It was 32 degrees and sunny when I took Colin out at 7:15.
I was down to see Bob yesterday afternoon. He was still in the reclining chair. He knew who I was but is still suffering from a lot of confusion. His nurse was very pleased with his progress. His oxygen was on 2% and he was on a low dose of pain medication and of course medication for his heart.
I have just finished talking with his nurse. He is still having some confusion but reoriented himself after Josh talked with him about things. The doctor dialed back the heart pump one number from 7 to 6 and they removed one chest tube. Otherwise, all his numbers look good and are stable.
Thanks for the update. Glad to hear Bob is improving. Hoping and praying he continues to improve.
I have to wonder after all that RBT has been through how his perspective will change, if at all. I seem to remember that he was using the health exchange (obuttwadcare) for health insurance. He was very much complaining about the cost.
After all his time in the hospital and ICU, surgeons, tests, etc. the costs have to be running several hundred thousand. His maximum out of pocket will have been reached with the rest covered by the insurance company. Without such coverage the costs could easily bankrupt him without insurance. His costs will probably not exceed about $8K or $10K, the likely maximum out of pocket.
OFD will be having much of his expense covered by the VA which is better coverage than the health exchange. If you don’t count the paperwork hassles and red tape that has to be untangled.
For those without insurance or coverage of any kind that are not wealthy bankruptcy may be the only answer. Or they are stuck with paying a few dollars every month for the rest of their life and have a lien on their assets if they have any.
My wife went through kidney stone blasting. Outpatient procedure. Total costs including tests and CatScans before the procedure have exceeded $22,000.00. I probably cannot imagine what an extended hospital stay, ICU for a few days, multiple operating rooms, extended surgeries, cardiology doctors, etc. must cost.
RBT was lucky they caught the issue. Catching pneumonia may very well have saved his life. From what I have read he was really living on borrowed time. I suspect, and hope, that after everything is done that he finds himself feeling much better and no more vertigo.
I also suspect his diet will be significantly restricted and the use of the smoking pipe will be completely banned.
It is somewhat disconcerting that a lot of people my age, or slightly younger, are experiencing such traumatic medical issues. Best friend of 28 years, two months older than me, dying of a sudden heart attack. Brother in-law, two years younger, having stints put in his heart veins. RBT with major heart issues, younger than me. OFD with mobility issues, younger than me. Both brothers with joint replacements. Spouse with joint replacement. Me, nothing. I consider myself quite lucky.
Best wishes for both RBT and OFD to make it though all of this.
And I have got to think of some initials for myself.
Great news. I’m sure Colin will be eager to welcome him home.
n
Confusion is not that unusual after major surgery. The anesthesia and trauma of the procedure can really screw a person up. It’s really scary for the family, but usually fades after a few days.
Continued well wishes.
@Ray
And I have got to think of some initials for myself.
Your middle name’s not Al is it?
Best thoughts for Bob and Barbara. Hospitals really aren’t much fun. They’ll have him doing laps in the halls next.
Confusion is not that unusual after major surgery
Confusion is normal after any whole body anesthesia. I was confused after the multiple times I have been put under for eye surgeries, spine injections, and butt probes. Confusion did not last long as I was not under for extended periods. Being under for four or five hours would really be havoc for the brain. Add in some pain killers and you would have a tough time remembering your name.
The weirdest event for me was the colonoscopy. They gave me three drugs. One to knock me out, one I don’t remember what it was for, and an amnesia drug. I had no memory of getting dressed, leaving the building or getting home. First memory after they asked me to count backwards from 100 is waking up on the couch. Wife said I was talking with her during that time and seemed to be fully awake. But I have no memory of any of it taking place.
Your middle name’s not Al is it?
Nope. That would be too easy. Perhaps OMR (Old Man Ray). I think that I am the second oldest person here only exceeded (by a lot) by the cowboy.
Sounds like Bob is making good progress, glad to hear it. I’m sure the confusion will clear in a day or three – that’s quite the trauma he’s been through.
