Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Money, The Root of everything CML - and then some

Ok, I am just going to type and get it all out of my system.  Kind of like yelling, screaming and crying all at the same time. 
I am on Sprycel, and because of my crappy insurance I have to get it from their mail order pharmacy.  They don't pay for all of it (of course not) so I had to look around and try and find a supplement company that would assist me..  I don't even make 20thousand a year and with my other meds. I need all the help I can get.  Any way I digress.
Before they will send me my prescription every month I need to go through a 20-30 minute question and answer session with them.  Name, address, DOB, zip code, last of your SS number, phone number, e-mail address, insurance number, doctors name, drug name, amount, strength of dose, what day do you want it delivered and the list goes on.  This is even after my oncologist has given them a prescription for multiple months.
So after this great conversation it is set up for delivery.  Then today they call and say that the company that is suppose to assist me with my payments has rejected the prescription.  I ask why, they say we don't know.  I ask "Well did you ask them why?"  The person I am talking to says "it is MY responsibility to ask them why".  Then I am told there is no problem with my account with them or with the assistant company I am approved for assistance until June of next year.  But for some reason, there is a problem.  I ask again, "Did you ask them what was the reason it was denied?  "No, I didn't, so how are you going to pay for this", they ask.  I ask if they are going to send my prescription while they are waiting to get this all straightened out.  (It should be here tomorrow).  We will bill you.  By now I am upset and hot and tired.  I tell them I can not afford to pay for my meds. and even if they bill me I can't pay it, please get with my prescription assistance program and find out what is the problem, because you have told me every thing is correct with both you and them,  All the t's are crossed and the i's doted.
I am passed upset by this time because the tell me they are not going to ship my medication until they get this straightened out.  Well that prompted me to tell them that they would rather keep making this go round and round till the CML kills me, because they then they don't have to pay for anything.  The person on the phone was not happy with that statement, but I wasn't really very happy at that point either. We'll call you back the person tells me. I am not holding my breath.
I call the supplemental company and they call the drug company, now we are on a three way call and the finger pointing goes on and on,
Is my prescription on the way to me you ask.  No, is the answer.  After an hour and a half on the phone, everyone who could "take care of this" for me has already left for the day.  But, "we'll get on it first thing in the morning."  Is it any wonder I want to eat a half gallon of ice cream.  If I had it I would. LOL.
Since when does money matter more than someones health?  That is really a rhetorical question, because unfortunately people are so much more interested in money, money, money rather than their fellow man, or in this case, woman.  No wonder our country is in such bad shape right now.  I wonder how these same people I talked to today would feel if it were their mother, sister, wife, daughter, aunt, (and so on) having this much trouble getting the medication that is keeping them alive.      
Ok, I have ranted enough for now. Thanks for reading.

2 comments:

  1. Hey, Have you tried Destination Access? They pay for my meds 110%
    http://cmlleukemia.blogspot.com/2011/05/dasatinib-sprycel-dosage-cut-in-half.html

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