We had a nice three day weekend. Friday, we went up to Colorado Springs to take my car for its maintenance to the Sa.turn dealership since the one here in town closed. We then headed up the hill to Cripple Creek to try our hands at the higher stakes and new games, Roulette and Craps. I still played the penny slots, but Hubby played the Roulette and three card poker. I ended up spending only about $90 for the day, which isn't too bad.
Saturday, we went over to Hubby's aunt and uncle's house for lunch. Then we came back to our house where we catered for my family. Two nice meals in one day. We shot off fireworks without having to worry about anything catching on fire since it had rained most of the day.
Sunday we went to the reservoir to celebrate Hubby's niece's 17th birthday. We were only there an hour before the heavy rainstorm drove everyone away. Which was good, because I couldn't handle watching the two-week old infant being passed around to everyone. One lady (the grandma I think) asked me if I wanted to see the baby. I tried to say no, something about it sleeping, but she still got the kid up to show off. Thank God she didn't ask if I wanted to hold him.
We saw some white tail deer last evening when we headed out to see Hubby's parents. Normally, mule deer hang out in this area of the state, so it was a treat to see the white tails. Three bucks and one doe.
I got good news today. I'm getting most of what I paid to my RE back because my insurance ended up covering more than I thought it would. My credit card will appreciate that.
Showing posts with label insurance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label insurance. Show all posts
Monday, July 6, 2009
Friday, May 15, 2009
Day 2
I dragged my butt out of bed this morning at 5:09, so I could hit the road by 6:00. I managed to be on the interstate by about 6:10, so I hauled ass up to Denver for my appointment at 7:45. It never fails to amaze me that I always get there early, no matter how close I think I'm cutting it. I was there by 7:30. I figured that was good so I could be back on the road soon as I had my acupuncture appointment at 10:00.
I go in, get my blood drawn, go upstairs and sign in. The receptionist tells me I have a balance due of almost $7,500! WTF???? I say that this is news to me. I mistakenly thought that since I have insurance, that they would bill the insurance carrier as we go along, the insurance would do their thing, and then I'd get an EOB stating how much I owe. Um, no, that's not how it works.
After a bit of arguing and tears (damn those tears), I got them to agree to only charge me (at this time) what my insurance out of pocket maximum is, which is $3,000. Thank God I had my credit card with me. So, red eyed, streaked face, I go in for my ultra sound, not really looking forward to it.
It was a breeze! My left ovary has never behaved so well! The tech said it was hanging right there, clear as day. That was a welcome change. It normally hides behind my uterus and is painful to find. My lining is nice and thin, they way they want it on day 2. My ovaries are cyst free. So that is good.
Now I'm just waiting for the call back to make sure my blood work is acceptable and that we can get started. I sure hope so, because while I was there, I went ahead and had the nurse mix my Saizen. Heck, if I knew it was going to be that easy, I could have done it myself. She had told me that it had to be mixed into a separate vial, which the pharmacy hadn't provided. All she did was take out 5 ml of the water and dump it out, then mix a little with the powder, and put it back in. Assuming I need to order my second vial, I'll know what to do with that one.
I ended up about 10 minutes late to my acupuncture appointment. When I first laid down, it was nice to relax, but after she inserted the needles, there was no more relaxing. I just couldn't settle down. I tried not to think too much about the money issue, as I didn't want to get upset again. I couldn't really do any visualizing. So I just played a lot with the pillow and the head rest. When she came to take the needles out, she said that three of the four in my ear had reacted, meaning that they bled. She said that my adrenals really reacted. I asked what adrenals were, and she said something to the effect that they help us to get healthier. To be honest, I really didn't get it, even after she explained it. The only thing I could think was that maybe it was the stress of the morning that caused them to react.
Now I just wait. I'll be carrying my cell phone with me where ever I go in the office this afternoon. Don't want to miss the call.
I go in, get my blood drawn, go upstairs and sign in. The receptionist tells me I have a balance due of almost $7,500! WTF???? I say that this is news to me. I mistakenly thought that since I have insurance, that they would bill the insurance carrier as we go along, the insurance would do their thing, and then I'd get an EOB stating how much I owe. Um, no, that's not how it works.
After a bit of arguing and tears (damn those tears), I got them to agree to only charge me (at this time) what my insurance out of pocket maximum is, which is $3,000. Thank God I had my credit card with me. So, red eyed, streaked face, I go in for my ultra sound, not really looking forward to it.
It was a breeze! My left ovary has never behaved so well! The tech said it was hanging right there, clear as day. That was a welcome change. It normally hides behind my uterus and is painful to find. My lining is nice and thin, they way they want it on day 2. My ovaries are cyst free. So that is good.
