Blue Cross of Illinois

So sad that we lost the insurance coverage we used to have as a repercussion from Obamacare. Our deductible tripled. We used to have only small copays. Our prescription copay has double and tripled.

We have this coverage because it is the only company offered through my husband's employer. They are a terrible company which pays as little as possible. We are currently in month 6 of a claims appeal for a test ordered which did not require preauthorization but was denied anyway because they deemed it not medically necessary. How would we know that if they don't require pre-approval? The doctor's office thought it was necessary. Now we know to NEVER have a test done without preapproval no matter what they say. I would leave in a heartbeat if given a choice. Don't buy their product if you have any other choice.

I wish I could give this company 0 stars. Please, do not even think about switching over to BCBSIL. I did routine bloodwork when I first got pregnant, and I received a bill from the lab for almost $4,000. Turns out, BCBS did not want to pay without having proof that I was pregnant. For months, they claimed they had been requesting my records from my doctor's office all while the doc's office was claiming they never received any requests. Months later (third trimester) I find out they had been requesting my records from the lab, which obviously does not have my records.

I have purchased the BCBS of IL Blue Precision HMO because it's the only plan the providers near me will take. It has been a nightmare. First, I cannot get any dermatological care because the group I have been assigned to has no dermatologists that can do cancer screenings in the next 12 months. BCBS has advised me to go out of network - or essentially pay out of pocket - or switch groups entirely, thus fragmenting my other care. I have chosen to not treat cancerous lesions due to this problem. I also have an orthopedic issue and there is no provider in the assigned group so BCBS has again advised me to go out of network and pay out of pocket - or switch all my providers to another group, thus fragmenting my other care.

I think that Blue Cross community plan is great. I have no problems with them. Whatever the problems are they fix it. Love my Dr and clinic great place. One thing I have an problem with I wish they would cover more asthma inhalers.

I have this insurance through my job and I have it because they are so money hungry. I am currently pregnant and I have to tell them in advance where I am delivering or else they charge me $500 in addition to the amount of my delivery that they already make me pay. Also, they only approve it for 3 days which means that if I deliver prior to the expected due date I give them or more than 3 days after the date, I have to call them within 24 hrs to tell them where I delivered or else I'll have to pay $500. Who is thinking of calling insurance when they deliver a baby and whoever knows the exact date they are delivering? Aside from that ridiculousness, if I go to the emergency room (in general), I have to pay towards my $500 deductible then they pay 90% after I reach the deductible. How is that fair? This is honestly the worst PPO insurance and I hate that this is what Dell offers their employees.

I am in disbelief at the length I have had to go to (unsuccessfully) receive the coverage I was under the impression I had (dearly) paid for. After talking with six different representatives (just today) I still do not have a filled prescription after one week of effort. I understand from my doctor's office that this is not unusual. Is all this effort to not fill a prescription without Herculean ‘compendiums’ and ‘proof of manufacturer recommendations’ for my benefit, or for the intention of eluding responsibility for coverage?

First of all, I can't even select 1 star above. If there was a "0" star, I would select it. Left corporate world to start my own business. In Februray 2010, we got a high deductible HSA 5000 plan to protect my family from catastrophe. Our original premium was $640.00 with a $5000/10,000 deductible. Expensive, I get it (but just wait!), but protection of the family from financial ruin was accepted. Today I received another premium increase. In the past 8.5 years we have now had 15 different premium increases with very few claims (only met deductible 1 time when daughter had ACL surgery). My premium is now $2,010.10, An incredible 214% (over 25%/YEAR ave inc). How can this not be price gouging. I have written 2 letters to BCBS of Illinois and had 2 conversations with a so called executive (have name but will only use with official complaint) with regards to the increases over the past several years.

If I could give this zero stars I would. I recently signed up with BCBS the Blue Choice Preferred PPO... I am currently 20 weeks pregnant and just dropped from my current doctor. I have been on hold for hours with BCBS Illinois! I asked for a doctor that works with my insurance and they literally gave me a list of about 50 doctors. I spent hours calling about 17 doctors on the list and guess what? Half of those numbers that were given were either disconnected, wrong number or the office let me know that they do not take the Blue Choice Preferred plan! So I called BCBS back and the customer service rep gave me another list with the same disconnected numbers. This is unbelievable!

This is the worst health insurance I have ever had. Very few doctors will take this insurance. So few, that the list also contains doctors in suburbs and Indiana because there's about 8 cardiologist in the city I can see and they all except for one, have horrible ratings on the internet. The one that has a good rating didn't want to take me as a new patient because he no longer wants to deal with Unified. Do yourself a favor and steer clear of this insurance. I have BCBSIL, Blue Focus Care, Unified Physicians Network. The worst.

Extremely expensive dental plan. Only covers 50% of all dental services. Only covers 2 cleanings/year, 100%, IF you go to an in network dentist. If not, they cover less than 40%. Blue Cross of Illinois also has a limit of $1,000.00 benefits per year. Just think that a simple crown nowadays is about $940.00 per occurrence, if you need two done you are fried. Then you have to pay one full year or premiums before you can qualify for any major service. This insurance is worthless. Do not fall for it. I had to switch to Physicians Mutual Insurance dental plan.

A company so bad it received an "F" rating from the Better Business Bureau. If your company contracts with them for your health care, you might want to switch companies. But then, all American health care is rotten due to the cozy relationship our government maintains with insurance companies. So, if you're young, you might want to immigrate to a country with better healthcare (which is pretty much all other western countries). Good luck.

If I could give a negative 10 I would. Wife has severe injuries to both feet that required an MRI as ordered by her specialist. BCBS denied the test 3 times and it took 4+ months to get the approval. They have unqualified morons that pretend to be doctors and put the patient's health in jeopardy. Finally had the MRI done after repeated arguments by her doctor with BCBS. The MRI shows that she has tears in tissue of the main tendon. She now has a cast on one foot for 4-6 weeks and if not healed, then removal of tissue of another tendon from somewhere else in her body. Then repeat the same on the other foot!!!

Total Nightmare trying to get anyone to help me at BCBSIL over the phone. I talked to one agent with heavy foreign accent and asked him about HSA's. He didn't even know what an HSA was and was googling it while on the phone with me! Seriously! He told me he was googling it. Days later, and 2 hours on a phone with a "customer advocate" to find out why my wife's PET scan isn't medically covered, when the policy book they sent me says it is. Forget it. The phone operators reach intellectual dead ends, don't know what I am asking, do not understand anything related to health insurance in the USA, won't talk anymore if you keep asking them questions, and then hours later, with my BP through the roof, I was dumped into a disconnect dial tone.

