Sunday, November 18, 2018

11/17 Still Here, Hanging Around Oregon

I know I have not posted in a long time, but I have been hanging around Oregon, getting some medical issues taken care of.  So, I am doing a lot of working, resting, and catching up with other things, but putting my travels on hold for a couple of months.  

One question I am often asked is how I handle medical things.  Well, it is complicated at times and very simple at other times.  First, I have regular Medicare with a traditional supplement and a prescription Part D.  My plan enables me to see any doctor I want anywhere.  

I have a personal physician in Ohio who I see once a year for a checkup and to get prescription refills.  (I need to get some tests scheduled when I visit her in the spring.)  But I also have visited a lot of urgent care facilities as I travel and end up with minor things like colds or infected mosquito bites.  However, I have routinely been seeing a hand surgeon in California who has given me cortisone shots for trigger fingers.  He also did surgery on me for carpal tunnel syndrome and for one trigger finger that kept bothering me. 

I have seen other specialists here and there, as I have needed them.  It was easy because my particular Medicare plan does not require referrals, so I just find someone and make a call for an appointment.  A Medicare Advantage plan might give me those "extra" benefits, but would limit me to a specific set of doctors, which does not match my lifestyle.  

The other thing is that I keep copies of all my test results, so if I have to see a new doctor, they won't have to repeat a bunch of tests unnecessarily. 

Anyway, I do plan to rent a car and head up to Portland to do some exploring one of these weekends, assuming the weather is decent. (It has been really chilly and damp lately.) Thinking that maybe some indoor museums would be worthwhile, but I want to wait until after Thanksgiving so I don't get caught in the shopping mess.  

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