I won't go into the nitty-gritty, tedious details, but in time the insurance company did cover the bills. The whole process has made me exceptionally skittish about insurance companies, and I am fairly certain earned the Murphy family file a red sticker at the insurance company.
I am fortunate that the cancer center I receive treatment at is quite proactive when it comes to dealing with insurance companies. One drug I take every time I have chemo is called Emend. The purpose of Emend is to keep my head out of a bucket and keep me living my life, even while undergoing treatment. My insurance did not deem it necessary and denied the pre-approval. The cancer center pushed back and the Emend was approved.
Emend is a pack of 3 pills. It would cost me almost $500 without insurance. Currently I use one Emend pack each week.
Check out my IV bag of chemo drugs (the one with the orange warning label on it saying to use precautions when touching the bag...makes me feel good as it pumps through my veins!). I call this my $10,000 bag because that is what the cost would be without insurance. $10,000. So far, I have had eight of these treatments (and that doesn't count the four $6,000 treatments I had or the pricey shots I received to keep my white cell count up or the shots I receive to try to control the side-effects of the neuroendocrine cancer).
I don't really know where I am going with this. I am grateful to have insurance through my husband's company - even though I do worry, based on our experience that the rug may be pulled out from under us (even though I know it is not legal). I am grateful to be part of a cancer center that realizes the drugs to maintain normalcy are almost as important as the drugs needed to treat the cancer. I worry for others - patients who are not able to be their own advocates, patients who can't access the drugs they need because of cost, patients who don't have a proactive cancer center behind them.
4 comments:
Meet my friend Suzanne, who, after losing a child and having cancer, is *still* worried about other people. Makes one feel completely inadequate as a human, yet devastatingly grateful at the same time.
Also, there is nothing wrong with being a "red sticker" kind of person. All the outliers are...
I still know a guy... who can still send a letter... with four words... I wonder too what those words would be... but I know if you ever needed them they would get the job done for you. =) xoxo
Keep fighting he good fight, my friend. I'm so glad that loving supporters surround you. See you in the Adirondacks in less than 2 months - yikes!
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