I’m sure the docs know what they’re doing, but I wonder about the heart pump – the manufacturer’s link from a couple of days ago said it was normally not used for more than 6 hours. I suppose it takes a load off the heart, while the initial healing takes place?
In any case, he’s making good progress, and so is OFD – good news all around.
@Ray: You don’t need a middle name with “A”, you can just use the first two letters of your first name. We won’t tell.
Mine are SWN if my birth certificate is an acceptable source.
Again, very happy with OFD’s and RBT’s progress.
For Ray, how about a non-alphabetic character between the R and T? Perhaps #, $, & ?
For Ray, how about a non-alphabetic character between the R and T? Perhaps #, $, & ?
R@T?
WRT to colonoscopy: the exam is totally unremarkable; the rough part it is the prior day.
Barbara, thanks for the update and I am sure you know that you and Robert have a lot of people hoping and praying for the best for you both.
“Insurance” is a hot button subject for me right now after about a year on Medi-No-Care. I could go into quite a rant, but the short of it is do not use Walmart for any prescriptions or medical supplies like diabetes syringes, needles, and test supplies or asthma supplies. Walmart is scamming Medicare customers by not providing the coverage they are entitled to (not billing Part B, D, or supplements). I am in the middle of documenting this abuse and corruption but while the lawyers agree with my experience they hold little hope of accomplishing anything against the gooberment bureaucracy and its corrupt relationship with Walmart in particular and most Medicare providers in general.
Costco and Walgreens (maybe Rite-Aid and CVS) seem to be okay as of now. Be very vigilant in reviewing the EOBs (explanation of benefits) you receive from the Medicare Benefit Contractor (CMS) and your Part D and Supplemental provider(s). If you chose a Medicare Advantage plan, have fun navigating that mess.
And finally best wishes and prayers for @OFD and the fellow and his Wife (sorry I forgot your names) who has diverticulitis, diverticulitis has got to rate as one of the top three most painful conditions.
um, not totally unremarkable, esp when the doc changes from the flexible sigmoidoscope to the RIGID sigmoidoscope…
It is one of the weirder procedures to be awake and fully conscious through, and VERY uncomfortable.
n
(also a bit of an eye opener for someone who might have had some mistaken ideas about controlling entry of foreign objects into one’s own body. )
Yeah the prep days are awful. Back in 2014 I had two about 30 days apart. The first was fairly easy and I was awake through out. The second there was a delay of about 90 min before the wheeled me back and they added more drugs. Made me go in and out, kinda of a ‘dreamy’ state. (when I woke the doc was smoking a cigarette)
Ray at 66 I’m up there too. I could be an OFD but the F wouldn’t be farmer.
the exam is totally unremarkable; the rough part it is the prior day.
That is true. Between being knocked out during the procedure and the amnesia drug it was rather trivial. Even the day before was not too terribly difficult. Stay close to the porcelain throne and all is good. Worst part was not being able to eat and restricted to clear liquids in my opinion.
It is a procedure that could very well save your life.
do not use Walmart for any prescriptions or medical supplies
I use the VA for my prescriptions so no Medicare Part D needed for me.
If you chose a Medicare Advantage plan, have fun navigating that mess
When my aunt was alive I was having to deal with Medicare, Health Insurance and Medicaid. I could never figure out what was what and who was paying what. I just eventually started throwing away all the paperwork. If a provider complained about not getting paid enough I just told them to contact Medicare, her health insurance and Medicaid. I was not paying and neither was she. Work it out or accept what they received.
Had one company threaten to sue me and take me to collections. I told them I was not responsible for another adult’s bills. They countered with I had the same address so I needed to pay or they were going to take action. I told them to go ahead and I would sue them for harassment, wrongful collection and any other thing my lawyer could think of. Don’t mess with the R@T.
It is one of the weirder procedures to be awake and fully conscious through
I thought they always put you under for the procedure. How did you get so lucky?
Only if it’s more reliable than Obama’s publicly-released birth certificate.