Their online system doesn't retain information. Log into your account and check your "My Documents" and nothing is there... Imagine that! Looking at previous billing history is non-existent and I only canceled my account 2 months ago. Then, when you talk to someone, they refer you to the Health Insurance Marketplace because they're lazy... Then they gouge you on the fees. Navigating through their pamphlets and brochures, coverage plans and plan brochures is like reading an alien language. Their billing system is completely backwards and generally not up to date.

I am on IL Medicaid; & also am required to choose a community healthcare plan. I was on Meridian Healthcare Plan; & using the local Comm. Health Clinic as my primary care provider. This was fine; but was hoping to get a 'real' private Dr. as my care provider. So when open enrollment came around this 2018; I got a letter in the mail from IL State saying they have more options to choose from for required insurance. So; I chose Blue Cross/Blue Shield, & it stated that a well-known local Dr. does take the plan.

I have not been on my medication for 6 days while Blue Cross of Illinois denies my prescription. When I was online at healthcare.gov picking a plan for 2018 the healthcare said the medicine is part of my plan. Yesterday I was told that Prime Therapeutics has me trying medicine that did not work before. I wish Blue Cross has more PPO competition in Illinois. Blue Cross is not honest!!!

I called BCBS IL this morning and was on hold for a very unreasonable amount of time. When I finally spoke with customer service, I could not understand her and asked if I could speak to a supervisor. She could not understand me and I could not understand her. We finally got disconnected and I thought surely she will call me back and she never did. So I called back again and the same thing happened. I called back a third time and asked to speak to someone in customer service and they wound up connecting me with somebody in the marketplace that wasn't even affiliated with Blue Cross Blue Shield. I was dumbfounded. The guy I spoke with said this has happened many times. He was from the United States and he worked for the marketplace for Obamacare.

The absolute worst. Foreign cust service. Can't understand the long wait times and frequent premium increases. Obama you really screwed up health care in this country and BCBS of Illinois is taking full advantage.

VERY POOR customer service. I have not been able to get my explanation of benefits for this whole year. BC/BS tells me that I have to get them from the doctor but the doctor's office says, no BC/BS should be providing me with them. I have repeatedly called, been transferred all over, disconnected (even though they ask for a call back number, which they never call you back on). The doctor's office suggested I call and ask to speak to a supervisor. I did that but they won't let you speak to a supervisor until you explain what the problem is. Even after you explain they would not connect you to a supervisor. I was kept on hold twice for over 45 minutes and then without coming back on the line to explain anything they transferred me to my doctor's office. They are rude, and terrible. Maybe if we had more choices for health insurance they would be a little nicer. They only care about getting your outrageously expensive premium. They don't care about people at all!

I had private BCBS of IL. I was livid because I had a test done for asthma and it sent them a trigger that pulled my old medical charts. There were things that were wrong in my chart. I fought the appeal and won. So I thought it would go back and pay the bills that they stopped payment on till I won. Which by the way was over $15,000. They said they would only pay them if I reinstated my insurance since they had already cancelled my policy... Ready for this I had three days to come up with $1200. There was no way. So it stayed cancelled and now I have huge medical debt. I feel ripped off that I paid these people money for months and for what? They didn't pay for anything. My friend who worked there told me they are told to deny then process. BCBS of Illinois is a joke and rob from people.

As I write this, I am on hold with BCBSI. Information about our plan was supposedly mailed to us on Oct. 17. It still hasn't arrived. This is my fourth call to try and get a duplicate. The advocate on the phone just now told me to wait for it to arrive in the mail. Meanwhile, the enrollment clock is ticking. We were told last Wednesday someone would email the information we needed. That has also not arrived.

I had a really bad experience. This is the second time having similar issue. No coordination between Sales department and Customer services. I had a similar issue last year started in Nov 2016 and resolved in April 2017 making 100 of calls. Every time a new story. Same thing happened to me again. My wife and I had a different policies. There was a addition for newborn in family on July. As per them there is a sixty days period to add a newborn in the plan and for the first 30 days baby should be covered by Mother's insurance.

I pay $1,000/month for this garbage 'insurance'. They'll allow you to see a primary care doc, ok, but if, God forbid, you have to see a specialist? Forget it. You're screwed. That means no oncologist if you have cancer, no physical therapist if you have an injury, no dermatologist if you have so much as a wart. It's the most God awful system ever devised. Literally, I pray for you if you have this insurance, because God knows, you won't be getting the help that you need. Oh, and when you ask why the hell this is happening? They'll say, well, it's cause you're poor and have state insurance (even though you're fully aware the 'state' has NOTHING to do with it). WTF?

I am the office manager for a chiropractic office and find it very frustrating I can never get through to talk to anybody. I have claim questions for multiple patients and I sit on hold over 45 minutes. Actually probably longer because I always have to hang up. I've spent countless hours on hold. You would think someone would pick up within 5 minutes considering you have to jump through hoops to even get patched through to someone. There are always "high call volumes" no matter what time of day you call. Someone actually answered last week just to tell me to call back later... super frustrating. There are patients who put off care until their questions are answered and your company makes that very very hard.

I had an appointment with a eye specialist in December 2016. He had to refer me to an eye retina specialist, but he warned me that Blue Cross Blue Precision Silver was dropping out of the Market Place and they were not informing any of their customers. He advised me to wait until after the first of the year and when I'm on a new carrier then follow-up with my retina appointment otherwise I might get stuck with an unpaid bill. Well he was right about the unpaid bill. Blue Cross kept playing around with my bill from the eye specialist and after six months it is still unpaid and now they are nowhere to be found. I've spent hours calling one number only to be told to call a different one. I'd forward the bill to them and it would come back saying wrong office. I hate to think how many other people got stuck with bills. I paid all my monthly premiums and what good did it do me. Will never purchase any Blue Cross insurance again.

I am a member with this horrible company customer service... what can I do.? Nothing. Every time I call for a question I have to wait several minutes before any rep. answers, when they answer they put you on hold more than 25 minutes only to answer my question. On 7-10-17 I called around 1:25 p.m. and Shaney answered, after 10 minutes, I asked her to check for me something on a claim, asked me if I am on the policy, she repeated my phone number she had on file twice and she said AFTER 25 minutes that she can't find my name still. 25 MINUTES a BCBS cannot find my name on the policy? Come on. I called before hundred time and they always have my name. I decide to complain about their horrible service. You may deal with them, they take your money but they will give you a ** service.

False Statements and bad customer service - When you get your insurance statement of services, be aware that the insurance portion of the billing - The so-called reimbursement to the provider is 100% false. In most cases, for smaller services like chiropractic care, there is no reimbursement at all! It's just price fixing and way for you to think you received a benefit. Or, in a best case, a small portion of the number posted was sent to the provider. There is no such thing as insurance anymore - Only managed service contracts that are essentially marketing tools to push patients to providers accepting the bad terms of the insurance company to bring in patients that believe it will be financially good for them. You are much better off paying cash prices which will be less than your out of pocket with insurance! Most providers take cash, especially those trying to build a practice.

