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Archive through February 05, 2009

Reality TVClubHouse Discussions: General Discussions ARCHIVES: 2009 - 2: General Discussions: The only Dumb question is the one not asked (Q&A): Archive through February 05, 2009 users admin

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Kitt
Member

09-06-2000

Friday, January 30, 2009 - 2:07 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kitt a private message Print Post    
You might be stuck until Monday to know for sure then, but hopefully someone will pop in later who knows. It seems impractical to have to get a referral each time but you never know with some of these insurance plans.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Friday, January 30, 2009 - 2:17 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
Yep, I might be stuck for a few days. No biggie really, more curiosity than anything else. It's really confusing though because for this dr and the eye dr we have to have referrals yet for my ob/gyn and gi dr I don't (and I've been seeing them so long on this insurance I can't remember if I ever had to take them referrals, though there have been times they've had to get one to do certain tests/procedures.) One thing I do know with the eye dr is that generally the referral is good for six months, so if I take Caleb in and have his eyes tested, get him glasses and we need to go back before six months, I don't need another referral. However, if it's more than six months I do.

Escapee
Member

06-15-2004

Friday, January 30, 2009 - 2:31 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Escapee a private message Print Post    
If I were you, I'd fax it over.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Monday, February 02, 2009 - 10:32 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
Just got off the phone with the dermatologists office. Pediatricians office called about half an hour ago to tell me they had recieved the approval and when I told her the other office hadn't she faxed it right over.

Receptionist said that if he needs to be seen on a regular basis, he will have to have a referral for each visit. But, we won't have to deal with it at all...they'll send in the referral and then will call us when it's approved. The only thing is they can't schedule an appt until the referral is approved, so if dr wants to see him in four weeks they'll send in the referral and have to wait til it's approved then call me to set up an appt.

Which is kind of a pain in the neck since I have to schedule his appts around my aunt's 3-4 each month. On the other hand, it's not as big a pain in the neck as having to go see his pediatrician everytime we need to see the dermatologist and hopefull it won't take as long to get the approval for the appts.

Kitt
Member

09-06-2000

Monday, February 02, 2009 - 1:49 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kitt a private message Print Post    
What a palaver. Hopefully the appointments will be far enough apart that it won't be too much trouble for your schedule.

Denecee
Member

09-05-2002

Monday, February 02, 2009 - 3:03 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Denecee a private message Print Post    
Dang, Wargod, that does sound like a pain! I would think that the Derm's office could go ahead and set the appt, good assumption the referral will be approved though. I'm sorry you are having to deal with such a silly run around.

Dipo
Member

04-23-2002

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 11:20 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Dipo a private message Print Post    
QUESTION: Can someone explain to me how it works when you have prepaid minutes on a cell phone? Can I cancell my ATT service, keep my number and put prepaid minutes on the phone? How do the prepaid mintues get on the phone?

Thanks so much, it seems stupid for me to pay $30 a month when I only use my phone for emergencies.

Kitt
Member

09-06-2000

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 11:50 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kitt a private message Print Post    
You can get really inexpensive (like $15) phones for use with Virgin Mobile or some of the other prepaid phones. I don't know whether you can transfer a number or use your old phone, I don't think you can with Virgin.

Most of the prepaid plans let you put a set number of minutes on your phone, at a minimum of, say, $15 every three months (that's our plan). If you don't use up that $15 worth of calls then you still have to top up or the phone goes off (although if you get it turned back on again within a set period your credit is still there). If you use up your $15 of calls you just buy more. You can set up a plan to do that automatically online, or buy cards to top up with, or buy minutes through the phone with a credit card.

I use Virgin, the website is here:
http://www.virginmobileusa.com/rates/minute.do
I know people on here have mentioned other plans they're on, maybe AT&T has one which would allow you to use your original plan?

Kitt
Member

09-06-2000

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 12:01 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kitt a private message Print Post    
This link is better than the one above. You can just top up as you need or it seems you can buy a minute pack which is cheaper over all, if you're a big user.
http://web.virginmobileusa.com/help/plans/paygo/how-it-works
They don't seem to have the $15 every three months plan I have anymore.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 12:07 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
It's pretty much the same with Tracfone. I paid $20 for my new phone (Kota's getting my old one) and use one $20 prepaid card a month. And yep, can either buy a card, go online, or buy over the phone with a cc. Usually I don't use all the minutes in 3 months so once I add more minutes at the end of 90 days, the old ones roll over.

I may be biased, lol, but I think if you're only using the cell on a limited basis prepaid is the only way to go. Unless there's something going on, like when my aunt was in the hospital, there's no way I'll use more than $20 in 3 months and if I had a traditional plan I'd just be throwing money away. I've been using prepaid (as has Darren) for years and there's only been a handful of times that we've needed more minutes before the 3 months was up. The kids both now have one and we only use $10 cards for theirs since all they use them for is to call when practices (track or softball) are over.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 12:16 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
Er, that's, "I use one $20 prepaid card every 3 months." So I spend just about $7 a month for mine.

Dfennessey
Member

07-25-2004

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 12:39 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Dfennessey a private message Print Post    
i have a tracphone and love it. I do not use it often so it is perfect for me. I am a single woman so to me it was a great investment. i have the phone that already has double minutes so if i purchase a 60 minute card i get 120 minutes. my father tells all of his old woman friends down in florida they should get a prepaid cell phone like mine.

