You have a stronger faith than I.

The first time (probably 15yrs ago maybe) I called the Ohio Atty Gen on a complaint about a medical billing some place kept billing, even as I was producing a cancelled check for the amount paid in full (I had gone through the process of matching things up, documenting calls and names, writing the letters, etc) I finally got so frustrated that I called the AG office.

“Yeah.” “Yup. “Uhuh.” “What’s your address…”

I got a form to fill out to start the complaint process. They have so much respect for us in Ohio that the form had been photocopied several times and crooked on the page so it was barely legible.

No worries, I filled it out and sent it back.

61 days later (or two more billing cycles for the company that was now bouncing all over my FICO Score) I got a responses from the AG saying they were contacting the medical billing company. 61 days after that, I get a follow up from the AGs office saying they investigated and found nothing improper. By that time, the medical company had turned my invoice over to the AGs office for THEM to collect from ME! I paid it and about a year later, I got a check in the mail with a curt note saying I was billed in error.

Who has time and patience for this crap? Have you seen Mike DeWine, our current AG? He seems like he is more intent on putting Republicans in power for every county, state and federal seat and cares less about us the citizens. Ohio was not always like this, but since the Great Recession, it has gotten slowly and slowly worse as gerrymandering happens and other shenanigans.

Just one example. I’ve had a couple others but the process is almost always the same. Same photocopied form! I wish I was kidding on that. Now, I complain just to see that form for a hearty belly laugh because I’m bored. (Actually there really is a lot of product and failure here… folks just accept it as normal now)

Still my favorite to date comes from Bradley Deane from my DEMOCRATIC senator’s office when asked who I should call when Anthem BC/BS raises my premiums 29% and when they fail to comply with the ACA. “I assume that is a rhetorical question,” he says. Dumbfounded. (Letter)

Go through the process and the Ohio Dept of Insurance is an AMAZING wall of stone. I wish I could afford them for my clients. I’m going on two years of them answering my questions in a very “factual” way, always ignoring the truth. Letter after letter. I suppose I could hire a lawyer but as it turns out, everything they are doing, including the 29% increase they approved for Anthem, is perfectly legal. In fact, I should be grateful there is insurance for me to buy! It’s not that they are doing anything wrong but that the entire SYSTEM is wrong. And banking? Please, don’t get me started on that… keeping my head down, just not poking the beast, hoping they don’t sell my mortgage for 11 more payments.

Maybe there are laws and agencies in place to protect us, but good luck with Average Joe Citizen finding the front door. The blue pages are gone from phone books, the autoattendent bots have been replaced by confusing and non functioning government websites and when you do get a live person, you are an inconvenience to them rather than a service they are committed to perform. Companies are also making themselves less and less available to consumers forced to buy services (try living in 2016 without a cell phone or health insurance) we start doing desperate things, like this. It will produce no results (I’m not naive) but it keeps me busy with a bit of fun.

So while I may be factually wrong, practically I’m not.