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Daniel, Eric, and Jennifer Mendelsohn

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from: Daniel Mendelsohn

What's Bad For Health Insurers Is Balm to my Soul

Posted Monday, June 18, 2001, at 12:48 PM ET

Dear Jen and Er,

I've just finished my breakfast of organic Peruvian arugula and am reading Jen's e-mail with pleasure. Believe it or not, it's barely less effortful to get the Times here in NYC than it is in Bal'more (as I believe it's pronounced); mine is supposed to be delivered to my apartment doorstep each morning, but the new delivery person apparently takes a VERY broad view of the word "doorstep," with the result that I have to make furtive dashes, clad only in my underwear, down the hall to where the elevators are each morning in order to snag my copy. I suppose I should lodge a complaint to the Times' home delivery people, but I have to say I've gotten a tiny thrill about this morning routine.

Yes, the lead story in the Times was about Texas' refusal to ban executions of the mentally retarded. One expects so little of Texas in general, of course, but this beggars belief: I cannot for the life of me understand why a state that sees fit to ELECT mentally retarded people would fail so egregiously to protect them outside of high political office.

I myself was far more interested in the patients' rights bill before the Senate, given my great love for HMOs. There's no point even discussing the scandalous fact that this country fails to provide universal health coverage for all citizens, a thing that every other civilized country provides (we do, however, provide executions, which those other countries don't offer, so I guess it's even), so I'll just say that anything that annoys the living hell out of health insurance companies is balm to my soul, to say nothing of my orthopedically challenged body. (Can we talk L5/S1 disk problems?) Last year I was on what I believe was called the "Freedom Plan" of this-or-that HMO (or was it "Liberty"?), which as far as I can tell means that you are free, or liberated, to write gigantic checks each month in return for--what? Hmmmm. I recall triumphantly submitting $4,200 dollars in bills at the end of last year, and then I waited greedily for my reimbursement, wildly thinking what I could do with the money. Finally a letter came from the HMO, along with a check for FOUR-HUNDRED-FIFTY DOLLARS (!!) and a huge long letter that was called "explanation of benefits." Which I can only conclude means benefits for THEM. Oy vey.

Yes, we are from near Lviv, and yes, the pope is visiting Ukraine. I know this not from the front page of the paper but because (as you know) the Mendelsohn siblings are travelling to Lviv and environs in August to revisit our family's towns of origins (Bolechow, Stryj, Dolina, Snyatyn), and I originally wanted to go in June but my guide there said not to because the pope was coming. Which reminds me: Did you know that tomorrow I'm meeting some long-lost cousins of ours whom I found through the Family Finder site on Jewish Genealogy? This is the THIRD set of relatives I've found on that thing--it's totally brilliant. Did you know we have Mittelmark cousins in SWEDEN?

Wellska, thatska allska forska nowska.

XOXO
Daniel

the breakfast table
entries
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from: Daniel Mendelsohn

What's Bad For Health Insurers Is Balm to my Soul

Posted Monday, June 18, 2001, at 12:48 PM ET
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Daniel Mendelsohn, book critic for New York magazine, is the author of The Elusive Embrace. Eric Mendelsohn is the writer/director of the film Judy Berlin. Jennifer Mendelsohn is the author of Slate's "Keeping Tabs" column. To read their previous "Breakfast Table," click here.
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Reader Comments From The Fray:

[Thursday notes from the Fray Editor: A true "Breakfast Table" thread got going here: starting with made-up words, moving on to dead languages, salaries, and cheerful insults, plus a chance to find out which BT regular is a public defender, and what he likes about the the job (the pens are nice, and he doesn't meant penitentiaries). Another cross thread started here (OK, Amber, you are a high-maintenance troublemaker too. It was nothing personal, but you don't confine yourself to the "Breakfast Table". ) Good discussion on death penalty starts with new star Ender here. In fact, there are good threads everywhere this week, none of them staying on topic for long, and all of them involving being rude to other posters: "the only reason you are elevated [to gold stars] is so the rest of us know who to make Ad hominem attacks against."]


Daniel,

Please restrain yourself. According to my calculations, at this rate you will have used up the world's supply of parentheses (left and right) by 2:21PM on Thursday

--Keith M. Ellis


(To reply, click here.)


[Tuesday notes from the Fray Editor: By sheer chance, the Fray index at one point reads:

The Mendelsohns are back!
Appropriate Police Action

We would like to stress that the second post was on a completely different subject: we don't want the Mendelsohns getting cross with us. And we're not going near the whole 'provincial hicks' area.

One highlight of the Mendelsohn's previous "Breakfast Table" was the occasional appearance of the Missing Mendelsohn Brothers, and we have an early sighting of one here. He was replying to Arthur Stock's evocatively named "Vote for your favorite Mendelsohn here" post. Neill Hamilton is the official troublemaker to the Breakfast Table Fray, and outdid himself, below.]


It's starting well: someone has called Texas elected officials retarded. Next, as a parent of teenagers I think that sibling arguments can be awful heated. I am open to suggestions as how to provoke one among the three siblings talking this week. Perhaps one of the topics they could address is which one of them was treated best by their parents. Or perhaps they could rehash embarrassing moments that one other sibling caused. Whatever, there is lots of potential here.

--Neill Hamilton

(To reply, click here.)

[Now read how Neill Hamilton, with the grumpiness we love him for, changed his mind...]


We [Joseph Britt, Arthur Stock and Will V] shamelessly shilled for the Mendelsohns when we occupied the [Fray posters'] Breakfast Table. It didn't take long for Slate to invite them back.

Wonder if they'll return the favor...

--WillV

(To reply, click here.)


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