Prescription Needed?

[BowelMeOver]

Even though my husband's surgery isn't until Aug 30th, I have been very proactive in ordering a ton of samples from the main suppliers of ostomy products and have had no trouble so far.

I was also interested in ordering some other products, such as support belts and skin barriers, so I called my insurance company, which is BCBS, to ask if I had to wait until after his surgery to be covered for these products, or if having the approval letter for the surgery itself was good enough.

What she said really surprised me, and I'm interested in knowing if this is a common course of action for Ostomates. She said that these products would be covered under Durable Medical Equipment, but that I would need a prescription from a doctor in order for anything to be covered. Does this mean for every single item, and for each time that I need them? Do you have to pay the co-pay and visit your doctor each month, even though you are healthy, just to get a prescription for things we will need, possibly for the rest of our lives?

Please, say it ain't so! :eek2:

 

[2thFairy]

In the US, if you want insurance to cover supplies, you will need a prescription for this. If I need something, I order it from the medical equipment supplier (in my case, Edgepark) and they contact the doctor for a prescription. After they get the prescription, they run it through the insurance company. I haven't visited my stoma prescibing doctor in about 18 months because I haven't had a need to see him, but all supply issues have been handled over the phone without an office visit charge.

 

[2thFairy]

I should add that my prescribing doctor sets up each thing for a year at a time, but if I want to try something new, then Edgepark (the supplier I use) will contact the doctor for approval.