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Permalink Reply by yda1027 on March 20, 2008 at 4:26am

if there's such thing as resources for uninsured diabetics I would love to know.... :-)

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Permalink Reply by carl lyon on April 14, 2008 at 11:08am

Mike...perhaps you might like to look into using a refractometer to measure your urine blood sugar equivalent. Once you have one in your possesion you won't need to buy any other supplies and you won't have to prick your finger. I have a Atago
N-1EBX now obsolete and was about $180 when I bought it 12 yrs ago. Probably can get one on E-bay cheaper. You will get a Brix % reading of what your blood sugar was for the previous 4 to 6 hours. Keeping it down around 1,5% will be normal.
You can calibrate it against actual BS readings using the regular digital meter until you the hang of it. There is a certain amount of hystericity to it but I don't think that matters much if every time you check it, it's around 1.5, (not less).

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Permalink Reply by Julie A. on April 28, 2008 at 4:58pm

Hi Mike,

Call Byram Healthcare. They have a special program for the Uninsured. A vial of strips is below $23. The number to call is 1-866-467-1831. Good luck

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Permalink Reply by Karen on April 28, 2008 at 5:18pm

lol on the sugar daddy thing. I totally understand the uninsured situation. When I was diagnosed it was because i was dka (diabetic ketoacidoes) and in the hospital for 8 days, 3 of which were in icu. The bill was over 50,000. no way i could pay it I was unemployed and uninsured. the state stepped in and paid it with medicaid and they cover my insulin and supplies, but I had to have my doctor write the scripts higher than they wanted otherwise they did not cover enough test strips for as many times as he wants me to test. So I wanted to say to check into the states plans for the unnsured if you have enough time in the state to be a citisen they may be able to help you, plus there are alot of different churches and things that help with one time help for people out of work. Hope this gives you some places to start. Also, some place to check would be to see if there is a test group in your area that are groups studing diabetes and if you can get into one of them they give you the supplies free for participating. I was going to get into one but then I turned out to be type 1 and not type 2 and they were only doing type 2's. But, it might be a place to start looking, doctors usually know about the test groups so ask yours if they know of any.
Good luck
hugs,
Karen

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Permalink Reply by Cherise on April 28, 2008 at 6:11pm

I understand you situation. I have been uninsured since 2005 and have not be able to get insurance. In Utah if you have diabetes you have to enroll in what's called the High Risk Insurance pool. They also put people with mental health issues in this area as well. I have bipolar too. I'm on Humalog and Lantus. Both manufacturers offer assistance programs for uninsured and low income. You can contact them through their websites. Another good site is www.pparx.org. Its the Prescription Partnership for Low Income, Uninsured, or both. For my blood sugar tester I use Wal-Mart's Reli-On tester and strips. The tester is like $8.95 and the strips are around $20 for 50 or $40 for 100. I usually get them in the hundred because it seems cheaper that way. My problem is the cost of the doctor's appointments. I pay $30 up-front and get billed for the rest. Hopefully this new doctor that I am going to on June 3rd will help because they have a financial assistance program.

I'll let you know if I find any other things that might help. I am always doing research on diabetes and ways to make it cheaper.

Cherise

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Permalink Reply by Dino on April 29, 2008 at 3:13pm

I am in the same boat as of today. I had an OK paying job for the past year that had a group policy through Kaiser Permanente. I have since moved on, and now am in a long term contract position thats pays much better.Unfortunately, my contractor status leaves me unqualified for group benefits.

Before my previous insurance ran out, I loaded up on 90 day quantities on all my testing supplies, insulin, and syringes. My little stockpile has since run out, and I am now buying my supplies over the counter. I just won an auction for One Touch Ultra strips on eBay...joy.

Soon my refills on prescriptions will run out...what will I do then?

I did apply for an individual policy through Kaiser that today and...you guessed it...got declined. I can pay for the same coverage I had in the past, but that will cost around $350 a month. Ouch.

The only silver lining in this tragic story is that I take a lot less Humalog and eat a loss less carbs to try and stretch out my insulin supply :)

Does anyone know where I can find a reasonable individual plan in CA that is somewhat Type 1 friendly? Where can I go see an inexpensive doctor to get new prescriptions?

Oh man...something tells me this is really gonna suck.