I've had BCBSIL PPO for at least two years. I took a buyout in 2012 from a multinational telecom company, who sold off our division. Shortly after retiring from that company, I had an injury, which led to a disability, which was finally approved in 2016 and retroactive to 2012. Due to the retroactive approval, I was being forced to take Medicare, as the SSDI was covered for more than two years. Shortly after the SSDI was approved, I received a letter from the benefits dept. of my previous employer stating that all retirees who had become disabled, regardless of age, would no longer be covered under the existing plan and then be forced to use their broker, AON Exchange.

In need of cancer treatment side effect surgery. Pain from side effects could be relieved but the Director of medicine at BCBS of Illinois Exelon said it is not medically necessary and for cosmetic only. Are you kidding me? Two University of Wisconsin doctors and a top Surgeon get a peer to peer and what does BCBS say in the peer to peer, "Sorry this is out of my realm." What a joke, how are they allowed to make decisions? All about the money and numbers, who cares about the people. Director of medicine go back to your cozy office and charity dinners and never put a name to a face, and do us all a favor and don't call yourself a doctor.

I have been paying for their mediocre coverage for years, well over what my surgery would cost, never bringing in my kids for things unless absolutely necessary and now that I am disabled from my job due to a low back problem they deny my surgery 1 week before due to their MD who probably sits in a cozy office all day says it is not necessary due to the MRI not showing enough narrowing to pinch the nerves. Not taking into account the painful discogram I went through that showed two large tears in the discs. Able to get my MD to go peer to peer and still lost. Now I am out of a job, paid a HUGE COBRA payment so there would be no lapse in coverage for this and they deny me at the last minute. I am now on long term disability, which will only last me 24 months, then what. The narcotics dull the pain but I still can't move the way I should. I could easily live another 60 years but this is not living.

I have canceled my health plan on December 16th, 2016 and is February 2nd, 2017 and every time I called customer service they tell me my refund is denied. I need help getting my money back. I got health insurance thru my job starting January 1st that's why I canceled but I was paid. I even got the letter stating it was canceled. BCBSIL got me very upset. I can't believe it. All I want is my $414.32 back!

Back in mid-December of 2016 I canceled my individual PPO plan through Blue Cross to keep it from renewing in 2017. I honestly didn't have a problem with Blue Cross last year, I was just offered insurance through my job and had to choose that because it was significantly cheaper, what with insurance premiums in Illinois skyrocketing this year. During this phone call, the representative assured me that my plan and auto-pay had been canceled. Maybe a week later a $368 premium had been taken out of my account for the plan I had canceled.

This insurance company has the most horrible customer service as far as I know. I spent more than five hours on the phone waiting for them to answer. There is no answer at all. The reason of my phone call was to have an answer why they charge me $289.94 on January 3 and $212.88 then they charge me again $154.95 on January 9. The agent appointed is neglecting me because he does not remember conversations involved during the process. As far as I know BBS is neglecting customers because of the horrible customer service they have. Besides that it is impossible to register online if you do not have an ID#. I do not like this health insurance at all. I hope the Obama Care will take care of this right away.

Right now... I've been on hold for 51 minutes and counting. This is after I waited 25 minutes for rep to call me back. It's 1/26th... and BCBS can't find my plan that I signed up for and Paid for to be active 1/01/2017. My son has severe flu and we just paid $137 for Tamiflu because BCBS hasn't confirmed our policy or sent out cards w/ a member I.d. #. Our premiums are just under $900/month. We've been w/ BCBS for years... It's always the same story when you call in for customer support. You're either on hold Forever, you can't understand the person/or they can't understand you, rep is inexperienced and gives you misinformation... or they disconnect you when they don't have an answer for you. They refuse to let anyone speak to a supervisor.

I having been trying to get pre-authorization for surgery but BCBS of Illinois is very slow in replying. My surgery has been delayed by one week and still no response. I have been messaging them since last week, my messages get a reference number but still no call. What happened to this insurance company; it used to be a good company. Premiums are outrageous and customer services sucks.

Blue Cross Blue Shield mistakenly canceled my health insurance in August 2016. I called them many times to try to get it resolved because I paid all my premium on time. While they were working on reinstating my health insurance, I needed to refill my prescription. The Blue Cross Blue Shield representative told me to refill my prescription on my own and reassured me that the cost will be 100% reimbursed once my insurance was reinstated.

As of 2017 Blue Cross requires you to use Walgreens as your pharmacy. This couldn't be a bigger debacle, with Walgreens being probably the poorest rated pharmacy when it comes to service. I guess this should come as no surprise considering Blue Cross's track record, in fact they're a match made in hell. Between my wife and I, we had two of 12 prescriptions transfer correctly from our previous pharmacy. One prescription with refills was lost altogether. There are no words that accurately describe my dissatisfaction with Blue Cross & Walgreens. STAY AWAY AT ALL COSTS!!!

I signed up for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois in mid-December and paid more than $1000 for my first month's premium Dec. 22. It is Jan. 13 and I still have no ID card or even an ID/group number. I have called about a half dozen times to ask why the delay, sometimes being put on hold more than an hour. They did receive payment right away, but my ID "fell through the cracks". This is incompetence at its worst.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois is incompetent. When you call, expect inaccurate wait times that are already obscene. If you get coverage in the New Year, do not assume that your insurance is active because it says so on their website. Mine wasn't when the hospital ran it, and then I was unable to get a customer advocate on the phone. I had a good experience with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas but it's important to understand that the companies are largely independent of one another. Avoid the one in Illinois.

So to start, as of Jan 1st my policy states it was active via the Blue Cross Blue Shield website. I tried to get my prescriptions filled and I was unable. So the pharmacy called Blue Cross Blue Shield of IL and they stated that my policy was inactive. I paid my premium and everything was in place that should have been. Frustrated as I was I proceeded to call Blue Cross and Blue Shield of IL and waited on hold for over an hour as usual. A young lady answered by the name of Melissa ID ** or **.

Blue Cross raised my family premium from $1900 per month to $2990 per month that is a 54% increase. That requires our family of 5 to pay nearly $36,000 per year for insurance. Under the Affordable Care Act insurance has become Un-affordable. Excessive wait times and poorly trained customer service representative add insult to injury. Maybe they should stop spending money on their Bear Tickets for the Blue Cross Blue Shield Seat Upgrade and lower the Rates.

