Of prescriptions, Cobra coverage and living without insurance......

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     This Friday I had an appointment with our new family physician.....I had waited 3 months for it, and of course as you may already be aware, Romeo was laid off 2 weeks ago and our insurance expired at midnight of his last day of work.  I discovered that his employer did not take the insurance premiums out at the front end but the back end.  I suspect it is to prevent a flurry of Dr's appointments and lab work ~ exactly what I did, assuming we had coverage until the end of the week.  

     I still had not heard anything about the Cobra plan, and armed with the knowledge that I would pay $95 for the visit, headed off to discuss a more direct treatment for the occassional debilitating migraines I get.  You know, the kind where I have to call Romero or our son to come get me because I can't drive...I also was so out of it I couldn't even explain where I was on the UNM campus.  

     The Dr. is a very nice man, and quite understanding.  The nurse asked me a bunch of questions about my health, then announced she was putting in lab orders for blood work, which I promptly explained I would not get because I currently don't have any insurance.  She looked at me with disdain.  I should have said that I would be happy to get the recommended tests if she wanted to pay for it.  Ha ha.

     Together we decided on an injectible treatment, which he said might be rather expensive, but he looked online and said he saw an option for $65, which I agreed I could manage.  However, when the pharmacy called to tell me it was ready and I asked how much it was, they said it was $175.00, and after some rather boring back and forth discussions with someone at the Dr's office, they finally offered that I could print up a coupon from Good Rx that would discount the medication to $85.  To say that I was skeptical is an understatement.  But, I took the coupon I printed and did get it for $85, which really beats the pants off of $175.  I hope that Good Rx can keep up the good work, because otherwise I could not (or would not) pay that much more two doses of migraine medication.

     The Cobra info came in on Friday afternoon, and it looks like it would cost $850 for 3 months, and apparently is not quite the same as the previous coverage.  I need to find out more about what is covered, and also check with the folks who did my mammogram and ultrasound for the total cost.  I doubt seriously that the vision coverage would be included as part of the medical, but I need to ask that too.  

     My Mom is doing better, and sounds much more her normal self on the phone.  While enjoying happy hour with a friend, I mentioned the Sundowner syndrome Mom experienced following her pain medication treatment and anesthesia, and she immediately said "Oh, she has dementia"...which I had not recalled being part of her diagnosis.   I have read that experiencing the symptoms following surgery is generally a temporary affair.  Truthfully I was quite taken aback with her quick diagnosis....but to be fair, her husband has early onset alzheimer's, and she knows a lot more about tha than I do (and ever hope to).   Still, given my experience with Mom ~ albeit from a distance ~ I would say she is not suffering from dementia ~ at least not now, which I am thankful.

     Now I want you to ask me if I've been working on my research paper.  My answer: not at all.  :-)

Love, 365