Insurance

[Guest guest]

Lottie: This might be the start of a beautiful friendship (LOL and apologies to

Humphrey Bogart).

Keep up the good fight against Medicare cuts and for improvements

in Medicare. And thanks for all that you do to help CML patients throughout

the world.

Best,

Carl

________________________________

From: Lottie Duthu <lotajam@...>

CML < >

Sent: Thu, September 23, 2010 12:47:58 PM

Subject: [ ] Insurance

I so agree with you Carl, the insurance companies have had their way with us for

far too long. Right after they announced the changes, I was watching another

show that said the insurance companies were going to get around that by refusing

to write policies for certain groups, including children. I think a little jail

time would really do them a lot of good for pulling something like that. They

have already started to jack up the prices they charge, in advance of the Obama

plan kicking in. Doctors are doing likewise, from what I have read.

Now that is downright mean and ugly. Who makes the most money? The insurance

companies and big Pharma, but they show us no mercy. A few companies like

Novartis do help needy patients, but for some when you apply, the bar is so high

that it is not worth the paper it is written on. When I applied for help with

Nexium, I had to wait until November and then they would charge me $25

co-payment, which was about what I was already paying. I would be saving so

little for a month, it wasn't worth all the forms I had to fill out and get the

doctor to sign. The next year would begin the process all over again. I finally

stopped taking Nexium, it was just one more drug I wanted to see if I could do

without. So far I am not having a problem, and its been 2 years since I took

that little purple pill.

I'm wondering if anyone else had a similiar experience when applying for

assistance. Now when I apply for help with medicine, if I have Plan D, I am

automatically disqualified, right at the top of the page, so at least I don't

have to fill in the forms and then send it in to find out I am not eligible.

I was supposed to get assistance from one company, but it put me in the donut

hole and my co-pay was $1700. How they can get into my insurance account and

charge without my knowledge, I don't know, but they got their medicine back, I

refused it.

Honestly, from what I have experienced, I think you have to be homeless and not

earn a red cent to qualify for some of these so called patient assistance

programs. That in itself is good, but they set the bar too high for some or

most of us to benefit from their benevolence. When this company agreed to " give "

it to me after I appealed my case, my old oncologist refused to sign the papers,

he wanted me to go to " that place in Houston where I go " . Now that was uncalled

for and the straw that broke the camel's back. I found another oncologist, but

I had to go out of town.

The problem I now have is that if I am hospitalized, he is the guy who will be

on my case at the hospital. I now hope I have time to get to the hospital out

of town to see my own oncologist. I could turn him in, but he will still be the

doctor they will call if I go to the hospital. The way I see it, we still have

a long way to go. Maybe we could have a different policy once we contract

cancer, so we will be treated equally for the disease whether we have money or

not and not be limited because we have Plan D. We are not on welfare and we do

pay a lot for insurance and takes a big chunk out of our SS checks.

On another note, doctors don't keep secrets better than lay people. The

doctors that knew I changed oncologists wanted to know why and kept plying until

I told them. They said they wouldn't tell anyone, but within a week that doctor

had changed his tune and started talking to us again, like we were long lost

friends. Now even the medical profession knew about his behavio and he was

shamed. When he refused to sign the papers, I brought them to my family doctor,

who then called the oncologist with my permission. That really pissed him off

even more and it got nastier. He became angry when I went to MDACC and never

got over it, but that was in 2000. All the people I met in his office with CML

have all died and I am the last survivor of my group who were patients when I

was there. Who is the nerd here and who is getting the last laugh?

Carpe diem,

Lottie Duthu

[Guest guest]

WoW Lottie: you really said a mouthful there, and you are right on target with

it all. I am on Nexium, and I am paying $80.00 for a 90 day supply, and 2

others with a $80.00 co-pay, plus my Gleevec and all my husbands meds, but if

you try to get help they do not break down what you are paying for all your

meds, plus all your living expenses too. They go by the yearly salary. That

makes me laugh too, because if they broke it all down they would wonder how I am

even living. Its all getting so out of hand. I do not see a solution in the

near future. I give up, and gave it all to God to Handle.

>

> I so agree with you Carl, the insurance companies have had their way with us

for far too long. Right after they announced the changes, I was watching

another show that said the insurance companies were going to get around that by

refusing to write policies for certain groups, including children. I think a

little jail time would really do them a lot of good for pulling something like

that. They have already started to jack up the prices they charge, in advance

of the Obama plan kicking in. Doctors are doing likewise, from what I have read.

>

> Now that is downright mean and ugly. Who makes the most money? The insurance

companies and big Pharma, but they show us no mercy. A few companies like

Novartis do help needy patients, but for some when you apply, the bar is so high

that it is not worth the paper it is written on. When I applied for help with

Nexium, I had to wait until November and then they would charge me $25

co-payment, which was about what I was already paying. I would be saving so

little for a month, it wasn't worth all the forms I had to fill out and get the

doctor to sign. The next year would begin the process all over again. I finally

stopped taking Nexium, it was just one more drug I wanted to see if I could do

without. So far I am not having a problem, and its been 2 years since I took

that little purple pill.