Good news for Bob and I hope progress today for OFD. As for Ali (Mrs Mat) she gets to come home today – the diverticulitis appears to be responding to the mainline meds, so she’s allowed home with them, and the opiates, in tablet form. Next step Colonoscopy which ain’t fun (as myself and others on here know), but at least she’ll be home.
Guess I’d better clean house and take out the trash…
” How did you get so lucky?”
It was some couple of decades ago (and the cameras were bigger too, think mid-late 80s tech.)
They weren’t so quick to sedate you back then.
n
It was some couple of decades ago
My last one (and first) was about 10 years ago. Was told I needed to have the procedure again in 10 years and the anniversary is approaching or maybe even passed.
I did not have to drink the gallon of liquid, it was only about two quarts. That along with a couple of pills was all that I needed to get cleaned out. Diet restriction, as in no food for about 18 hours. Clear liquids only such as broth. No major explosions or gut cramps while waiting for the medicine to work it’s magic. Rather non-eventful from descriptions from others.
Regardless, it is a life saving examination that should be done. Along with prostate screening and skin examination. Along the same line as pap smears and breast x-rays. Catching this stuff early can be the difference between being vertical or the permanent horizontal. Especially as we age.
RBT was fortunate his condition was caught in time. He had no idea there was a problem. He had not been to a doctor in years. A lesson to us all.
“RBT was fortunate his condition was caught in time. He had no idea there was a problem. He had not been to a doctor in years. A lesson to us all.”
Most of the people on this board are a lot smarter than the average population and as such, tend to believe they know everything. Even though it hurts our egos, sometimes it pays to see an expert. Your doctor might not be as smart as you, but they have access to diagnostic tools that we don’t have.
I’m happy to hear Dr. Bob is recovering. I hope he resumes The Home Scientist, but there may be better roses to smell.
R@T you are lucky, until you look in the mirror. 🙂
R@T you are lucky, until you look in the mirror.🙂
Right. And there is no cure. So I live with it. Comes in handy on Halloween.
The colonoscopy itself can be quite “interesting” if they perforate your intestine, which happens surprisingly often (roughly one out of every two thousand colonoscopies).
My vote goes to OMR. Slim is Slim, OFD stays the same. Bob is RBT in my head – don’t know whether I’d address him as Bob or Robert were we to meet in person.
The pisser about colonoscopy (if you’ll excuse the excretory pun) is charging $100.00 for a gallon of GoLytey when 50 grams (?) of Epsom salts and a couple senna tablets will do the trick just as, ummm, smoothly.
Yeah, it’s uncomfortable, but if you’re a little Stoic or even a big one, you can spare the cost and confusion of general anaethesia. 3 mg of Ativan IV will calm you down. Tell ’em to push another one if you get fidgety.
WRT to Medicare: I retired 10 years ago and have been on Medicare subsequently.
1. Medicare: Hospital, (Part A); Medical, (Part B).
2. AARP Medicare Supplement Plan J, insured by UnitedHealthcare.
3. AARP, MedicareRx Plan Saver Plus (PDP), insured by UnitedHealthcare. Two RXs, blood pressure and cholesterol, quarterly from local CVS.
4. AARP Health Care Options, Delta Dental Insurance PPO, Plan A.
I have had that arrangement for a number of years and am satisfied to the extent that I have no desire to change.
“Slim is Slim”
OK, sufficiently descriptive: BMI = 20.8.
Norman makes a good point. Docs inflate your colon for THEIR convenience, and it hurts. I can speak from multiple experience that the procedure will also exacerbate any incipient diverticulitis one might have.
Tell ’em to go easy on the CO2.
jim~ BMI 23
“‘F— TRUMP’ truck driver has been arrested”
http://www.chron.com/neighborhood/fortbend/news/article/Sheriff-s-warning-to-F-TRUMP-truck-owner-12360280.php
Heh. Don’t piss off the county sheriff.
I wonder if she is the one who has been stealing my father-in-law’s identity ?