This the worst medical plan I have ever had. You send generic card with fictitious doctors names so you don't have to cover a visit. I have been searching for months and paying out of pocket because your insurance and customer service are a nightmare. BEWARE anyone thinking of purchasing this EXPENSIVE WORTHLESS INSURANCE.

I am a pharmaceutical sales representative and my company insurance is BCBS Illinois. What a mistake I made! I left a great job with a great insurance company to go to work for another company and they over me BCBS Illinois. I was thinking that it was ok but it's been my worst nightmare. First they didn't want to cover my husband. I had to produce tons of documents to prove I was married. Then my migraine treatment that is been cover for the last 2 years with my previous insurance now is not cover. I get headache every day and migraines 2 or 3 times a week. With the treatment I had only 2 migraines in 2 years that had been a life saving for me. But now with a lot of tears in my eyes I have gone to pre-authorization, to an appeal of the pre-authorization that was denied.

I (like most) have had BCBS for a long time. I originally had CIGNA before switching to BCBS. I got a notice from my doctor saying that I was no longer insured and I was incredibly confused as to why. I immediately called my insurance asking about it and they said I was late on a payment in January. Obviously I questioned them about it saying things like, "I've always paid on time and am still getting billed", etc. I sent both BCBS and BCBS Marketplace/Silver my bank statements since they claimed it was a billing issue. Both statements had the same information, stating the time/date of when I made payments and showing the company that everything had been paid on time.

My husband got sent to collections for not 1 dos but 2. Wrote a review a few months ago on 1st and now here I am again. This is for dos back in Feb 2016, he went to a few doctor visits trying to rule off a diagnosis and has been sick since 2015. He goes to a total of 3 doctor facilities in the beginning year 2016 due to 2 facilities not telling him any accurate diagnosis. We just needed some answers. So after a few weeks of finally finding a proper facility and answers. We start receiving bills from 1 facility. We have a yearly deductible and it was met in the beginning of the year.

I have had BCBSIL for the better part of 23 years. I have never had much of a problem until now - I need spinal surgery. My surgeon had me do all kinds of pre-surgical testing that took me over a month of continuous work to get completed in time. I have spent a lot of money on these pre-surgical tests that now seem like a waste of time. My surgery date was all set but the day before the surgery it had to be cancelled. According to BCBSIL, my surgeon's office was given the wrong fax number and the insurance co. said no clinical information received. Surgery was postponed until the following week and an appeal had to be submitted. Once all the information was sent to the proper fax number they still denied my claim stating that they no longer cover that procedure.

Medicare Advantage PPO through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois - the Medicare Insurance industry is big bucks. And confusing. I had a Medicare Advantage HMO last year 2015 and changed to a PPO this year. While I understand, Doctors, Hospitals, and Pharmacies have to be in the plan to get full coverage. It is hidden that Labs that Doctors routinely send their tests to have to be in network. When I got a EOB from Blue Cross I called and asked for explanation because an accompanying bill reflected that any extra was my responsibility. Not having been fully informed of this part of in network, I was shocked.

BCBS denied reimburse for my gym usage for December 2015 because they said I wasn't covered, when in fact I was. New coverage information was keyed in on December 25, 2015 for calendar year 2016. This in fact goofed up hundreds of reimbursements. After calling BCBS complaining, I was given a new ID number to use. Which in turn I give to gym just to use this one time for December 2015. Now it just so happens that this number is not useable. Did CSR just give me a line of "crap" to get me off the phone? Who knows if I'll ever receive this $20.

My daughter has degenerated disks, one is bone on bone and another is more than halfway to being bone on bone. She was scheduled for surgery in Arizona where she works for State Farm Insurance. Unfortunately, State Farm headquarters is in Illinois, consequently all SF employees have BCBS Illinois. BCBS Illinois denied my daughter's surgery a week before the surgery based upon BCBS claim that my daughter's surgeon did not provide documentation on the non-surgical treatments. This is a total lie by BCBS Illinois! Even the BCBS doctor agreed with my daughter's surgeon regarding the necessity of surgery.

The phone line experience is horrible!! Deceptive. It so disrespectful to keep a client waiting for 2 hrs only to get in touch with a customer agent. 3 days and no answer? Give a break. If this is the best portrait of the BCBS in Illinois, what can you expect when you are in the doctor's office? Dump Blue Cross Blue Shields in Illinois.

BCBS of Illinois has really disappointed this time. I've had them for over 20 years and the past 15 I have suffered from chronic migraines averaging about 20 per month. I have tried every drug, acupuncture, hypnosis and nothing has helped until I found out about Botox injections a year ago. My migraines have now been reduced to about 3 to 4 a month and I feel like I finally have my life back... until now. They just sent me a letter denying my claims for the Botox because my migraines have decreased by 60% so they don't feel it's medically necessary. What?! The reason why my migraines have decreased is because of the Botox you idiot!!!

I was a member in Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois for almost 2 years. I have always been so unsatisfied with their customer service(took months to change my PCP, long hold time when you contact and etc) so I decided to cancel my membership. Unfortunately I have already paid my premium fee one month in advance so I was told I would get refunded. I have never did!

We were loyal BCBS customers for over ten years. Being self-employed, we paid our premiums for our PPO plans out of pocket. With the healthcare reform, our premiums increased significantly for our plan. To maintain the same premium payment, we had to change to a lesser (Bronze) plan with higher deductible. Fine with us, as long as our basic preventive services were covered. Our physicians have always accepted BCBS PPOs, and we were informed by BCBS that the Blue Choice PPO was comparable to our last plan. Great. We enrolled in the Bronze PPO 06 plan figuring we would pay visits out of pocket, but basic, well-child and adult physicals would be covered. I go for my physical and receive a bill one month later for $1700 from the physician indicating BCBS did not cover the physical and associated preventive tests.

Diagnosed with Lynch Syndrome after having uterine cancer. I am at 4 times the risk for breast cancer. After thinking I might feel a lump they denied the MRI suggested by my doctor since I have dense breasts. When they told BCBS of IL I was at risk for breast cancer they said, "Well she's at risk for many cancers!" Denied.

I had a back injury, 3 herniated disk in my lower back. It took them a month and a half to let me get an MRI When I knew something was terribly wrong. I've broken bones and never had pain like this before. Now my doctor requires I have back surgery so I can go back to work (been off for almost 4 months now). He does a new procedure that has a higher success rate And doesn't do the old fashion way of taken out bone to get to the disk. Results in a better long term effect this way. After having my MRI I was informed I have arthritis in my lower back so as I get older it will get worse. So BCBS will only pay for old way of doing the surgery Resulting in a weaker lower back from time of surgery till I kick the bucket. I quad, work out and play sports. I'm too active to have a weak lower back I'm 32. If I have surgery done way they want I will have to watch what I do and how I do it until end of my days.

