Paying Cash At The Doctor's Office?

Refuse To Give 'Em Your Social Security Number!

Plus: Last-Minute Shipping? Beware "Upcharges"

At Your Local UPS Store-Type Business

 

Airdate: December 18, 2003

 

From ways to avoid paying a big financial penalty for procrastinating and waiting until the last-minute to do your holiday shipping, to protecting your Social Security Number when you see a health care provider, our un-common sense expert and Dallas Morning News columnist Benjamin Dover is here this morning to protect our checkbooks on a couple of different fronts.

 

Question 1: You covered both of these topics in your column in today's Dallas Morning News, so let's first talk about the letter from Ginger.  It sounded like she was kinda ticked off at you!  Well, what about it, Ben?  Ginger's gotta point, doesn't she?

 

Answer 1: Ginger does have a point, but so did Steve.  Our Social Security Number's plastered all over every form connected with insurance claim that wind their way through "the system," and the doctor's office or health care providers want this information so they can pursue a patient for payment (personally) if their insurance company refuses to pay or comes up short...which (incidentally) happens far too often. Steve's fears of having his privacy compromised are well-founded: Last June a Seattle-area resident received over 60 pages of confidential medical records on his fax machine, despite repeated calls to the local hospital notifying them of their mistake. It'll be interesting to see if they're actually penalized for their screw-up, since the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) became the law-of-the-land on April 14 of this year and for the most part, was enacted to protect our medical privacy. Fines range from $100 a day to $250,000 and up to 10 years in prison for violators.

 

Question 2: But is Ginger right?  If someone pays cash for services up-front, and then file to collect their reimbursement from their health insurance company, won't they be able to avoid having to give up their Social Security Number?

 

Answer 2:    Sounds good, doesn't it?  But here's three holes in that theory:

        #1 The horse is probably already outta the barn for most folks that have health insurance.  Their Social Security Number's more than likely already plastered all over the medical files.

        #2  Most people don't have the ready cash to pay up front and hope for a reimbursement, timely or not, from their health insurance company and...

        #3  While you contention that paying cash and filing for reimbursement from our health insurance provider is a way around the SSN disclosure dilemma, I beg to differ. I went to a "Doc-in-the-Box" a couple of years ago and the intake receptionist insisted I give up my SSN because "company policy requires that I gather this information; our computer must have a SSN in order for us to allow the doctor to see you." At that point I took the path of least resistance (because I was sick and just wanted to see someone who could write me a prescription so I could home and to bed) and I think I may have "accidentally" transposed the last couple of digits of my SSN. (My memory tends to fade with my advancing years, you know.)

 

Question 3: So you're not recommending that people give out a phony Social Security Number, are you?

 

Answer 4:    Of course not...but I want to point out that they had no right to that number.  I wasn't applying for credit or any other type of public financial aid, nor was I being asked by a member of the law enforcement community for my Social Security Number, so I'm not gonna give them what they don't need to know.

 

The moral of my story is extremely important for everyone to understand: Always challenge anyone who asks you for the most influential, 9-digit number of your life. And while you're at it, you'd better make a habit of regularly viewing-at least once a year-copies of all three of your credit bureau reports. I've got all of the credit bureau's contact information, as well as additional advice on how to battle the frequent mis-information reported by the credit bureaus assembled on my website; viewers can find it in my segment notes section for this morning's TV segment.

 

Question 5: You also have in this morning's column some advice for saving money on those last-minute gift shipments, since Christmas is only a week away.  Your number one money-saving tip?

 

Answer 5: Take the time to stand in line at the post office or at a Federal Express office or an actual, central shipping facility for UPS and beware of the upcharges charged by those convenient neighborhood shipping centers.

 

Question 6: You mean those convenient franchises located in strip malls?  Folks can rent private mailboxes from these types of business, right?

 

Answer 6: Right, but just be aware that these neighborhood shipping centers, while convenient,  make a buncha dough charging consumers as much as double what they'd pay if they shipped something with the actual source.  For instance, I've stood in line at one of these neighborhood shipping centers and watched someone literally spend double what they would have paid if they'd gone to the post office.  I don't begrudge anyone making a profit--I just want consumers to realize that there can be a steep price for convenience.

 

Question 7: You've got an analysis of shipping times and prices on your website, right?

 

Answer 7: You betcha...and the bottom line is really simple: Stand in line at the post office and you'll save as much as half.  By the way, since we're talking about the post office, don't make the mistake of betting on their "Priority Mail" service to get your package to its destination in the loosely-committed 2-3 day delivery window.  There's no guarantee that a Priority Mail letter or package will reach its destination in 2-3 days even under normal/non-holiday circumstances.  If you want it there overnight, send it via overnight service.  It'll cost you more, but it'll get there, or you get your money back.

 

Question 8: And there's an interesting delivery edge that the post office has that the others don't, isn't there?

 

Answer 8: Yes, they'll deliver on Christmas Day for the same, overnight service price.  You want that from their competitors?  Be prepared to pay well over a $100 or more for the same service.

 

Close:     As always, everything Ben covered is on his award-winning website: www.benjamindover.com and remember or link to his site from www.khou.com! 

 

More good news for future home buyers (and their credit reports): Didja hear about the mortgage company that was able to step in and close a tough loan on less than 24 hours notice? Despite all of the paperwork and (perceived) brain-damage that goes with the home buying process, the first mortgage company that was supposed to close fell apart and set the stage for the save of the century by my friends at W.R. Starkey Mortgage. And what's really amazing about this story are the facts of the deal: A pock-marked credit report, a non-conforming loan and a short-fuse couldn't keep Starkey from delivering the goods for a grateful homeowner, which brings me to the moral of the story...

Don't screw around with a buncha pikers that make mortgage promises they'll never be able to keep! You might think you're getting a good deal, but it'll likely blow up in your face when push-comes-to-shove and they can't close. Then your problems really begin. W.R. Starkey has the Dover Seal of Approval because they're the best, no-B.S. mortgage company in the nation...period.

They deliver and make home buyers the winners and long-term beneficiaries of Starkey's commitment to their company positioning statement: "A different kind or mortgage company where people come first." You really can bank on it, folks.

Take the Dover-proven route to stress-free finance, and take advantage while interest rates are STILL at incredibly-low levels! Ben's no-brainer choice for any/all of your mortgage needs? Easy...do it all on-line or on the phone with the official mortgage company of www.benjamindover.com and your first (and only) stop: W.R. Starkey Mortgage.  Hit their website or call their Houston-area office at: (713-977-9533) or toll-free: (866) 249-7599. 

 

It's easy to get educated about the process first...(plus the price is right...how about free?!?) Everything you need to know is only a click away. Get your copy of Bens' 2003 Home Buyer's Guide by clicking here.

What's in your credit files? How do you know? Yeah-I've heard the faulty logic: "I get dozens of pre-approved credit card applications every month, so I must have great credit." Wrong, Einstein: Don't come cryin' to me if your file's loaded with credit crapola. Get to work and find out what's in your file-here's how.

It's time to wake up and check your FICO scores! I can't make it any easier for you, either. Click here for some credit hand-holding from your pal Bennie...

 

 

NostraDover, Part III-I've been tellin' ya that this may be the hottest gift of the 2003 holiday season for the last several weeks: The The Boston Globe recently spotlighted Dallas-and-Austin based "Despair.com" and their line of "Demotivational" products: Cheer up...this stuff is hilarious, incredibly-affordable and their no-brainer gift catalog? Only a click away.....