Dfennessey
Member

07-25-2004

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 12:46 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Dfennessey a private message Print Post    
I have also known people that have had virgin and did not like them but i did notice in the wal mart near me they had a list of the different prepaid plans that you could compare and see which one would be the best for you

Serate
Member

08-21-2001

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 1:08 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Serate a private message Print Post    
Dipo if you have an AT&T phone and want to change it to an AT&T Go phone - their prepaid service - you need a SIM card to put in the phone that makes it a Go phone. Still uses the same number, but makes it a Go phone. Not sure how much they cost, but unless you have a fancy schmancy phone you just love and want to keep, you can get a new AT&T Go phone at Wal-Mart, Target, etc for around $20 for the basic phone on up.

I'm not sure if you can use your AT&T phone for other prepaid plans like Virgin or Tracfone. That's a question for somebody else. But I'd think you would still have to get a SIM card to tell it what your number was and who your provider was.

Oh and before you ask me what a SIM card is I have NO idea. I know my bonus daughter and niece each have an AT&T phone, and my bonus daughter's is a Go phone and niece's was a paid plan phone, and when daughter's phone went dead instead of putting it on the charger they pulled the SIM card out of her phone and put it in niece's phone, and it worked, but the number was my bonus daughter's number, not niece's.

Kitt
Member

09-06-2000

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 1:23 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kitt a private message Print Post    
Virgin don't have great coverage outside the cities and main freeways, that's the problem with them. Since I never go anywhere this doesn't matter so much to me :-).

A sim card is a little plastic square with a chip on it that contains all the details of your phone - the plan, phone numbers, downloaded ringtones etc. BUT only if you have a newish phone. They weren't common in the US until recently. They're great because you can just pop it out and into another phone when you change phones, with no hassle.

Twinkie
Member

09-24-2002

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 1:24 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Twinkie a private message Print Post    
I LOVE my Virgin Mobile service. I only use my phone very occasionally so I never use all of the minutes that I get for $20 every 3 months. Its never been anything but great service. Also my phone cost $20 and works like a champ.

Holly
Member

07-22-2001

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 1:52 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Holly a private message Print Post    
Kitt, correct me if I'm wrong but I've always been told that the phone has to be 'compatible' with the SIM card?

Example: If I had a T-Mobile SIM card and then bought a Verizon phone, the Verizon phone would have to be "unlocked" so that the SIM card would work. Or do I have that wrong?

Kitt
Member

09-06-2000

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 2:18 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kitt a private message Print Post    
I think that depends on the original phone provider. I have an English phone where the SIM just swaps easily in and out, but my cheapo US virgin phone doesn't have a sim so I haven't tried it.

Holly
Member

07-22-2001

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 2:28 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Holly a private message Print Post    
Eeyore, can you help with this question about SIM cards, please?

Juju2bigdog
Member

10-27-2000

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 7:06 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Juju2bigdog a private message Print Post    
Ditto what Twinkie said. I recommended the VirginMobile phone to her, and she then found a better plan for me to be on, which is basically the same as Wardog's. Have to pay $20 every three months, but I get to use the $20 as minutes at eighteen cents a minute. Since I only have the phone for emergencies, my minutes build up. I think I have about a $70 credit on the account now.

And my phone only cost $20, and it always works like a champ, except when I am out of a service area. It uses Sprint towers, or did last I knew.

Urgrace
Member

08-19-2000

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 8:55 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Urgrace a private message Print Post    
I'm with Dfennessey. If you buy a decent Tracfone and minutes that double, you can go a whole year before having to buy minutes again, PLUS no bill!

With the Tracfone, depending on the one you buy, you can use the prepaid service you pick from, like T-Mobile, All-Tel, Nextel, Verizon. I got a card once that had quite a few to choose from.

Watching2
Member

07-07-2001

Wednesday, February 04, 2009 - 9:02 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Watching2 a private message Print Post    
In short Holly, not all phones, even new ones have SIM cards. You have to have two phones which are compatible. My DD's does and they're with AT&T. I just got a new phone a few months ago from Verizon and they told me there wasn't a SIM card - they didn't use them. They put my old phone on a charger-like thing and the new one on the other and they transferred all my info. I would have liked having a SIM card. My DD was able to take the SIM card and put it in a phone she bought off of Ebay after her pup chewed her phone. Think of it as like a memory card in a digital camera - if that helps??! I've had phones that were on a plan made into Pay as you Go phones, but it was with the same company.

Cell phone companies have a little "trick" they started long ago and only certain models are made for each carrier. Sometimes you can find some that will work for more than one service, but it's rare. That way you can't take your phone from AT&T and use it as a Verizon phone, etc. I have activated all kinds of phones that my son got from his friends that were from the same carrier to his phone number with no problem.

Sia
Member

03-11-2002

Thursday, February 05, 2009 - 5:27 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Sia a private message Print Post    
Here's my dumb question: can a blood clot be painful? Thanks.

Colordeagua
Member

10-25-2003

Thursday, February 05, 2009 - 6:36 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Colordeagua a private message Print Post    
Sia, yes, I think so. Many years ago my grandfather in his early to mid 80s was mowing his lawn with a pushmower. Got what he thought was a charley horse (cramp?) in his leg. Would not go away. After a few days, had a doctor look at it. It was a blood clot that would not dissolve. Eventually got gangrene in his foot and had to have his leg amputated just below or above the knee. Don't remember.

Hukdonreality
Member

09-29-2003

Thursday, February 05, 2009 - 6:53 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Hukdonreality a private message Print Post    
Sia, YES they can, and they can be life-threatening. Not meaning to scare you, but if you suspect one at all, call your doctor asap. And for goodness sake, do NOT rub it (you could dislodge it and then you're in big trouble!)!