Life Insurance Scams -- License Plate Lunacy -- Care Providers in Cahoots to Keep Costs Sky High

Universal life was a sensation when it premiered, and for some years it worked as advertised. It included both insurance and a savings account that earns income to help pay future costs and keep the premium the same.

The result of dead interest rates is a flood of unexpectedly steep life-insurance bills that is fraying a vital safety net. Some find they owe thousands of dollars a year to keep modest policies in effect. People with million-dollar policies can owe tens of thousands annually. Some retirees are dropping policies on which they paid premiums for decades.  WSJ

My policy bought long ago

is bleeding me of all my dough.

My tragic surmise

is that swift demise

would now be doggone apropos.

For a fringe of American drivers, having a fine car isn’t enough. They must have low license-plate numbers, too, and they’re fueling competition for the tags that can be relentless. In Delaware, a decades long obsession over tags with few digits has given rise to a vibrant private market.  WSJ

When license plates cost more than cars,

there ought to be folks behind bars.

Such fripperies show

that people who blow

their wads on such things must see stars.

Dominant hospital systems use an array of secret contract terms to protect their turf and block efforts to curb health-care costs. As part of these deals, hospitals can demand insurers include them in every plan and discourage use of less-expensive rivals. Other terms allow hospitals to mask prices from consumers, limit audits of claims, add extra fees and block efforts to exclude health-care providers based on quality or cost.   WSJ 

I went to the hospital sick,

and wanted a cheap stay to pick.

But doctors and clerks

just acted like jerks --

my wallet came out anemic.

Nearly half of all cellphone calls next year will come from scammers, according to First Orion, a company that provides phone carriers and their customers caller ID and call blocking technology.  WaPo

The IRS is closing in,

and Immigration wants my kin.

My student loans are way behind;

my car insurance is declined.

It seems to trouble I am prone,

according to my damn cell phone.

But all is well and fancy free

if I just pay a little fee

with money order or gift card,

to avoid some jail time hard.

So scammers, come and get your cash --

and hear my blunderbuss go 'crash!'