[Diabetes-talk] medicare and test strips

[Mike Freeman]

Lynn et al:

I understand. Although I have some philosophical problems with such an
approach, I'd be willing to accept it *if* meter manufacturers would provide
a way to exclude tagged testing results from calculations of averages etc.
or, alternatively, would allow deletion of results while accumulating actual
strip usage in a (perhaps hidden) variable that would be transferred in any
meter download. Ultimately, however, this sort of thing angers me to the
quick since doctors, CDEs, insurers and the like, appear to be wanting to
have their cake and eat it, too. That is, on the one hand, we are told again
and again and again that diabetes is primarily a disease of personal
management with advice and support from medical personnel. Yet on the other
hand, we are told we aren't responsible to handle our data ourselves in that
we might cherry-pick results or might cheet, getting more strips and
reselling them. I'm sorry but one can't have it both ways -- either we trust
patients or we don't! I'm sorry but this bothers me in a lot of things going
on these days in the world -- we all seem to want institutionalized
hypocrisy -- being able to have it both ways -- being deemed responsible
when it suits us and being declared incompetent when that suits us. I'm
sorry but as Heinlein said: THERE AIN'T NO SUCH THING AS A FREE LUNCH!

I guess it also bothers me that we are forced to turn in imperfect results
when there appears to be very little work being done by meter manufacturers
to ensure perfect readings *every* time with no mistakes. When was the last
time you encountered a machine that always worked perfectly? And we -- the
patients -- are the ones getting the shaft!

Mike


-----Original Message-----
From: diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org
[mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Lynn Baillif
Sent: Sunday, June 19, 2011 1:38 PM
To: diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org
Subject: [Diabetes-talk] medicare and test strips

Hi Everyone,
just want to add my two cents.  Probably 7 years ago, the endocrinology
practice I worked for, required the medical assistant to download meters
whenever someone came to visit the endo.  Part of the reason for this was to
document the number of times per day folks were testing so the appropriate
amount of strips were perscribed.  In the event that Medicare audited the
practice, this information was needed. 
Lynn

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