I contacted Blue Cross in March 2015. I was told if my primary faxes a prescription for ortho massage, I would have 20 visits covered. If I went out of network, Blue Cross would only pay 90%. I have had 6-7 denial letters. Yesterday they called to inform me: My total claim's $2,300. They are only reimbursing me $324. How do these people sleep at night knowing they are denying coverage to people that are sick?

Insured through husband's employer with a half-way decent policy, but Blue Cross inconsistently pays dental claims and has denied needed procedure estimates in the past! We get the feeling they'd like to eliminate our dental coverage altogether, since they hate paying anything! Most recent claim on an emergency root canal, after the deductible was covered, they only paid $160! That is nuts! Leaving us with a huge bill with the dentist! Is that why we pay thousands of dollars a year? For crappy coverage?! Of course we filed an appeal and of course they sent a letter saying it was covered correctly... but still no actual explanation! These people have no consciences! We are not dropping this. Will make phone calls and if necessary file a complaint with state board of insurance!

I can't tell you how many cases I've worked on where the claims weren't adjudicated correctly, or the member is misinformed by the carriers' customer service staff. It's even confusing to us! But we make it through it, and help the members resolve the issue. I don't think the carriers do what they do maliciously, they just have way too many people interpreting the coverage and the law, and a lot of them aren't educated enough to make an informed statement. It really is maddening. My advice? Find yourself an agent who's licensed to help you through your future enrollment. No only do they help you enroll, they help service your account and advocate on your behalf with the carriers. At no additional cost to you!

My policy was written in 8/2013 as a Blue Edge HSA policy with access to BCBS's largest network of providers. Now this Winter 1/2015 we start to have problems with our long term providers suddenly being denied as out-of-network providers. What!!!??? Come to find out BCBS has altered our policy without our knowledge or consent to a health reform network... "Blue Choice".... that was created after our grand-fathered policy. I have tried several months to resolve this with BCBS! No one is listening and their reviews system is useless. I have a contract for a specific policy! I did just sign up for a lesser quality substitute! Please comply with our contract and process our claims!!!

I have been fighting with this issue since the beginning of 2014 when the new Obamacare plans were being implemented. A Blue Cross employee received a new enrollment from a woman with a similar name to mine, so they decided we were the same person. BCBS entered her information on my policy that I have had since 2006. I met with the Blue Cross department in Naperville, IL in 2014 and was told the situation had been rectified. But I still have confusion paying premiums, and now I received an explanation of benefits today for lab work that is not mine. I know it is this other woman's. Now my health history and her health history are combined. I do not know what to do.

I have a BCBSIL Gold PPO plan for which I pay an exorbitantly high monthly premium. I am pregnant and currently have to visit my OB/GYN every other week. The coverage outline clearly states that I do not need to pay any co-pay after the first prenatal visit for maternity services. Still, every time I visit my doctor, I receive a bill stating that BCBSIL did not pay the complete amount and that I need to take care of the co-pay.

I went to have a Pap test done. I handed my insurance card to the lady at the front desk who quickly handed it back and said "we don't take this insurance" I then asked who does and she laughed and stated "no one!" I paid out of pocket for the Dr. Appointment which was $100.00 and then got a bill for $420.00 for the lab work! I understand being "out of network" and paying more! But the whole point of having a PPO is so you can go wherever you want! I also received an order to get a mammogram done. I left that appointment so upset that I was given a script for an antidepressant. I came home called the number on my insurance card and was given the name of a facility that does take my insurance. I made an appointment with that facility because I had to get a new mammogram order from someone in my network to prevent having to pay out of pocket $500.00 or more for this mammogram.

As of today I have spoken with approximately a dozen customer service reps from BCBS and still no one has been able to help me. Blue Cross Blue Shield took my premium and money from March, 2014 to August 2014 and did not cover one penny of my medical costs causing me financial damage and emotional pain. Someone dropped the ball and REMOVED me from their system, this caused me to not be covered when I thought I was. It is too long of a story to write in here. It is just very upsetting--thanks to "Obama don't care."

Our policy started Jan 1st 2015. We paid for Jan and prepaid for Feb for a total of $1,660. We called to cancel the policy on Jan 12th 2015 because we were able to get COBRA coverage that is better. We were told that a refund will be processed in 45 days. We called again the next week or so to make sure that the refund was being processed and it was for both months Jan and Feb. We were assured that it was for both months and were told to wait. We called again a couple of weeks ago to check the status of the refund and were told that it's being processed and if we don't get our refund check by Feb 20th to call again. Well I called today, Feb 19th as I didn't want to wait one extra day as I had a feeling the check didn't come so it's probably not coming.

I was sold an health insurance by Blue Cross & Blueshield hmo pos. I switched to this one due to 2 reasons 1. Doctors and Hospitals are close by, 2. I spend winter time with my daughter in Fl. BB told me before I go to FL, they will assign a PCP in FL so that I would have the same coverage as I have in Illinois. It was a total lie to get you enrolled. When I called BBC, they said there is no such thing. If any one else has the same issues, I think this is good for a class action law suit.

My doctor ordered a test. The hospital administered the test just as has happened for years. Not anymore! BCBS denied it stating "Member did not meet BCBS Medical Policy Criteria for Coverage". I have to ask why would I know the criteria better than the doctor or the hospital at which the group health insurance plan is through. If I was a doctor or worked for BCBS maybe I would know but that did not seem to work for my doctors. So we got hit with an $1,800+ bill for something that should have been less than $200.

While away from home my wife required emergency surgery on Saturday, May 31st, 2014. The hospital Mother of Frances Hospital called BCBSIL for "Preauthorization". BSBCIL does not staff on weekends and did not accept the preauthorization. These facts are not disputed. Neither is the fact that on the BCBSIL card and they state that notification needs to be done within two days. These are the issues I have with this requirement:

I was on hold for over 3 hours today, trying to talk to someone in the benefits department in IL - I have been left on hold, disconnected, been given wrong information and even transferred to some other number that had nothing to do with BCBS. I am shocked at how poor the customer service is. Last time I was given incorrect information about a provider being in Network, then actually went there to find out they were not - that was after an hour phone call!! I signed up for this plan BECAUSE hospitals close to me and my Drs. were in Network, only to find out after open enrollment that they were no longer in network.

My doctor put me on a CPAP machine. I stop breathing excessively during the night. I have met my deductible but it starts over in 1 week. They will not go ahead and buy me the machine now. They will only pay to rent it for 3 months first and then they will pay for the machine if my deductible has been met. By then my deductible will have not been met as it starts over in 1 week. This blows and is so unfair. I called them but they just said that was their policy. I asked them could they waive the 3 months of renting the machine first if my doctor sent them a letter stating that I had no problems with the machine during my sleep study and they said no. In other words I'm screwed and will end up having to buy the machine.

