Comments on: Reading the fine print http://toastie.st/2009/12/29/reading-the-fine-print/ Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:00:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0 By: Kevin Hartzog http://toastie.st/2009/12/29/reading-the-fine-print/comment-page-1/#comment-11080 Kevin Hartzog Wed, 30 Dec 2009 15:43:40 +0000 http://toastie.st/?p=3652#comment-11080 At least you can get a transplant at Duke. My wife's insurance will only pay for one for her at UNC. We were trying to get on Charlotte's waiting list (its shorter), but insurance will only pay for one hospital to do a transplant evaluation. We are looking at Medicare to see if it will pay to get on a second waiting list. Beware of unpleasant language from some insurance companies for patients after 30 months of dialysis. They almost all expect you to get Medicare as primary insurance by then. We are probably going to get Medicare, which we would have if Medicare didn't kick her out after she had her transplant 3 years. I don't know why Medicare doesn't just pay it all forever, it isn't like there is a cure for ESRD. At least you can get a transplant at Duke. My wife’s insurance will only pay for one for her at UNC. We were trying to get on Charlotte’s waiting list (its shorter), but insurance will only pay for one hospital to do a transplant evaluation. We are looking at Medicare to see if it will pay to get on a second waiting list. Beware of unpleasant language from some insurance companies for patients after 30 months of dialysis. They almost all expect you to get Medicare as primary insurance by then. We are probably going to get Medicare, which we would have if Medicare didn’t kick her out after she had her transplant 3 years. I don’t know why Medicare doesn’t just pay it all forever, it isn’t like there is a cure for ESRD.

]]> By: Toastie http://toastie.st/2009/12/29/reading-the-fine-print/comment-page-1/#comment-11079 Toastie Wed, 30 Dec 2009 06:55:48 +0000 http://toastie.st/?p=3652#comment-11079 Gidge, that's a pretty good plan B if work people would let me do something like that. I guess plan C would be to raise some money. I pretty sure the donor's insurance doesn't cover anything, which makes some sense since it is elective surgery to have an organ removed at no benefit to the donor. Valerie, yeah, I had always thought I had excellent insurance, but now I guess I can consider myself under-insured. Gidge, that’s a pretty good plan B if work people would let me do something like that. I guess plan C would be to raise some money. I pretty sure the donor’s insurance doesn’t cover anything, which makes some sense since it is elective surgery to have an organ removed at no benefit to the donor.

Valerie, yeah, I had always thought I had excellent insurance, but now I guess I can consider myself under-insured.

]]> By: Valerie http://toastie.st/2009/12/29/reading-the-fine-print/comment-page-1/#comment-11078 Valerie Wed, 30 Dec 2009 05:22:28 +0000 http://toastie.st/?p=3652#comment-11078 AAAAAAAAAAA! That is a scream. This is outrageous. AAAAAAAAAAA! That is a scream. This is outrageous.

]]> By: gidge http://toastie.st/2009/12/29/reading-the-fine-print/comment-page-1/#comment-11077 gidge Wed, 30 Dec 2009 04:30:24 +0000 http://toastie.st/?p=3652#comment-11077 F^ck insurance companies.Another loophole Chisti took advantage of once... (though she needed help and assurance from her department boss) somehow she changed work to "part time" status for a month, then resumed full time status, and that somehow qualified as a "qualifying event"... I forget what she did that for, or how she insuranced herself (either got on my plan or cobra'd). She might remember more than I misremember on this. So this 'relative', does their insurance cover their side of the donation, and if so, how much would they be out of pocket (i.e. if needed how much would they need to be reimbursed)? F^ck insurance companies.Another loophole Chisti took advantage of once… (though she needed help and assurance from her department boss) somehow she changed work to “part time” status for a month, then resumed full time status, and that somehow qualified as a “qualifying event”… I forget what she did that for, or how she insuranced herself (either got on my plan or cobra’d). She might remember more than I misremember on this. So this ‘relative’, does their insurance cover their side of the donation, and if so, how much would they be out of pocket (i.e. if needed how much would they need to be reimbursed)?

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