Explain This To Me

One of the things we recently learned we should probably do in preparation for our travels is to get the series of Hepatitis immunizations.  Certainly not the best news in the world for me, given how much as absolutely hate needles, but I'll chalk this up to "do what ya gotta do."  Now, the other significant problem with this is that these shots are typically not covered by insurance if you're over 20 years of age, and they're quite expensive.  However, Anita called her insurance carrier to find out if the shots would be covered, and she found out that if a doctor deemed them medically necessary, they would be covered.  So I decided to call my carrier, assuming that since we have the same product (administered by different carriers), my shots would be covered as well.

My assumption could not have been more incorrect.  I was told, quite matter of factly, that the shots are only covered in cases of extreme medical risk.  When I questioned what extreme medical risk included, I learned that the shots would be covered if I was involved in a high-risk same-sex relationship, a drug-user, or a medical professional dealing with hepatic patients.  But because I'm a law-abiding citizen who is in a heterosexual monogamous relationship and not currently working in a medical field, my shots would not be covered.  However, the woman I spoke with was quick to point out that any treatment required to treat Hepatitis, if I were to contract it, would be covered by my insurance.

I'm at a loss for words here.  I work in the insurance industry, and I have absolutely no idea why we even bother with insurance in this country.  At what point did the bobbing heads in charge of these thieving companies determine that covering preventative measures makes less sense than covering treatment?  Of course, I know the answer to the question before I ask it.  If someone needs treatment for something, it usually takes longer and requires more medicine during the treatment - thus causing the consumers to spend more money in the long run even with insurance.  If we were to prevent diseases, how would all the pharmaceutical companies make their billions of dollars annually?

Okay, let me step down off my soapbox and get back on point. Actually, I don't know if I have a point.  It looks like we have to get some shots (ugh!) but at least half of them will be covered.  But, if this is what it takes to bring Colin home, then there's really no choice to be made.