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Permalink Reply by Cathy on May 7, 2008 at 11:33am

Okay i also had to rely on free clinics for a while since my job went by the wayside . Have you tried the state free clinics or the county free clinics . I know it is alot of hassle but it might be worth it untill you find a job again . i would try anyway and see if they will help you that is why these places were created in the first place . I would try to apply at one of these and see if they can help you till you get a job and get insurance again . good luck . I hear ya i have a friend that works 70 hrs a week and she still cant get insurance gotta love america .

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Permalink Reply by carl lyon on May 13, 2008 at 6:05pm

This may be a bit late but I have been thru numerous computer problems and lost this site until someone e-mailed me from it. I want to thank whoever it was that clued me into ReliOn via Wallmart, bless 'em all. I had been getting some free Ely Lilly from Joslin and from a local free clinic when it became time to buy my own I ordered some from a Canadian pharmacie back on April 2nd. for $60.00 or so (Typically $86 to $108). As my last vial got lower and lower with no Canadian insulin in sight I saw the ReliOn tip here and called Wallmart about it and even though I had asked them about cheaper insulin before, they did not come clean until I actually mentioned Novolin 70/30 by ReliOn...long story, short, $22.00 for 10cc. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Incidentally the Wallmart mail order department for that item was more expensive than just walking in off the street. So mike...I don't know how your getting on with that but I hope my experience helps you.
May 13th. still no Canadian stuff but they did credit my credit card.

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Permalink Reply by Cherise on May 13, 2008 at 10:34pm

If you visit www.relion.com they give you the exact prices for all their diabetic supplies. I get my syringes by them through Wal-Mart. I also have their meter and test strips which are good. I am hoping that I get one of the new OneTouch Ultra Mini Meters soon, I got a free one from the company, but know that my insurance that we are getting through my husband's new job. It doesn't kick in until June 16.

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Permalink Reply by Scott McCrumb on May 30, 2008 at 5:34pm

Hi Mike,

Sorry about your serious life change! I sure know how you feel. At age 27 I was diagnosed with type2. A little history for you cause I’m no doctor, after the last 12 years of ups and downs and a divorce and a lot of pain for my children. This disease affects not only you but also everyone around you. First off let me say get your spouse a mother someone close to you involved because you are going to need a support system to get you through the roughness of this disease. My wife Jennifer has been great through the last five years of getting me to the pump and an A1C of 7, without her I would be fighting the whole thing to this day. The reason I decided to write this was knowledge is powerful and you need to get it from a well-trained Endocrinologist. I spent 5 years learning that the seven years prior had been a Ginny pig session for me to educate a family doctor who couldn’t even decide which test was the right one to decide what I was. Don’t get me wrong he was great for me as a kid and the common cold but his inexperience with diabetes only my journey to a healthy lifestyle longer. See I’m on the pump now it’s been 6 months and can I tell you all the changes I’ve been through? Well I sleep a whole lot better, I have the energy of a 20 year old (I’m 38 by the way), and my legs stopped acing, my vision has improved and I’m only using glasses to drive now, I’ve began to lose the weight from all the insulin and types I’ve been on the last 5 years. These are just a few and not that you have any of theses. What really concerned me is that the costs of all of this are very expensive and I fully understand your situation my wife and I had to pay for my pump it wasn’t covered by my plan. But that is no reason to make your health worse by reusing needles. See the stainless steel needles break down with each use and can and in my case let bruising and infection, which turned really bad due to using needles over! See the infection gets to the skin then the needle then to your vial and so on! For the haters I take two baths a day clean all cuts with alcohol, keep a box in my toolbox at work. Mike check out your doctors they get free samples and if you are paying for the visits a good doctor will help you out. I didn’t want to offend anyone here just help someone learn from my experiences and mistakes.

Mike Good Luck to you and yours in your journey with a disease that can be lived with!

Scott

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Permalink Reply by Jody on May 30, 2008 at 7:02pm

Check out what you state has to offer. In Washington we have a Basic Health care that is based upon income. It requires lots of paperwork, and sometimes a waiting list and not everyone qualifies for it, but it's worth the effort.
I was uninsured for the first 3 months, and also had numerous hospital bills. I was able to get under Basic Health pretty quickly. While it will still be a few months before my "preexisting" condition is covered, my prescriptions are covered. I no longer cry when I purchase the test strips!
Good luck!

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Permalink Reply by Cherise on May 31, 2008 at 3:27am

Good news to my problem with no insurance. As of June 16, I will have insurance. Not so good insurance but I will have insurance.

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