I purchased the BCBS Blue Choice PPO that went into effect Jan 1, 2014. One of the reasons I chose this plan was because our pediatrician accepted it. The first few office visits for our newborn were considered in network and were billed as such. In April 15, 2014, we got an email from Town & Country Pediatrics stating that BCBS was no longer allowing them to be "in network", so all of our visits from Feb through mid April were billed as "out of network". Blue Cross blames T&C, T&C blames BCBS and I get caught holding the bills.

We had changed from our regular BCBS ppo for years to the one offered by this thing called obamacare, saving $200 a month, with the same coverage, a $6000 deductible and a 100% coverage after that. We were in the hospital on January 1 2014, and as of today 8/11, I am still on the phone with a BCBS rep for more than 2.5 hours now trying to manually work on the computer glitches that the new obama systems have.

It is correct they are cheaper but they stab you in the back anytime they see that they can. I am covered only on ER. If I needed ER, I make sure I go to see a doctor first just because it will be cheaper for me if it is not emergency. So last time I went to a doctor for a boiler on my back neck and I was told to go ASAP to an ER. I did and when the bill came, they said I am not covered even though the ER doctor stated I needed ER. They deny me in a letter sent to me. I went to my agent who introduce to deal with BCBS. He wrote a letter to ILLINOIS DEPT. OF INSURANCE, all that after the collection agencies started on giving me all the **.

I got BCBSIL in Oct for Obamacare, 5000 Ded. 100% after ded., had to go to Hospital and paid the bills till I got to $5007 ded. Now they say there's a glitch in the system so it was not paying bills after the ded. and just kept adding them to the ded., now at $10550. They say they are running the claims through 2nd time and all will be paid but I asked if I should pay the bill that are due (which will go on my credit report if not paid) and they say, "No you don't have to pay." What a bunch of B.S. If I ran my business like this we wouldn't be in business long.

Blues Cross has denied me my benefits for 2 different items in the last 3 months - both of which are definitely covered:

1) A prescription was filled and I paid cash for it. It had been covered in previous and subsequent months. I had paid cash at the time of refill because the policy premium was paid late. The premium was caught up and paid in full, but BCBS and their "handling" company Prime Therapeutics continue to deny my rightful reimbursement.

I have been with BCBS IL for years. Since January I have been paying toward my deductible and met it in March. Due to a "glitch" in the system, they are unable to recognize this and therefore, have not been providing coverage. I have been paying out of pocket for all of my medical expenses that they should be covering. They have told me that they do not know when this will be fixed and that I should stop paying providers myself because when they fix the "glitch", I may not be reimbursed properly. What?!?! I am beyond angry and it is criminal what they are doing.

Received two payments without explanation, made several attempts to connect with an individual and/or department that might be able to assist with an explanation on where and who to apply these payments to with no luck. Experienced an incredible amount of frustration with inability to connect to a human being by phone or internet. The telephone prompt being programmed to disconnect the call with a sweet goodbye when the limited options available do not suffice is downright insulting. Next step, snail mail, that's right, US postal in this day and age for corporate communication, completely unreasonable and primitive, certainly does exude the confidence one would expect for a corporation of that magnitude.

Have been paying for healthcare since January and have no healthcare. They take 1900.00 out of my checking account and have not given me coverage because of a "glitch"in their system. I call every other week and am told the same thing, that this takes time and they will have it fixed soon - that I am being put on "the fast track" but I still have no insurance. They still have my $9500.00. I have no way to stop this unless I change checking accounts which I am going to do this week. FYI these phone calls take 2 and 3 hours each because of the hold times. I am thinking of going to Karen Atwood's home (she is the CEO) and begging her to help me.

In March, I searched through the healthcare marketplace, spoke to a representative of both the market place and BCBSIL, and found what I thought was a good plan. I chose the Blue Choice PPO Silver 003 plan. I was told by the BCBS rep that I would not have to change doctors because I was choosing a PPO plan. That was great. I love my doctor. So I signed up. Paid my premium. A month and a half later in May, I went to the doctor, who then sent me to see a muscular specialist. Then in June, I received a notice from BCBS and from both doctors offices that my visits were not covered and that I owe the full balance.

My son had called to see if a certain procedure would be covered by BCBS and was told yes it would so I picked him up on my insurance at work which cost me an arm and a leg. Well after the procedure is done and we have bills of over $20,000.00 BCBS is now saying no it was not covered. They are only concerned with making $$$$$. Very rude customer service, dishonest and unethical insurance company. I had only had one claim with them in the 10 years and they applied it all to my deductible!!!!! If I would have known they were going to deny coverage for this procedure would have saved the money paying the premiums and just gave that money to my son. They should be ashamed of themselves.

I have dealt with Blue Shield of Illinois on and off for over 30 years. At one time, this was a pretty good company, with decent plans. No longer. Since signing up for their Gold PPO2 plan in April of this year, it has been nothing but a nightmare. To begin with, they botched the first payment I made over the phone (for which I had the confirmation number), and I didn't even know it hadn't been processed until I received a bill almost a month later. After numerous requests, I still don't have any ID cards.

I had enrolled through the market place at the end of 12/2013. And after a nightmare with them, my updated completed application was finally sent to BCBS on 2/15/2014 for blue precision 2 plan and blue dental plan for me and my son for coverage to start 3/1/2014. And since then it's been sitting in the enrollment dept not active to this date. So, it's off the exchange but nobody is doing anything with it while me and my son remain without coverage. I've called them million times to ask why my application is not yet active and that I been calling the financial dept to ask why I never received an invoice and that I wished to pay my premium. But they said no invoice could be generated until my application is activated just to be told by the call center agents and escalation supervisors that my app is complete and is in the enrollment dept still been reviewed.

Dealing with BCBS Illinois has been a nightmare. Since I enrolled, they have had my bill wrong. I have called countless times and each time I am assured it has been resolved and then I am billed the wrong amount again. When you call on the phone, the waits are over an hour to get through and the recording says go online to avoid the wait. I have written online and I get a message that says you can call customer service. I write again and get a response that the responder cannot help but will give it to someone who can. Why not have competent people respond in the first place?