“Tesla Semi Truck: 500-Mile Range, 1 Million Mile Guarantee”
https://www.pcmag.com/news/357443/tesla-semi-truck-500-mile-range-1-million-mile-guarantee
“As The Verge reports, the Tesla Semi promises to deliver a 500-mile range on a single charge. To be clear, that’s 500 miles driving with 80,000 pounds of cargo loaded in the back. While carrying all that weight the Semi can reach speeds of 65mph up a 5 percent grade climb (diesel trucks only manage 45mph) and the Semi easily out-accelerates a diesel truck regardless of the weight being carried.”
“As for economics, Musk broke it down to a cost per mile. Simply put, a diesel truck costs $1.51 per mile travelled taking into account the total cost of operation. The Tesla Semi only costs $1.26 per mile, and that’s carrying 80,000 pounds and travelling at an average speed of 60mph.”
Impressive claims. This is how you compete.
Confusion is not that unusual after major surgery. The anesthesia and trauma of the procedure can really screw a person up. It’s really scary for the family, but usually fades after a few days.
They had to restrain my father after his open heart surgery as he was very angry. He does not remember this when I asked him about it the other day.
Whoa ! Walmart is letting third parties list and sell on its website !
https://www.walmart.com/ip/32×8-WHT-Arch-Fence/127977263
This may be a game changer as I viewed third parties as the big difference beween Big River and Walmart.
Impressive claims. This is how you compete.
If you believe the claims.
Musk and Tesla should have been crushed by Wall Street already, but SpaceX is effectively the US space program once the Atlas V stops flying. Like Bezos, Musk has friends in high places helping keep TSLA above 300.
Best wishes to Robert and to OFD for continued recovery. I hope all goes well for you.
Regarding the confusion and other mental infirmities following major surgery, I remember my father after his bypass; he had (minor) deficits for over a year following his surgery. Granted, he was in his ’70s and had had undetected heart issues for almost 20 years, but you may find that it takes 6 – 8 months for full mental recovery. Still, it will come back.
So I guess add ‘speaking truth to power’ as another thing that only liberals and progs can do…
After reading the entire biased article, I still can’t find anything that he said to disagree with, or that couldn’t be backed by facts.
“Homeland official who said the black community ‘turned US cities into slums’ and claimed Islam only brought ‘dead bodies and oil’ to the world RESIGNS as religious coordinator”
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-5091367/Homeland-official-resigns-report-racial-remarks.html
Particularly interesting was this remark — “he said: ‘I always believe that in the days following the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and also on the Pentagon, that George W Bush made a critical mistake that we are still in a sense paying for.
‘He began to say a phrase that no one had ever said before in popular political culture, which is that Islam is a religion of peace.’ “
nick
Jesse Jackson has Parkinson’s disease. Could not happen to a more deserving individual. Probably the biggest racist on the planet.
Next up, Sharpless and Fartinacan for Parkinson’s.
Sure it’s not syphilis?
n
Impressive claims. This is how you compete.
If you believe the claims.
Musk and Tesla should have been crushed by Wall Street already, but SpaceX is effectively the US space program once the Atlas V stops flying. Like Bezos, Musk has friends in high places helping keep TSLA above 300.
The Tesla shareholders are holding out for a payday from Apple. Maybe you told me that and I believe that. Tesla just has got to prove that they can get their production up to 300 cars per day and Apple will come racing in.
And I do believe the claims about the electric semi truck. The worst thing that you can do to those batteries is let them sit since the air conditioning has to run to cool them above 50% charge. But if the truck takes a charge and then drives umpteen miles, that is actually good for them.
And California is talking about banning diesel trucks which will make the LNG truck and electric truck markets run wild. Plus, truckers are very cost competitive since it comes out of their back pocket. As long as, the electric trucks are reliable (note the one million mile warranty).
“Amazon is Becoming the New Microsoft”
http://www.cringely.com/2017/11/17/15468/
“Today in the public cloud space Amazon is behaving much like Microsoft did in the 90s. They are hugely dominant with more than 70 percent of the cloud market and growing. According to Gartner Amazon Web Services (AWS) will soon have 80 percent of the public cloud market.”