>

> I'm wondering if anyone else had a similiar experience when applying for

assistance. Now when I apply for help with medicine, if I have Plan D, I am

automatically disqualified, right at the top of the page, so at least I don't

have to fill in the forms and then send it in to find out I am not eligible.

>

> I was supposed to get assistance from one company, but it put me in the donut

hole and my co-pay was $1700. How they can get into my insurance account and

charge without my knowledge, I don't know, but they got their medicine back, I

refused it.

>

> Honestly, from what I have experienced, I think you have to be homeless and

not earn a red cent to qualify for some of these so called patient assistance

programs. That in itself is good, but they set the bar too high for some or

most of us to benefit from their benevolence. When this company agreed to " give "

it to me after I appealed my case, my old oncologist refused to sign the papers,

he wanted me to go to " that place in Houston where I go " . Now that was uncalled

for and the straw that broke the camel's back. I found another oncologist, but

I had to go out of town.

>

> The problem I now have is that if I am hospitalized, he is the guy who will be

on my case at the hospital. I now hope I have time to get to the hospital out

of town to see my own oncologist. I could turn him in, but he will still be the

doctor they will call if I go to the hospital. The way I see it, we still have

a long way to go. Maybe we could have a different policy once we contract

cancer, so we will be treated equally for the disease whether we have money or

not and not be limited because we have Plan D. We are not on welfare and we do

pay a lot for insurance and takes a big chunk out of our SS checks.

>

>

> On another note, doctors don't keep secrets better than lay people. The

doctors that knew I changed oncologists wanted to know why and kept plying until

I told them. They said they wouldn't tell anyone, but within a week that doctor

had changed his tune and started talking to us again, like we were long lost

friends. Now even the medical profession knew about his behavio and he was

shamed. When he refused to sign the papers, I brought them to my family doctor,

who then called the oncologist with my permission. That really pissed him off

even more and it got nastier. He became angry when I went to MDACC and never

got over it, but that was in 2000. All the people I met in his office with CML

have all died and I am the last survivor of my group who were patients when I

was there. Who is the nerd here and who is getting the last laugh?

>

> Carpe diem,

> Lottie Duthu

>

>

[Guest guest]

I spent 2 hours looking up insurance for several countries on how they operated

and collected funds to create national healthcare. I left it in my inbox

overnight thinking I was going to finish and send it today. My computer was

closed down to bring my programs up to date and I lost it. I tried to restore

my last session, but it was nowhere to be found. I looked at my files and it

was nowhere to be found there, either. Any idea of how I can recover that

information. There was no name on the address line, so it didn't go to anyone,

but I would like to retrieve all that information. Is it possible?

Thanx,

Lottie Duthu

[Guest guest]

Dear Lottie, that is awful after all that work! The email should have been

saved under " Drafts " , did you look there?

In Australia we really are the lucky country in terms of our Medicare where

we pay around 1.5% tax surcharge ~ may be more, but as my husband is on a

full disability pension and me his carer I'm not sure what it is now as we

don't pay tax. We get all our meds heavily discounted ie $5.45 per script

with a maximum cap per calendar year of $1500 which we had already spent by

the end of June and now get all our scripts for free. All our hospital care

is free, which includes attendance at ERs, blood transfusions etc which I

find obscene in the US where you have to get people to donate to get

credits " . The normal PBS scripts we pay $34.50 - or somewhere around there

(you would call co pay) with the maximum of $1500 then the scripts are free.

If you require home help after a hospitalisation, you can also receive 1-2

hours of care a week for 4 weeks in some states.

Then you can choose to go private and pay to use private hospitals and dodge

the public hospital waiting lists. In the rural area where I live we are

generally fortunate with waiting lists around 3-6 months, while in

metropolitan areas can be upwards of 2 years depending on classified

category.

Cheers

-- [ ] Insurance

I spent 2 hours looking up insurance for several countries on how they

operated and collected funds to create national healthcare. I left it in my

inbox overnight thinking I was going to finish and send it today. My

computer was closed down to bring my programs up to date and I lost it. I

tried to restore my last session, but it was nowhere to be found. I looked

at my files and it was nowhere to be found there, either. Any idea of how I

can recover that information. There was no name on the address line, so it

didn't go to anyone, but I would like to retrieve all that information. Is

it possible?

Thanx,

Lottie Duthu

[Guest guest]

Lottie

what a great article, I am a heavy user of the Canadian Health Care System.  I

have never paid a penny for all the

hospital visits, (I do have private health care but do not need it), I have a

private health and dental plan,

last year I was in the hospital at least 10 times each and every time it was

free to me.  I receive blood at least once

a week and platelets most weeks twice.  I lost count how many bone marrow;s I

have had, no cost to me.

I have nurses for my infusions (HGB and PLTs) who treat me like I was a

relative, I have a doctor who calls

me at home if I am unwell just to make sure I am OK.  My EOL is with people who

care about me.

Truly I am a lucky man.  Just wish it was easier on my wife and family.

SkipD

dx,ed 34 years this December