• Welcome to Crohn's Forum, a support group for people with all forms of IBD. While this community is not a substitute for doctor's advice and we cannot treat or diagnose, we find being able to communicate with others who have IBD is invaluable as we navigate our struggles and celebrate our successes. We invite you to join us.

I hate the medical community right now

So .. Blue Cross denied Pill Cam #5 ... I'm not really surprised. My GI is working with Given Imaging to see if they will donate one to me but she's not hopeful.

So I emailed her and laid out my situation which is thus:

I am on unemployment and I'm already on my "extension" which runs out in approx 3 months, this is how I pay for my Cobra insurance from my former employer. It costs 500.00 a month. When unemployment runs out, I have no way to pay for insurance. My parents have the facilities to do so but I don't feel it's their responsibility to do it and I'm not going to ask them to.

Beyond that, if I am able to fund my insurance, it runs out effective 2/2010 and given how long this has gone on with various doctors doing tests and re-tests and trying medications and such ... who knows if they'll have a firm hard diagnosis by next february. I am applying for jobs but the market is not very good here right now and if you add on the fact that I'm still NOT healthy .. well it's not a pretty picture.

So I asked my doc if she'd refer me to a Hematologist since she mentioned that might be worth doing since my blood work indicates a possible bone marrow/immune deficiency ... she declined wanting to get this capsule study done first .... hoping I guess that maybe they'll see something ... that they didn't see in #4 but they did in #3 ... and treat it as Crohns despite the accumulating evidence that it might not be or might be but other issues along with it (the IgG deficiency I had to ASK THEM to test for ) being one of them.

I am by no means any worse off then anyone else here. There are plenty of you that I read your stories and my heart just breaks for you. In my selfish mind though, I feel I deserve at least a solid someone will stick behind it diagnosis and treatment plan. I feel though that at this point, I'm going to have to collapse and be near death for anyone in the medical community to take me seriously and I hate to admit this but I've broken down in tears twice in the past 3 weeks, I _never_ cry, it's just not something I do but damnit if this isn't finally wearing me down to the point of emotional breakdown.

Thanks for listening (reading actually to be accurate heh)
 
I am sorry you are in such a bad situation. Our medical system works reasonably well until the insurance is gone. Then it is a no mans land. Especially for men.

I do not know the requirements for Medical Assistance in your state, but I would look into it, before your insurance runs out. Possibly you would qualify. You do not want a break in coverage, if it can be avoided.

The job market is rather tough most places, but it is not as bad as I have seen it in the 80's. Keep at it, even though it is a miserable process.

I really hope they can come up with a solid diagnosis. Not knowing is a worse case scenario. It is hard to fight an enemy you cannot identify.

Hang tough, things have a way of working themselves out for the persistent. A little bullheadedness does not hurt either.

Dan
 

My Butt Hurts

Squeals-a-lot!
I totally agree with Dan on the opinion that you need to stay persistant. No one is going to call you - you have to keep asking for what you want.
Also, as a parent I can be sure that your parents would MUCH rather pay to continue your Cobra insurance than see you without it. You may feel that it isn't their responsibility, but trust me that they want to help you out as much as they can.

I believe that if you let your insurance lapse, it won't even kick in right away with a new job. Best to do everything you can to keep it, even if you have to swallow your pride with your parent's help.

You've been on one heck of a long hellish road, but you are possibly closer than you have been to a diagnosis, with your own research.
We're all here for you and hoping something will happen for you soon.
 
drew_wymore said:
I feel though that at this point, I'm going to have to collapse and be near death for anyone in the medical community to take me seriously
I'm sorry, Drew :(. *hugs* Don't give up though, I know it probably sounds cliche, but you're stronger than you probably think.

(and your quote is creepy in the way that I've been saying that a lot lately myself, almost word for word!)
 
I agree with all, and especially Dan and MBH, because the whole COBRA thing is one fight I don't want to enter myself, "pre-existing conditions" scares the hell out of me.

You are a strong one Drew, and though you've been up and down the "medication block" like I have, your Dx isn't concrete yet, so, I suppose it's possible, that you may end up with something MORE treatable than Crohns. The light is darkest just before the dawn, you might be closer to the dawn than you think.

I know you typically don't but IMO, real men will cry at times, and that includes me. I believe holding it in because "that's what you're supposed to do" to be a weaker act, because you've succumb to the standards others have given you instead of doing what you feel like doing.
 
Thank you everyone for your kind words of support and encouragement. It means a lot. It's very cliche but this is _not_ exactly how I expected to spend my life. I was in a fast track job doing really well for myself and things seemed like they were going where I wanted after plenty of obstacles in my childhood/teenage years and all of the sudden BAM this hits me like a ton of bricks. I don't want to whine and be like whoa is me. I figure there is a reason for all of this happening, I just haven't figured out what it is yet.

I do know of 1 specific reason that even if it is not Crohns that I am glad I found the forum though. It was almost as if I was drawn here.
 
