I signed up for - $25/person or $75/family deductible, a few things like routine cleanings and fillings covered at 100%, most other things like root canals at 80%, crowns and dentures at 50%, max. of $1,500 in benefits/year, and so forth. Hopefully, it all works out.
DeleteHi my friend. :) I have trouble making decisions about medical, dental and vision insurance also. At this point, given how high some of my medical bills have been in the past for surgeries, biopsies, etc., I try to go for the best coverage with the lowest deductible I can find.
ReplyDeleteHi Debbie! :) The current dental plan I am on doesn't have a deductible or a cap on benefits, but it barely covers anything. Oh, well, I shouldn't complain - at least I have some coverage, right?
DeleteProud you got the rain.. And happy you got the filing done [I hate that job,ha]
ReplyDeleteHave a blessed day.
Thanks, Judy. I still have a little more to get through filing, but I am making progress. :)
DeletePs.. we too , went with the higher dental coverage.. It is a lot more expensive, but feel that in the long run, if we have major work done, we would be happy to have it.. And just covering the 100% cleanings and xrays is very helpful.
ReplyDeleteGlad to hear that, Judy. I know I still have a lot more dental work to be done, so hopefully, I made the right decision.
DeleteWe had no trick or treaters as we are out in "the boonies" but as usual I had a small basket of treats by the front door just in case. I think I should get DH to dress up and go outside and ring the doorbell, as he always likes to clean up the treats!
ReplyDeleteWe have no dental coverage so it is no good the dentist dreaming up something expensive and unnecessary for us! A cleaning every six months is sufficient, unless a specific problem arises. I do claim all our dental bills on the medical allowance of our taxes, but the amount of difference this makes is pitiful, same with charitable donations. Now if we were to donate to a political party we would get 75% allowance. Go figure!
Too funny about having DH trick or treat for the candy! Sounds like your taxes are just about as convoluted as ours!
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