Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Why We Need HealthCare Reform...

So, here we are, an upper-middle class VERY well educated family. We have access to the best doctors and resources out there. But how is it that I STILL don't understand how our insurance company can NOT PAY A DIME towards my son's hearing aids?

If he needed glasses to see, they would pay for them. If he needed leg-braces to walk, they would pay for them. Yet, hearing aids so he can hear speech sounds and attempt to develop language to communicate....Blue Cross says no. COME ON PEOPLE!

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12 comments:

Mom to Toes said...
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Mom to Toes said...
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Mom to Toes said...

Isn't it ridiculous?

Oh, but they pay for Cochlear Implants. How does that make sense?

I deal with insurance companies as an employer and I still don't get it.

Mom to Toes said...

oops... sorry for the duplicates.

leah said...

It is one of those things that makes me furious! We haven't even gone in for our fittings yet, but I know that we are going to have to pay for Nolan's out of pocket. Maybe they can just name the billing for the hearing aids as "Viagra" so that the insurance company will cover it!

leah said...

Hey- I found some sample letters to insurance companies at http://www.listen-up.org/haid/haidfund2.htm

Maybe one of these would help your insurance company change its mind?

Anonymous said...

My son (4yo) is aided also. Our insurance would not cover speech therapy for hearing loss - yes, cancer patients can get speech therapy but not children with hearing loss. I live in Louisiana and we have a state law that requires insurance companies to cover the full cost of aids for minors up to $1400 per ear. Of course, my insurance company didn't tell me that, and they tried to get out of paying, but they still paid. I learned about it from an audiologist at the university where I was paying for him to get speech therapy. Be sure and check and re-check your laws in your state to see what you are eligible for. The insurance company topic really gets me stirred up.

MB said...

I don't understand how they can deny you since yours is one of the few states in the country that mandates it! What's their excuse for not having to abide by the law?

MB said...

btw, we have such crappy insurance they won't pay for glasses either. Yet we pay $700/month! The joys of being self employed.

Unknown said...

So completely wrong...I'm over here in Italy and they pay for EVERYTHING! They even gave the possibility of changing the aids every year with a doctor's letter saying the old ones were no longer working properly...I changed the aids every year. We have access to government paid speech therapy, a support teacher in the classroom, and a monthly stipend towards any other costs. However, we have no social support network like what exists in the US. Adding the financial burden to the already difficult news to digest of the disability can destroy the strongest family. The US government needs to change this situation for the Upper Middle Class. This has to be violating a constitutional right of our children...could the ACLU do something about it or the Let Them Hear Foundation? I know you are not the first to have these difficulties...I'm just really sorry that you are one of the people dealing with this at this time...Kiss Christian,Jodi

Drew's Mom said...

Our insurance did not cover Drew's aids either. We actually ended up getting loaner hearing aids through the state's early intervention program. We were fairly certain that aids were not going to help Drew, so we really did not want to pay $5000+ for hearing aids! Maybe you can look into loaner aids?

Unknown said...

I know that this sounds cliche, but, seriously, write to your congressman. This worked for me personally, as well as two other people that I know. My congressman (or his intern!)wrote a letter to my insurance company and BAM - they ponied up the money.