Like most other 17-year-olds I know, I’ve always left the details of my health care to someone else. In my case, it was my mom who managed my health insurance so I wouldn’t have to worry about it. All I ever knew was that I was covered.

But that’s something I no longer know. In May, two days before my last scheduled doctor’s visit, my mom passed away in her sleep.

My whole life was left up in the air. I was homeless for a while, then spent two months living at my aunt’s house. There was so much going on – I had to finish my sophomore year in high school, had to find a summer job – that figuring out whether or not I still had health care didn’t seem to matter. Obviously, I missed the doctor’s appointment.

And I haven’t tried to reschedule. For one thing, I can’t find my doctor’s phone number. I know it was saved on my mom’s cell phone, but that’s been turned off. I also didn’t come across any of my medical records when we packed and moved out of my mom’s house.

But all that’s more of an excuse than an obstacle. And now that things have settled down and life is slowly getting back on track, it seems time to figure out what’s going on with my health care.

I think my mom had BlueCross/Blue Shield through Medi-Cal. But what that means for me, I don’t know. Now that she’s not here anymore, am I still covered? My dad is my legal guardian now, but he never took care of medical stuff and I don’t see him that much since I live with my older sister and brothers.

I used to never get sick, not even during flu season – it was like I was impervious to germs. But now that my health care might be gone, I’m extra cautious about catching something. So I wash my hands a lot and when someone sneezes, I move out of the way.

The problem is, germs aren’t the only things out to get me -- there’s also glucose to consider.

Last fall, I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, which means I have to go to the doctor every three months to check the level of glucose in my blood. The diagnosis was supposed to make me pay more attention to my health, but it didn’t. I knew I was insured and that my medication and glucose meter were paid for.

I also got good treatment at Children’s Hospital in Oakland. In fact, that’s probably my best lead for figuring out my health care situation – simply call an administrator there and ask him to look in my file.

So why haven’t I made the call yet? I think it’s because I’m afraid of what the answer could be. If he tells me I don’t have coverage, I don’t know what I’ll do.