Now I'm just waiting for the call back to make sure my blood work is acceptable and that we can get started. I sure hope so, because while I was there, I went ahead and had the nurse mix my Saizen. Heck, if I knew it was going to be that easy, I could have done it myself. She had told me that it had to be mixed into a separate vial, which the pharmacy hadn't provided. All she did was take out 5 ml of the water and dump it out, then mix a little with the powder, and put it back in. Assuming I need to order my second vial, I'll know what to do with that one.
I ended up about 10 minutes late to my acupuncture appointment. When I first laid down, it was nice to relax, but after she inserted the needles, there was no more relaxing. I just couldn't settle down. I tried not to think too much about the money issue, as I didn't want to get upset again. I couldn't really do any visualizing. So I just played a lot with the pillow and the head rest. When she came to take the needles out, she said that three of the four in my ear had reacted, meaning that they bled. She said that my adrenals really reacted. I asked what adrenals were, and she said something to the effect that they help us to get healthier. To be honest, I really didn't get it, even after she explained it. The only thing I could think was that maybe it was the stress of the morning that caused them to react.
Now I just wait. I'll be carrying my cell phone with me where ever I go in the office this afternoon. Don't want to miss the call.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Thank God for insurance!
I went online to check to see if my insurance company had processed my medications (not actually expecting them to yet). Low and behold, they have! And I about choked!
My medications (not including the Saizen, as it hasn't been processed yet - needs pre-authorization because it is a growth hormone so it may not actually be covered) cost $5,899.88. My copayments total $154.98. I am so thankful to have this insurance. My ART benefit is $10,000 lifetime maximum, but I have found that things like my medications, u/s, and b/w do not apply to this maximum. It is only the actual ART procedures that apply. I just called Hubby to give him this figure and he said that if insurance didn't pick it up, that we wouldn't have any kids.
The list includes:
Drug name - total cost - my copay
Medrol tab - $45.82 - $40
Bravelle - $2,649.14 - $25
Dexamethason - $4.98 - $4.98
PIO - $64.32 - $10
Ganirelix - $391.04 - $10
Climara - $45.44 - $40
Menopur - $2,674.14 - $25
It seems funny that the most expensive of the medications falls under the preferred drug list, which has the $25 copay, and some of the least expensive medications fall under the non-preferred drug list with a $40 copay. Doesn't really make sense, other than the insurance company must have some really good contracts with the pharmaceutical companies for these to be preferred.
On a related but different note, as many of you know, I'm in the insurance industry (I'm an agent - I sell insurance). One of our larger clients is currently putting together the specifications for their insurance plan for 2010 that we will be bidding out. One of the things that we will be getting pricing on is infertility services. I hope that I'm able to negotiate a good price for them so that others can be helped. Colorado doesn't have mandated IF coverage, and I don't see that happening any time soon, especially given the fact that our budget is so tight and we're struggling to provide coverage for those without insurance, much less adding additional mandates which increase the cost of insurance. We'll see how it goes.
My medications (not including the Saizen, as it hasn't been processed yet - needs pre-authorization because it is a growth hormone so it may not actually be covered) cost $5,899.88. My copayments total $154.98. I am so thankful to have this insurance. My ART benefit is $10,000 lifetime maximum, but I have found that things like my medications, u/s, and b/w do not apply to this maximum. It is only the actual ART procedures that apply. I just called Hubby to give him this figure and he said that if insurance didn't pick it up, that we wouldn't have any kids.
The list includes:
Drug name - total cost - my copay
Medrol tab - $45.82 - $40
Bravelle - $2,649.14 - $25
Dexamethason - $4.98 - $4.98
PIO - $64.32 - $10
Ganirelix - $391.04 - $10
Climara - $45.44 - $40
Menopur - $2,674.14 - $25
It seems funny that the most expensive of the medications falls under the preferred drug list, which has the $25 copay, and some of the least expensive medications fall under the non-preferred drug list with a $40 copay. Doesn't really make sense, other than the insurance company must have some really good contracts with the pharmaceutical companies for these to be preferred.
On a related but different note, as many of you know, I'm in the insurance industry (I'm an agent - I sell insurance). One of our larger clients is currently putting together the specifications for their insurance plan for 2010 that we will be bidding out. One of the things that we will be getting pricing on is infertility services. I hope that I'm able to negotiate a good price for them so that others can be helped. Colorado doesn't have mandated IF coverage, and I don't see that happening any time soon, especially given the fact that our budget is so tight and we're struggling to provide coverage for those without insurance, much less adding additional mandates which increase the cost of insurance. We'll see how it goes.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
