Three things for today…
Thing #1 = I got my official protocol today. In the first five days of stims I will be taking 375 less units of Follistim cumulatively than last time. Hopefully this is the right cocktail that will not cause over stimulation, but will cause lots of nice follicles to grow.
Thing #2 = Insurance. For the last month I have burying my head in the sand trying not to think about how much of my $15k lifetime infertility max has been used. Today I pulled my head out (of sand, not ass) and called the insurance company. They say that I have used $1500 of the $15,000 max. The insurance company website clearly shows that they have spent closer to $4000 on my fertility related treatments if I add them all up myself.
The website does NOT show how much of my max has been used or what treatments count toward max causing many phone calls to the insurance company which result in my screaming “assistance” repeatedly at the automated system so that I can talk to a real person. (Does anyone else hate these new systems where you “tell” it what you want rather than just pushing buttons?) So this causes me to assume a few things (because I wasn’t going to argue with the lady on the phone and tell her that she was $2500 short). Either they haven’t updated the total applied toward the max for treatments I had in December OR not all of my treatments have counted against my infertility max. I guess I will have to wait and see.
Additionally, I had some testing done at an out-of-network lab (arrgghh) in November and the insurance website shows that my portion of the bill will be $1000. I’ve known about this for awhile, but I have not received the bill yet. Again, not something I am going to ask about.
Thing #3 = I feel so off today. I feel very tired and out of it and irritable. The only thing I am on is BCP and I’ve already been on those for a week. I ate breakfast. I had some lunch. I slept well last night. I can’t figure out what’s wrong. I hope I’m not getting sick.
13 comments:
i hope it doesn't over stimulate your ovaries too!
I DESPISE those systems!! and i'm with ya, i always end up screaming CUSTOMER SERVICE or whatever to the polite, yet irritating voice
I hope you aren't getting sick!!
Most of the voice-automated systems seem to work pretty well, but your post reminds me of a time when it did not. A few years ago, a family member had just died. It was the middle of the night, and I was trying to book the first flight out, and then we realized there was a logistic problem and I had to change the flight. That system did not understand anything I said. It demanded my confirmation number before it would put me through to an operator. I had to read my confirmation number using regular numbers but words to indicate the letters (like cat for c), and it kept mishearing one or more of the words. Suddenly I was screaming, "No, not hat, cat! Cat! You idiot! What the hell is wrong with you?" I literally had to try over a dozen times to figure out new words that it would recognize. In case you're wondering, swear words don't register in that system. I tried them all.
Hope that this protocol does the trick, that the insurance error continues to be in your favor, and that you feel better soon.
I hope that your protocol works and you steer clear of over stim! I went through OHSS and I am scared to death of having it happen again. I get my protocol on Friday.
Good luck cycle buddy!
I'm convinced the voice systems aren't actually automated - there are real people listening and waiting for you to completely stroke out before they will correctly direct your call.
I'm guessing that blood work may not count against your max benefit. It may only be specific visits and treatments. It's all based on a code system, so ultrasound is a code used for many different things, and may not be a fertility specific charge. Just count it as good luck and don't question. Or, they'll recalculate it later, when it will really f-up everything.
i really hope that this protocol is the one for you!!! mine is all switched around this time and i am hopeful that my ovaries produce a ton of eggs without being too stimulated, you know? it's such a fine line :)
i hate those automated systems. my guess is that the insurance covers part of the IF stuff, but thinks that it is non-IF related, so you are not using that money toward your max. does that make sense?
I asked for, and received, a letter from my insurance company after IVF#1 showing what my lifetime max remaining was. That way, I had something in writing FROM THEM, if they chose not to cover something due to "exceeding maximum allowed" (which is what caused me to ask for the letter to begin with)
Oh...a letter is a great idea. I guess I'll be on the phone again tomorrow.
That's great you get a 15,000 max! Mine is 2,000. Bastards. That will cover a blood draw and a pat on the back, lol.
That's great you got your protocol. You're on your way!
$15,000 max is what insurance will pay. So if a test would cost you out of pocket $200, but in network the insurance company and doctor agree to pay/accept $100 then that is the amount that goes towards the $15,000 not the $200.
So you are doing very well! Good luck to you! Keeping fingers crossed!
I have the same issue with my insurance company regarding my maximum. Whenever I ask them how close I am to the max, I get a different answer. I'm always worried that I will hit the limit without knowing it, and get a big fat bill in the mail.
Good luck with your new protocol!
I hate those automated systems! They suck!
I hope that this is a good cycle.
Hope you aren't getting sick. I could swear that being on BCPs made me feel a little strange at first, but maybe I'm imagining things.
I hate insurance!! No one can give you a straight answer and it's almost like you just have to wait and see what bills are going to arrive in the mail in order to really know anything at all.
Hope things go well with this cycle! I'll be following along!!
I'm right with you on the BCPs...I just want to sleep and when I am awake I just want to eat. I am simply not satisfied with anything. I think it must be the on-again, off-again ride with the BCPs over the past year. I know the scale has not liked it much.
I think it's time for a drink, wait it's not even 5 o'clock yet!
~nicole
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