I received a letter in the fall of 2013 from BCBS of IL stating that I needed to choose a new plan due to Obamacare. I chose and submitted my application for a SilverPlan in December of 2013. Before the cut off date in December, I decided to upgrade my plan to the Gold Plan and submitted the new Gold plan application on December 6, 2013. For the month of January and February of 2014, my family of 5 were placed on the Silver Plan while the Gold Plan was still pending. I paid my premium of $1456.07 for Jan. and Feb. On February 28, 2014, I went on the BCBS member's site to see if my Gold plan had gone into effect and I noticed that my amount due for the month of March was $2555.99. I placed a call to BCBS for explanation and I was told that I was being charged for the Gold Plan for March along with the difference from the Silver Plan to the Gold Plan for the months of January and February, BUT the Gold Plan was not processed as of that date, which was February 28, 2013. So they were charging me for the Gold Plan premium but I still had the Silver Plan.

I purchased a policy called Blue Precision HMO from BCBS of IL through the new healthcare exchange. The benefit summary looked too good to be true and it is. I got a check-up on 1/2/2014 from my primary care physician that is in network at which time the doctor made a referral to see a specialist. That was on Jan. 2, 2014. When the doctor's office tried to turn in the referral, they were told that BCBS of IL isn't set up yet for referrals on my particular policy and to try again soon. I've been calling everyday since trying to get information about my policy and what the process is to see the specialist only to be given the run around after waiting between 1-4 hours on hold at which time they tell me confidently to call this number (been given over 10 different numbers all of which do not handle my policy). Other times they just disconnect me altogether.

I signed up with Blue Cross Blue Shield Illinois in December 2013. My coverage started on 1/1/14. I received a card in the mail and a welcome letter. I have tried to get two prescriptions filled and both times I was told that I am not in the BCBS system. The first time this happened I called BCBS. I was put on hold for 90 minutes and no one picked up the call. My cell phone died. I eventually got a hold of a rep at BCBS the next day and she assured me that I was in the system and there was nothing wrong with my member ID #.

Our coverage began 1/1/2014 and we tried to purchase a prescription yesterday. The pharmacy was told they have no record of us (even though we have an ID card) and that we need to call. I called three times and waited over 60 minutes each time, yet no agents are available. I tried call another one of their numbers that handles enrollment, and they answered first ring... only to tell me they can't help... just take new customer enrollments. I see their strategy, and it sucks.

On 9-25-13 my wife had back surgery. We got the pre approval as needed. 2 weeks after surgery we get a letter saying the surgery was denied! Blue cross paid the hospital and all other bills except the surgeon bill which is $73,000.00. We have been trying to resolve this as well as the doctor with no results! Now we are going to be liable for the doctor if we can't get this resolved. We have appealed this 2 times already and don't know what to do next.

Made call initially on home line & waited about 30 mins & got disconnected due to low battery. Called 2nd time on cellphone with await time still 60 mins. Waited over 1 1/2 hrs & never spoke to a live person. There was an option to have a call back but I did not use that because I already did that a month ago with no return call. With an overload papers received in mail I have questions esp with deadline approaching can't get answers. Get phone call talking about setting up escrow account for payment & increase in payment. How is this affordable healthcare & I'm going to be penalized.

My experience is a total scam. They have not paid for me since June 1, 2012. So my husband has been suffering with them because this is his retirement insurance. They have been our insurance company for many years. Previous to the date I gave, they have paid out a lot money, never, never a question ever. But that date they stopped was a horrendous time for me. My husband has not stopped paying no matter the cost. Have had to stop seeing my Drs. so I have not been seen for my treatments since then.

BCBS has my records combined with someone else with the same name but in another city, born the same month and year as I. The only difference is our middle name and social security number but that still doesn't seem to correct the problem! I just got another letter from them today showing my health history along with procedures the doctors have done. Some are mine, done by my doctors but some doctors and procedure are not mine. For example: The other man they have me confused with has cancer. I don't and never have. He's had cat scan, I have not. The info shows other health problems he has.

I called BCBS to get information as to what was covered before I went to the doctor. They said I had $2,500 coverage for what I needed done and only had to pay $20.00 for the office visit. Long story short, my doctor's office called to verify this and they were told the same thing. I had the treatment done then received a call from the doctor's office saying the insurance now says I need to pay $1K first, which is my deductible! I asked them to play back the conversation I had with them saying it was covered and they told me in order to do that, I need to get an attorney. They suck and are so out of line! Has anyone ever fought them and won?

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois has really been trying to deceive me and my family as an individual policy holder. On September 1, 2009, we switched from my wife's BCBS group plan to a BCBS HSA plan after she left teaching to be at home with our daughter born in April. At the time of the switch, we were informed that due to being pregnant within the last twelve months, we would have to have a pregnancy rider for the next twelve months stating that and the cost incurred due to another pregnancy would not be covered. Sad, but we did our family planning around the demands of the health insurance company.

I have submitted billing for services rendered and have received denials. Please provide contact information, as this is very frustrating! I wind up in voicemail limbo and cannot resolve this issue. Please help!

Five years ago, I signed up through Blue Cross and Blue Shield Basic Blue policy to cover large medical expenses if needed. I didn’t need smaller costs, like office visits, to be covered since I had been healthy my entire life up until January of 2012. Only through experiencing surgery for testicular cancer have I learned that outpatient diagnostic services are not a covered service unless rendered on the same day as surgery or as part of emergency care. My total medical bills to date are close to $11,000 as a result of non-payment. This amount doesn’t include further testing required to insure good health and finding a new plan will be difficult since I have a pre-existing condition.

I still have not received premium payment notice for my wife (Cynthia **; I.D. number **). I have requested to have her notices sent to me numerous times in the past, but with no success. When I received my statement, I have to put two checks in the mail with our ID numbers on both checks. This has been going on since 2011. My checks are cashed by Blue Cross Blue Shield, but I still receive termination notices on my wife's policy. I then have to re-instate her and pay past due premiums. I would like to make payments in a timely fashion, but Blue Cross Blue Shield refuses to send me premium notices for my wife. Can someone solve this problem? I am also requesting help from director Illinois Department of Insurance, the attorney general of Illinois, the Better Business Bureau and the Consumer Fraud and Complaint Department. Is anyone out there listening?

I began on the Blue Cross Blue Shield Insurance Plan through my new job. On a Friday, I attempted to have a prescription filled using my Blue Cross Blue Shield card only to be told by the pharmacist that my card was flagged. After further investigation, the pharmacist stated that Blue Cross flagged my account because I had another active insurance plan. My previous plan ended Feb. 29th (I called my previous insurance provider to verify this fact) and Blue Cross stated that the insurance plan was still active according to their system as of March 5th.

My coverage was terminated as of 09/30/2011 for nonpayment. Payment had been paid on 09/20/2011 and proof was furnished to Blue Cross at least two times.Three weeks ago BC admitted (my 6th phone call) that they had received the original payment and would correct records and pay claims. As of today, 01/23/2012, nothing has changed. I have called three more times but still no results. I am not allowed to speak to a supervisor and over twenty emails (Dec & Jan) remain unanswered. I am very concerned about my credit standing with medical people and the VA.

