Interesting experience.

All I wanted to do was get the phone number of the place I get my
blood tests, so I could call them today and find out how much a couple
special order tests cost if I have to pay for them myself. (My
doctor and I are not seeing eye-to-eye on everything lately.)

And it suggests I sign in, and I can pay my bill and make
appointments, the standard stuff. But it seems to say I can also
read the test results, which might mean I can read them for tests I
had a while ago, results which didn't matter when I got them but might
matter retroactively now. They probably do a better job of keeping
records.

So I signed up, all the while thinking, How is it going to decide it's
me. Won't I have to go to the office and show my driver's license.
After all this has the normal concern for privacy plus the HIPAA
folks.

Soon after I found out how. It wanted the last 4 digits of my SSN. I
don't remember ever telling the lab this number, but it's part of my
Medicare number. (Identity theft coming your way!)

Then it asked what color my car is. I know I never told them what
kind of car I have but they knew the year, make and model. They gave
5 choices and my color was one of them.

Then they wanted to know which of 5 choices I ever worked at, and they
had a place I worked at 20 years ago.

Then they wanted to know which city out of 5 I went to college, 45
years ago, and they included the right city.

On the next page they wanted to know about another car I ever owned or
leased, and gave 5 choices. 1988 Chrysler Lebaron was one of them
but what's really amazing is that they called it a 1988 Chrysler
Lebaron Highline. I thought it was a trick. I owned the car for 7
years and never heard it called a Highline. I never heard or read the
word at all. I think I had the owners manual too, and I'm sure I
have the shop manual. (It's in the basement.) But I googled, and
that's what it seems to be called! Wikip says Highline - 1985–1989

Then they gave 5 choices of when I bought my house and one of them was
right, including the month, even though it was 32 years ago.

I didn't tell them any of these things. In the middle of the night
they knew. Scary, huh?

Google is not the only one who knows all about you.

(Every question also had a none-of-the-above style choice)

Anyhow, it accepted me and let me file a request for a test result. I
think it was 6 days ago and they want 7 days