[Diabetes-Talk] Oh insurance mess!

Wed Feb 1 01:24:24 UTC 2017

And I just referred to you as G, Tom, LOL! A slip of the fingers, or
something.

-----Original Message-----
From: Diabetes-Talk [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Tom Ley via Diabetes-Talk
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2017 2:38 PM
To: diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org
Cc: TALey at ups.com
Subject: Re: [Diabetes-Talk] Oh insurance mess!

Veronica, 
My mistake to assume you used the pump the same way I do. I only ever use
the audio bolus function. Sorry about that. Good luck. 
Tom

-----Original Message-----
From: Diabetes-Talk [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Veronica Elsea via Diabetes-Talk
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2017 3:16 PM
To: 'Diabetes Talk for the Blind' <diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Veronica Elsea <veronica at laurelcreekmusic.com>
Subject: Re: [Diabetes-Talk] Oh insurance mess!

No, they are not the same. The correction bolus is very different and that
is important to me. I sat here in my house in December and worked with both
pumps. To give a correction bolus on the Ping, you enter your BG manually,
then the pump shows how much insulin it thinks you need. At that point you
have to hit the up-arrow key till the number on the display matches.
Obviously this is out for us. On the Vibe, you enter your BG reading, the
pump shows what it thinks you need, just as in the Ping. But when you hit
the up-arrow, it now selects that amount. So we still can't read the amount
but we can use the feature if we so choose. And since I so choose, that's a
big difference for me. And it's ridiculous to not have what I want because
everyone else was in too big of a hurry to go to bat for me. Not to mention,
having to fight for a pump I don't really want in the first place. <grin>
But no matter what I do, it now has to go through appeals which are not
fast. So we'll see what happens. Guess I'm just stubborn and I think I'm
worth it. <grin> Stay tuned!
Veronica

"Guide Dogs, First Hand", Veronica Elsea's classic album is now available on
iTunes, along with other music from her and from the Guide Dog Glee Club. 
To learn more, visit:
http://www.laurelcreekmusic.com
                Veronica Elsea, Owner
Laurel Creek Music Designs
Santa Cruz, California
Phone: 831-429-6407

-----Original Message-----
From: Diabetes-Talk [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Tom Ley via Diabetes-Talk
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2017 11:39 AM
To: diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org
Cc: TALey at ups.com
Subject: Re: [Diabetes-Talk] Oh insurance mess!

Hi Veronica,

The Animas Ping and the Animas Vibe are essentially the same in terms of
giving a bolus as a blind person. I used the Animas Ping for almost a decade
prior to getting the Vibe. Now, I didn't use the blood glucose meter that
came with the Ping, but that did not keep me from using the Ping itself to
give myself boluses. . 

When I switched from the Ping to the Vibe six months ago, I literally had
nothing new to learn. So, if the Ping gets approved by your insurance and
the Vibe won't, I would go that direction. The Animas Ping works 100% the
same as the Vibe for me as a totally blind pumper.

Hope this helps.

Tom

-----Original Message-----
From: Diabetes-Talk [mailto:diabetes-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of
Veronica Elsea via Diabetes-Talk
Sent: Tuesday, January 31, 2017 2:04 PM
To: 'Diabetes Talk for the Blind' <diabetes-talk at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Veronica Elsea <veronica at laurelcreekmusic.com>
Subject: [Diabetes-Talk] Oh insurance mess!

Hi everyone!
I just found out that my insurance company denied coverage for the Animas
pump. Oops! This is what's wrong when the patient isn't involved in filling
out any of the forms. I had tried to get the Vibe and I'm pretty sure that
they denied the coverage because of the Dexcom half of the pump, which I
wouldn't need. Hahahaha, you fools, I already have it. But my endo couldn't
lift a little finger and say on the forms that I had the Dexcom and wanted
this pump because it was more useable by me. I can actually kind of do a
correction bolus on the Vibe, but definitely not on the Ping. And forms
being returned numerous times drew the process out so that I now have only a
couple of cartridges left. Yikes! My endo told me just to go off the pump.
Yeah right! So now I'm trying to get supplies for my Cozmo and hope that my
50 dollar E-bay wonder hangs in there for awhile. I was really hoping to do
the pump switch now, rather than in a couple of months when I'm scheduled
for a surgery that will mess up my life style for quite awhile. And later
this week I'm supposed to get a steroid injection which means I'll go
through my last couple of cartridges faster too. 
Of course, were I sighted none of this would be going on because this isn't
the pump I'd be getting. Anyway, I know there isn't anything any of you can
do but I appreciate you letting me rant a bit in the hope that I might get
another idea. But it's multiple factors here. Insurance companies are, well,
who they are. Doctors are in a hurry and just fill out forms without
attention to the person they affect. 
And the other stupid thing, ummm, ahem, this one was mine! Two weeks ago I
traveled and took my backup pens with me. I accidentally left them in the
hotel refrigerator. And when I called the hotel, nothing. Oops! So boy am I
stuck for now. Let the fun begin. Sheesh!
Veronica

"Guide Dogs, First Hand", Veronica Elsea's classic album is now available on
iTunes, along with other music from her and from the Guide Dog Glee Club. 
To learn more, visit:
http://www.laurelcreekmusic.com
                Veronica Elsea, Owner
Laurel Creek Music Designs
Santa Cruz, California
Phone: 831-429-6407

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