I pay high premiums for BCBSIL Premier Plus which advertises 100% coverage in-network or out-of-network for ambulance service. I was knocked down to the street by a messenger bicyclist and transported to a local Boston hospital by ambulance. BCBSIL will only pay $523.10 of the $958.10 charge leaving me on the hook for $435.00. Fifty four percent (54%) is not 100% covered.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield denied a claim for my wife from The Mayo Clinic.The head of the Mayo's Neurological department requested a Pet Scan to verify an Alzheimer's diagnosis. It did. BCBS will not pay for it. Their website claims the procedure can be used for "serious" diagnosis. Alzheimer's seems serious to us. We had to pay a $4,500 medical bill, after Mayo lost patience with BCBS, and sent us to collection.

BCBSIL (BlueCrossBlueShield of Illinois) is unfairly profiting from "post claim underwriting in this state now". My wife's coverage was rescinded (canceled all the way back to it's original effective date, as if it never existed). Some insurance companies that do not conduct a thorough health history investigation at the time of application attempt, after the fact, to underwrite your insurance policy only after you file a claim. This is done by the insurance company to try to avoid the consequences of its deliberate marketing decision to forgo initial underwriting in order to increase sales and profits. This rescission took place 9 months after the policy was issued, based on a claim for services at her annual check up.

Bottom line, BCBS of IL sucks! They bait and switch their customers, which seems highly illegal to me. Long story short, we applied for individual insurance from BCBS of IL for my 55 year old husband in November of 2008. It took until Jan 2009 until they accepted him into the plan. He signed an Amendatory Endorsement stating he had back problems, but they were resolved at the time of the application. BCBS never sent an exclusionary rider or called his back pre-existing. So it was our ** luck that his back went out as soon as we got the insurance. We carried Unicare for two months simultaneously to BCBS, just to make sure BCBS paid the claims. They did pay, so we cancelled Unicare thinking everything was kosher with BCBS.

My husband and I have been trying to have a baby for over two years, this past September I had a procedure done which showed that my tubes were blocked. Then in June I had surgery to try and get them unblocked but it was unsuccessful. The result was that they are severely blocked and my only way to conceive is in vitro. When I contacted the insurance company they said that they will not cover in vitro at all. I have contacted several insurance companies and they say the same thing, some say that it is consider experimental, which I believe is incorrect, since it is proven that it does work. I think this is completely unfair to all women who have fertility issues. I believe that all women should have a chance to conceive a baby. I went to a specialist last week which I had to pay out of pocket for and he said the same thing, I have to go through in vitro. He did say that he could do surgery to unblock my tubes but it would be major surgery and if in fact I did conceive, not only would it kill my unborn baby but it would also kill me.

Before Zyrtec-D,specifically, became an OTC drug, Blue Cross of Illinois covered my use of this medicine. Now, Zyrtec-D is a hybrid OTC medication -- a controlled substance dispensed under law by a pharmacist with limited supply available without a prescription AND a BCBS non-covered medication because it is STILL classified as an OTC, despite the D. By law, now, it is illegal for me to purchase my monthly supply without a prescription. As a result of the increased cost to me (three times as much), I tried a generic brand of the same medicine. It didn't work and at the expense of my health and my pocketbook.

My husband has BCBS of Illinois PPO. Encompass Health Management Systems is contracted to work with my husband's place of employment to pre certify occupational and speech therapy. When I went on the website for my husband's medical insurance in the Dept. of Human Resources, the speech therapy and occupational therapy is listed as paying at 90% in network coverage as long as it is pre certified by Encompass Health Management Systems.

I have had several medical bills denied due to a lack of information that was sent several times. The fact of the matter is that there have been too many incidents to keep track of. I do have information, but it would take forever to find all of it. One incident in particular, is an incident that involved services rendered on 1-17-07 from CNOS (Center for Neurosciences, orthopaedics, and Spine)PO Box 1430 Dakota Dunes, SD 57049. My primary contact at CNOS is Sue. It has taken us over 15 months to get this paid. BCBS kept telling me different things, then kept telling her different things. The last instances they were telling her they needed me to send the dates that I was under United Health Care. They kept telling me that they needed her to send the EOB (Explanation of Benefits) from United Healthcare--United Plan # and BCBS # available upon request (I don't like over the internet information transfer) BCBS Address Via National Automatic Sprinker Industry is 8000 Corporate Dr Landover, MD 20785 - 800-638-2603 or 301-577-1700---United Healthcare PO Box 740800 Atlanta, GA 3037 40800 Ph#800-357-0978.

I received a letter of my bimonthly premium going up and I have only had this plan since July.It went up 32.00. I only make 28,000 per year. I am now paying 332.00 every 2 months. These people are out of control, and have been for years.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois sent me a letter informing that they are investigating my medical claim, suspecting it was preexisting condition. Fine, it's their right. But one sentence in the letter attracted my attention: "until the investigation is complete, all future claims will be pending." I called and asked why. If the future claims are unrelated to the investigated one, why they would be delayed as well? The rep in claims explained the situation quite honestly. According to her, they do it in order to force me to cooperate and give them the information they want as soon as possible, plus they hope that I would also call the doctor's office, who is expected to give them medical records, and ask to expedite. She also mentioned that if the policy was for 10 people, then all 10s' claims would be put on hold, also with the expectation that nine would press on the one under investigation. I asked if she thinks this could be named blackmailing. She easily agreed. She did not express any shadow of regret, however.

I called for a brochure to inquire about health insurance with the above named company and received it. I comply with all the parameters set forth in the brochure including the height and weight chart that states a male person of my height can weigh up to 305 pounds, per the brochure sent to me. I also qualify under the section that asks if you are presently being treated for diabetes, which I am not. I have an elevated blood sugar that I am treating with diet. In other words, according to the brochure sent to me I qualify for health insurance. Now KAREN **, WHO IS SITTING BEHIND A DESK, is making judgements contrary to what is in the guidelines that were sent to me. My body and my health are probably better than KAREN **'S. AT THIS TIME. It is apparent that this person is not following the guidelines set forth in the brochure sent to me. Either she is prejudiced against me or she is just making her own rules, contrary to what the book spells out very clearly, or she is not going by the same guidelines I was sent.

In July, 1999 I had been working for Pepsi Cola General Bottlers, Rolling Meadows for about 3 months. Was new to the insurance and new to the company, in fact I hadn't received an insurance card yet. I was at a company sponsored event at a water park, I received a head injury when I smashed into a cement wall. I was taken away in an ambulance.