One of the most irritating things about going to the doctors now days is HMOs. Our doctors see us regularly. They know what we need and don’t need most of the time. If they say you need a given kind of medication then you should be able to get that medication. If they say you need a walker or wheelchair you should be able to get one. No ifs, ands or buts about it.
Since HMOs were created doctors no longer have authority on what you should or shouldn’t have without going through a lot of red tape. If the HMO turns down a doctors scrip for medication or for a walker or wheelchair then you will be forced to pay more out of pocket or not receive the anything at all. What people is calling Obamacare will be exactly that kind of thing only worse.
Over time insurance rates will increase more and more. To qualify for things you will be required to jump through even more red tape then ever before.
OK, I hadn’t planned on ranting and raving about HMO or anything on this blog. Kind of got carried away. Before I put this subject away let me explain where it stems from.
Recently, my girlfriend was giving a scrip for a wheelchair. She’s on 6 liters of oxygen due to C.O.P.D. and Congestive Heart disease. When she walks around she has to be turned up to 8 liters (or cc depending on how oxygen is measured). Even on 8 liters of oxygen her levels drop from mid 90s to low 80s, sometimes mid 70s. So a wheelchair will help her get in and out of house, stores, and other places. Right now we’ve been waiting over two weeks to Healthplus, her insurance, to approve her wheelchair. Doctor said she needs one. He wrote the scrip for it and we turned it in. Why should it take so long to get something so important. Thank God she at least still gets her oxygen tanks and machine.
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