I'm sorry drew! I did have a dream last night about you and Benson and Mike. You found out that you had Crohn's and got your diagnosis, Benson found a new drug that put him into remission and the same new drug took away Mike's pg. You also took the new drug and achieved remission. That's the gist of it anyways.... it was weird in between. But then again I can't have normal dreams.

I second and third the whole "keep your insurance" thing... a lapse in coverage isn't something you wanna deal with having a pre-existing condition.
 
Wish there was something I could do for you Drew. Hang in there though. I can tell you're really strong. Like MBH said, you've got to be getting closer to the bottom of things now. You know more now than you did before. So like Ben says, maybe you're finally about to get somewhere, yeah? I know it doesn't really feel that way, but hang in there, and I'll be praying for you.
 

My Butt Hurts

Squeals-a-lot!
katiesue1506 said:
I did have a dream last night about you and Benson and Mike.
I have that SAME exact dream, like, all the time!! Well, except Mike and Benson aren't in it - just Drew. And well, there is no new drug. But besides that - it's the same dream!
 
missed this thread before, just catching up now.

crappers drew. as if feeling like hell werent enough, but you have to worry about insurance nightmares on top of it.
thats one thing ive always been thankful for, having this at a young age, my parents handle all the things like that. when i get to a point that i cant figure things out or fight for myself anymore- my parents do it for me.
i cant imagine having to be totally self sufficeint in this mess. i wouldnt make it, thats for sure.

i agree with you with the "theres a reason for this" mentality. it makes us stronger, better people with a unique perspective. but sometimes gets to a point like "come ON. what else do i have to learn now?!"
i try to remember that no matter how bad it gets, always some good will come out of it. the whole pheonix rise from the ashes bit, sometimes is a picture i hold in my head to remind myself that out of crumbles good can be born. have even considered getting a tattoo of one to always remember.

just know that we are all here for you. and like you just said, it is crohns that brought us all here, so that is something at least.
 
Cobra

this is how I pay for my Cobra insurance from my former employer. It costs 500.00 a month. QUOTE]
Drew, I had same issue with Cobra and couldn't affored. The president has passed a Cobra aid bill. I contacted Federal DOH for more info and then my
former employer. They were going to charge me the same, 500 buck a month.
After I talked with them and the DOH I now pay 169 monthly. You should check
the guildlines. Don't accept what your employer is just saying as they may have
their own agenda for not exploring bout that.
 
Well some good news.

Given Imaging (the maker of the pill cam) has donated one to me for this study and a doctor at the Uni has donated his time to read the results (since insurance won't pay any part of it). I got the news late this evening and I'm happy. It's one less thing to deal with right now.

I also got a flyer in the mail from unemployment about the Cobra thing. So I'm going to call the insurance company in the morning and get the ball rolling on that. I read through the DOL FAQ's and if you paid the full amount after Feb 17th (which I have for the months of March and April) that you can get that as a refund or credit towards future payments along with the reduction. So ... I might not have to pay my premium this month given that the credit would cover this months payment and actually next months too. So that is a relief as well.

The Uni is waiting for the capsule to be delivered from Given and then they'll call to schedule me to have it done. From what I was told it should be sometime next week that I get it done.

@Katiesue ... don't tell Bruce about your Crohnie Sausage fest of a dream. He might freak out.

@MBH .. I will save this one =p
 

My Butt Hurts

Squeals-a-lot!
drew_wymore said:
Well some good news.

Given Imaging (the maker of the pill cam) has donated one to me for this study..
Donated pill cam - that's amazing! Congrats on finding that out!

But.... I hope it's not like, a refurbished one or something... Maybe already used?? :eek: Haha - think of THAT when you're swallowing that sucker down!
 
I called BCBS and they said that my former employer had said I was not eligible for the credit, I contacted my former employer and they figured it out and contact BCBS and now I will pay the reduced rate and be credited for the 2 months where I paid the full amount. So I can actually save _some_ money .. so it's been a good week.
 
I had major medical bill issues I'm sill resolving. I got on medicaid luckily after my unemployment ran out and a very nice dr. helped me out. I did bankruptcy for the rest of the bills. I had ALOT of medical debt, surgeries are very expensive and my credit was already in the negative.

Anyway, you'll find a way, sounds like you already got a plan going. I'm getting good medical care today and I'm debt free and happily rebuilding my financial life. I never thought that could happen. Now if I could just get a week of constipation while on vacation I'd think I was in heaven.
 
Drew... thanks for venting. You do have a right to vent no matter what. One of my problems is comparing myself to someone else. That someone else is worse off than me. i still deserve to vent for myself.
I had and still ave lots of resentments towards the medical community. Once I accepted tha i wasn't getting all that I needed from them, I started going else where. this lead me to soem great peopel in complimetary therapies. Reiki, Chiropractic, Cranio Sacral therapy, yoga, Accupuncture...and most people were willing to give me cut rate help. One person gave me free treatments once a week for 8 months !! Mostly it was a lot of emotional / mental help that helped me cope.
I encourage anyone to think or look oputside your comfort zone. Take a risk.. it might work.
 
Top