“Understand there are only three players in the public cloud that matter at all — Amazon, Google and Microsoft. Forget about companies like IBM and Oracle because their market share is meaningless. Larry Ellison can talk about having lower cloud prices, but if he cannot support at least a million virtual seats (he can’t) his pricing doesn’t matter.”
I am still trying to figure mobile computing and how it affects niche products like mine.
The Tesla shareholders are holding out for a payday from Apple. Maybe you told me that and I beleive that. Tesla just has got to prove that they can get their production up to 300 cars per day and Apple will come racing in.
That is probably still the end game for TSLA, but $60 billion (today’s valuation) is a crazy number.
Tesla may not be the way of the future. Past rival Fisker has the real technology with a future:
https://electrek.co/2017/11/14/fisker-solid-state-battery-breakthrough-electric-cars/
https://www.engadget.com/2017/11/14/fisker-has-filed-patents-for-solid-state-batteries/
However, Tesla has bought all the right people in the gooberment so Fisker has its work cut out for it.
Good to hear that RBT and Mrs. Mat are gonna be OK, more or less. WRT Mr. Ray’s concerns about our age cohort, I can say that I put my body and mind at great risk and stress and did a lot of stupid shit for decades, and haven’t been any sort of early bird getting things checked out. I stopped doing stupid shit eight years ago but a bunch of it has been catching up with me, it seems. And someone my size has some special issues doing all this PT and OT at the physical level of a toddler sometimes. Watch the psycho orc trying to raise his right arm beyond the horizontal or kicking a beach ball back and forth to a PT five feet away. With two spotters for every standing moment.
Doc took the other giant blister off my foot this AM, the right foot this time, and now it’s nice and friggin’ sore, like a very bad sunburn being sandpapered. Makes one forget about one’s back pain for a while. Plus more nerve pain in that foot lately, now being combated with Neuro-something, like Gabapentin, which worked well for me last night.
And wife is upset because once again GG and Princess ginned up Sunday dinner plans for them all with the Princess bf, at our house. Whereas wife is in almost as bad shape as me and whereas she is planning to come here and visit me that day. So now they’re miffed. Because wife finally said NO. I told her I agree with her 1,000% and have all the years they did this to her (us). (She’s expected to have every square foot of our house cleaned up and a second bedroom ready for the royals.) No fucking way and that’s that.
Looks like a slower-paced weekend ahead here; I could use some rest but I’ll be doing PT exercises on my own throughout anyway.
Fourteen more days to go here; not even halfway through it yet. With a little progress each day. And a new tall-boy walker enroute to me Monday or Tuesday, and I’ve been using my new tall-boy wheelchair (also heavier to move around in).
Cheers to RBT and Barbara and Mr. and Mrs. Mat over there in the UK. Many thanks also to the fine folks here regaling us with more wondrous medical tales involving horrific invasive procedures and their aftermaths. Hahaha.
@OFD, glad to hear your Wife has finally said no to GG and Princess. I hope this is the first of many that they hear in the future.
As one who had to endure 16 years of daily and eventually weekly PT due to my Polio I can say that even though painful and inconvenient it was worth it. I walked when the doctors said I never would and I developed habits that keep me going today, in my limited ways with damaged/missing cartilage in all joints from my finger tips to my toes and nerves that do what they want.
Got the news today that I am going to have to start using insulin. I knew it was in my future, but my doctor has worked with me to put off the inevitable as long as possible.
At least my heart and circulatory system are functioning. Oh, and most of my brain.
Doc took the other giant blister off my foot this AM, the right foot this time, and now it’s nice and friggin’ sore, like a very bad sunburn being sandpapered. Makes one forget about one’s back pain for a while.
Ouch, ouch, ouch ! Dude, I do not feel your pain.
I got the heeby-jeebies when I heard that description….
I must be coming down with a cold or flu. My whole body aches. Even my skin hurts. All I want to do is sleep. So naturally, my wife is out of town and I’ve got the kids to wrangle….
It’s a Morton Salt day.
n
“At least my heart and circulatory system are functioning. Oh, and most of my brain.”
