How comfortable are you with naming and shaming the company? I don't think things are going to change if we don't call this stuff out loudly and publicly.
That's awful but I'm glad you were able to figure this out. I've had my own problems with insurance companies, but nothing to this level. I can't imagine the frustration, especially with YOUR CHILD'S HEALTH on the line.
Five years back I ended up getting surgery for a herniated disc. I was in immense and crippling pain. Before having the surgery, we decided to go through a round epidural shots. I had done that 20 years previously and it resolved the problem, so why wouldn't I?
Turns out my insurance company (who I will name: BCBSIL) delegated the approval for the epidurals through some kind of extra bureaucratic process with a 3rd party. It took days and additional effort on our end to get approved.
I remind you, I was in crippling pain at the time.
The delays getting this approved lead to me taking more Ibuprofen than I would otherwise have taken, which in turn lead to signs of internal bleeding. I had to ease off the Ibuprofen and significantly increase the amount of codeine (a drug which does not sit well with me) just to get by. Now not only did I have to wait for the approval, but I then had to wait for the signs of internal bleeding to go away before the doctor would give me the shot (which was the right call, even though it sucked).
Delays, compounding delays, compounding delays, all while I was absolutely miserable.
Anyway, I finally got approved and got the shot and it kinda helped, but didn't fix the issue. I had a second shot, got worse, and then decided we had no choice but to schedule the surgery.
The most frustrating thing (but something I am glad for) is that the surgery was approved immediately.
It's so maddening how inconsistent the whole thing is.
> How comfortable are you with naming and shaming the company?
Don't forget about the individuals responsible. Both the ones that made the denial decision, and the ones that instituted the internal system that incentivizes such denials.
That's awful but I'm glad you were able to figure this out. I've had my own problems with insurance companies, but nothing to this level. I can't imagine the frustration, especially with YOUR CHILD'S HEALTH on the line.
Five years back I ended up getting surgery for a herniated disc. I was in immense and crippling pain. Before having the surgery, we decided to go through a round epidural shots. I had done that 20 years previously and it resolved the problem, so why wouldn't I?
Turns out my insurance company (who I will name: BCBSIL) delegated the approval for the epidurals through some kind of extra bureaucratic process with a 3rd party. It took days and additional effort on our end to get approved.
I remind you, I was in crippling pain at the time.
The delays getting this approved lead to me taking more Ibuprofen than I would otherwise have taken, which in turn lead to signs of internal bleeding. I had to ease off the Ibuprofen and significantly increase the amount of codeine (a drug which does not sit well with me) just to get by. Now not only did I have to wait for the approval, but I then had to wait for the signs of internal bleeding to go away before the doctor would give me the shot (which was the right call, even though it sucked).
Delays, compounding delays, compounding delays, all while I was absolutely miserable.
Anyway, I finally got approved and got the shot and it kinda helped, but didn't fix the issue. I had a second shot, got worse, and then decided we had no choice but to schedule the surgery.
The most frustrating thing (but something I am glad for) is that the surgery was approved immediately.
It's so maddening how inconsistent the whole thing is.