Question about medicare and preexisting conditions?
Comments
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I am on BCBS plan F, and I get Zometa iv every six months for osteopenia. I think I have two more doses to go through. I have to have six doses all total. From what I understand Zometa is primarily given to people with stage IV, but at Kellogg cancer center which I go to outside of Chicago, it is prescribed to all people with a history of BC who have either osteoporosis or osteopenia. One of my sisters is an endocrinologist in New Orleans, and she is familiar with the possible side effects of Zometa, including jaw necrosis, and she did some research on line, and consulted another oncologist. She wanted me to go on fosomax, and her oncologist friend said Fosomax was just find, and that Zometa was primarily prescribed to people with state IV. When I mentioned that to my oncologist, he did not agree with that option at all, and printed a journal article that supported his views.
Because I have plan F though, I don't have to pay anything for Zometa. I am sure you cannot wait until you turn 65, DivineMRSM. I had an obamacare plan the last year before I turned 65, and before I got diagnosed with BC, and I had $7,000 in bills. I had to have a colonoscopy and some heart tests including a cardiac cath which jacked up my bill. My other sister is on Obamacare, and she and her husband are going to have to pay only $6 a month premium, but they each have a $6,500 deductible. I did not realize that Ibrance and Verzenio were so expensive, and I am sure it is going to be awhile before they become generic. With my medicare part D, I pay $12 a month for my meds, and I pay $15 a month for my part D.
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peaches, thanks for explaining how your BCBS plan F works, I heard it was a great plan. Hearing personal experiences that others have with Medicare is always eye opening and seems more understandable and relate-able.
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Divine the Medicare costs haven't impacted me personally other than after crunching the numbers (my background is in finance so I'm always crunching numbers) I realized it would be cheaper for me to stay on my overpriced private insurance. What I would gain in SSDI benefits wouldn't offset the out of pocket costs I would have to pay on Medicare. I hit my OOP max by March every year, most of it covered by co-pay assistance from the drug manufacturer, and then I don't pay another dime for anything (except premiums) for the rest of the year.
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