My haht and lungs and belly get checked three times a day, plus the BP and my temp, all of which have been nearly perfect for three weeks now. You’ve still got most of your brain? Howdja manage that? Mine is mostly gone. 40 years of booze and the earlier 100 LSD trips, plus some fun with heroin. Throw in eight years with Uncle on various plantations and more years as a street cop and you will behold Absolute Insanity and
Retardation.
“Dude, I do not feel your pain.”
I believe you and your wife and daughter have cornered the market on that; my turn in the barrel. Dunno how in the world you still manage to take care of the whole family and run a successful business. Hats off!
I hope Mr. Nick staves off any illness, but what, pray tell, is a “Morton Salt day?”
And I basically have the weekend off, except for a half-hour of OT tomorrow morning; new patients rolling in and somebody called in sick. Wife is gonna do the dump run on her way down to see me tomorrow instead, and I’m telling her to take Sunday off and rest up.
… what, pray tell, is a “Morton Salt day?
“When it rains, it pours.”
Whippersnapper! 😀
I am the second oldest person here only exceeded (by a lot) by the cowboy.
Unless someone else would like to try for the bronze, I suspect that, at age 70, I am the third oldest commenter here, trailing CowboySlim and Rolf Grunsky.
But you’re a strong number four, Ray!
And now that I have well and truly dated myself, let me put the cherry on top by exhorting RBT, OFD, and Mrs. Lemmings to keep on truckin’!
Beat me to it 🙂 (I’d aimed that right at you OFD, can’t believe you didn’t get it)
I’m just a whippersnapper, having just entered my 5th decade a couple of years ago, but I did put some wear and tear on the body and soul…
n
I may be the YOUNGEST one here….
and now I’m off to bed.
n
Yo, I be rruckin’ my ass off every day here! I keep this up, they told me, I’ll look like Ahnold in another year or two. I think they’re just joshing me. Haha.
And plumb forgot about that Morton Salt thing; and it was raining and pouring for the past three months on me and Mrs. OFD, dat’s fo sho.
I guess me and RBT and Mssrs. Nick, SteveF and Lynn are the youngsters here. I’m also a baby-san ‘Nam vet; went in at 17 in 1971. But I know we have some real youngsters on this board, too.
Sleeping in the recliner here tonight; my poor feet are sore as hell and I don’t want any pressure on them, not even a sheet. A half-hour of OT in the AM, and some short walks with nurses a couple or three times per day over the weekend, using the walker.
They tell me that roughly 30% of the folks in here are in because of strokes; maybe another 30% for back and other surgeries, and the rest a mix; accidents, etc, several fairly young peeps here.
I wish a safe, comfortable and pain-free night of restful sleep to my fellow patients out there, and for us all, really.
Pax vobiscum, fratres; tempus fugit…
I could be among the oldest here; next week I will hit 0x42.
Sleeping in the recliner here tonight; my poor feet are sore as hell and I don’t want any pressure on them, not even a sheet.
I sure am glad that you feel good enough to gripe about your feet. So are the blisters on the top or bottom of your feet ?
I believe you and your wife and daughter have cornered the market on that; my turn in the barrel. Dunno how in the world you still manage to take care of the whole family and run a successful business. Hats off!
I live in the barrel. If they just stop hitting it with baseball bats for a while then life would get better. And thanks but the wife does all the work. She tells me everything that I need to get done so I figure everything else can slide.
And the daughter is back in the wheelchair. Sigh. I had gotten her to walk around the block with me a couple of months ago. Now she hurts too much, the Lyme has come back with a vengeance. For the first time ever, she scored 100% on both Lyme tests.
We had customers in the office today for training. One of them was a lady engineer who lives in Whitehouse, Texas (outside of Tyler). She was telling us about her house flooding last year at 2am. Somebody called her husband (also an engineer) from the plant about the plant having problems with all the rain. He came back to their bedroom and said the kitchen floor is wet. Then he noticed that the bedroom floor was wet. Just about then, the front doors burst in and a four ft wall of water swept through the house. They ran for the kids, he got the 8 year daughter, she got the 4 year daughter, and the 12 year old boy walked with them. They went out the front door and walked up the street and asked for help. The 12 year boy barely had his head above the water.
Turned out their new house was built in a old creek bed. Nobody had looked on a flood map and noted that their house was four ft under the 100 year flood plain. So they did not have flood insurance. They ended up bulldozing the house and the bank forgave the mortgage so they just lost their home equity. They still own the lot …
I think Greg Norton is the youngest, and that either Nick or I would be the second youngest. I’ll be $34 all year.
@Nick
I may be the YOUNGEST one here….
I’m sneaking up on 50.
Ah! As it happens, I turned 73 at the end of October. Parts of me are still functional.
Comrade Saunders was here in Toronto a couple of weeks ago telling us how wonderful the Canadian Health System is. Alas, no American politician seems to have a clue about health care in Canada. There is NO federal health care in Canada! All health care services are a provincial responsibility. The provinces determine what they will cover and how it will be delivered. All the federal government does is set conditions that the provinces have to meet to be eligible for federal funds.
Public health insurance started is Saskatchewan. The other provinces implemented their own programs later.
If the US wants to follow the Canadian model, then the states will have to implement their own programs.
Our system isn’t bad but it’s not half as good as it is claimed to be. It’s late. I’ll get back to this topic later. It seems to be current.
If the US wants to follow the Canadian model, then the states will have to implement their own programs.
That would be hilarious to watch.
Not so hilarious to experience it.
Texas would be … interesting.
Our system isn’t bad but it’s not half as good as it is claimed to be. It’s late. I’ll get back to this topic later. It seems to be current.
Hmmm. Sounds like the VA. OFD’s experience seems to be less than reasonable. My father-in-law’s experience seems to be both good and bad.
Glad to see that the penny has finally dropped for Mrs OFD.
Ping Dad Cooks!
If a guy has diabetes or sleep aponea would he ever be allowed aboard a US Navy sub? Might an enemy sub detect the CPAP machine? 🙂
Rolf, what happens of someone from PEI, for example, is in Ontario and needs medical help? Do you have a reciprocal arrangement?
I had two trips in an ambulance in 2014. Both paid for by my health fund. The fund said I had unlimited coverage, other funds only allow two per year. $900+ each for uninsured. Different states have different arrangements.
I think Greg Norton is the youngest, and that either Nick or I would be the second youngest. I’ll be $34 all year.
I’m 49. Seriously.
I had the colonoscopy “experience” at 32, when I worked for legacy GTE and passed blood continuously for the last year before the Verizon takeover. I passed the examination with flying colors — the problem was all stress from management.
I had mine for the same reason, and the same cause, mainly because of the company I was keeping, and the sh!t we were getting into. I was ~20.
also, just a note, drinking a lot of peptobismal will give the same appearance as actual blood in the stool… and now you know!
n
Even my eyeballs hurt this am, I had chills without fever last night. Sweaty uncomfortable night. Stiff and achey all over. HAIR hurts.
n
@Miles
Health insurance is covered across all provinces and territories.
The federal government has no direct involvement in the delivery of health services but the Canada Health act set the requirements that every province must meet to be eligible for federal funding. The idea behind this is that federal government provides equalization payments to the provinces such that (in theory) every province has the same amount, per capita, to spend on health care. Of course it doesn’t work out quite the way it is intended.
In Toronto, which has a population greater than any of the other provinces except Quebec, I have better access to health care than any where else in Canada with the possible exception of Montreal.
If the federal government had tried to implement something like Obamacare in Canada, the provincial premiers would have told the prime minister to fuck off. The response to federal interference in an area of provincial responsibility would be that simple. In Canada, education is also a provincial responsibility and federal interference is given the same response.
Hey, get better Mr. Nick. Also, don’t hesitate to see the doc if your symptoms don’t improve. We don’t want another one of us in the hospital.
Hang in their Dr. Bob. Your first post here will let us know you are really recovering.
And Mr. OFD, my best for you. Get ambulatory again. You’re too young to be bed ridden.
I ain’t bedridden; just need to recover muscular control of legs and arms and the mobility thereof. I get around for short distances via wheelchair and walkers. This is gonna take some time.
OFD, you don’t need Hildegarde the SS physical therapist.
You need music to get you up and moving. Dance music! And hot babes in skimpy clothing to motivate you!
The perfect music for a hospital: “Ah ah ah ah, stayin’ alive, stayin’ alive.”
Great; now I’ll have that song in my head the rest of today. Which has been happening every day since I started this whole hospital anabasis. Some old rock song pops up out of nowhere in my head first thing and there it stays until the night.
And there are half a dozen nurses or PTs here I wouldn’t mind seeing in skimpy clothing. Who’ve already seen me in no clothing at all, so my chances are probably very dim.
My life got simpler when I gave in and embraced the fact that I just plain suck.
Lynn, I just sent you an e-mail to the address listed on your work site…
My two head-songs for today are both from Cold Blood’s old records from the early 1970s out in Sodom-on-the-Bay. With the great Lydia Pense.
How about Golden Earring, Twilight Zone??
Or in honor of the newly departed AC/DC front man, Highway 2 Hell?
n
(bad year for rockers… lot of expired deals with old Bealzibubble…)
Even my eyeballs hurt this am, I had chills without fever last night. Sweaty uncomfortable night. Stiff and achey all over. HAIR hurts.
“‘It’s not possible to eradicate plague’: Scientists warn deadly disease will ravage the planet for ETERNITY as Madagascar’s ‘worst outbreak in 50 years’ continues to escalate”
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-5092293/It-s-not-possible-eradicate-plague-scientists-warn.html
???
“Concerned health officials have also warned an ancient ritual, called Famadihana, where relatives dig up the corpses of their loved ones, may be fueling the spread.”
Quit playing with dead things!
Any disease with an animal reservoir is not eradicable, IIRC.
n
Or in honor of the newly departed AC/DC front man, Highway 2 Hell?
They lost another one ? Are you kidding me ? Oh man, “Malcolm Young, AC/DC Guitarist and Co-Founder, Dead at 64”
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/malcolm-young-acdc-guitarist-and-co-founder-dead-at-64-w512164
EDIT: I can remember singing “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap” in the car with my kids.
Never cared for AC/DC; Golden Earring had maybe two or three hits.
I was into British blues, Motown, and funk as a teenager and into my 20s.
Still listen to those sometimes, but mainly classical (Baroque) and old-school country now.
Never cared for AC/DC; Golden Earring had maybe two or three hits.
Golden Earring had one AWESOME hit: “Golden Earring – Radar Love (1973) HD 0815007” – great lip syncing !
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zf53Pg2AkdY
Who’ve already seen me in no clothing at all, so my chances are probably very dim.
Who’ve already seen me in no clothing at all, so my chances are probably zero.
Fixed it for you.
Nothing like having already seen ‘the last turkey in the shop’ to put them off it…..
n
*to quote one of my favortites
… and an amnesia drug.
Probably Propofol, a.k.a. Milk of Amnesia. (It’s a milky white.) It a fast acting sedative and clears out of the body fast, which is why it is so popular. It prevents short-term memories from being stored. My wife used it quite a bit for outpatient sedation. When I had my colonoscopy she knew when I had “snapped to” – she had been talking to me in recovery for a while. Something in my body language and eyes cued her.
The 3 drugs were probably Versed (a short acting sedative), Fentanyl (a pain med), and Propofol according to my wife.
@Miles_Teg said:
Probably not, definitely not in the Submarine Service. I did not have Diabetes or Sleep Apnea while I was in the Navy. I did have to get a Congressional Waiver because of my Polio. Because of my Congressional Waiver I gave up most of my “rights” to have anything covered by the VA (read the fine print, didn’t think I would need it; wrong).
I spent the whole day with continuing hassles getting what I am entitled to from Medicare for my transition to becoming an Insulin Dependent Diabetic. I’d be having better luck if I was an illegal jihadi wearing a vest.
I talked with several friends who are on insulin and they all gave up and are just paying. There is a major problem in the system, but don’t ask anyone in gooberment to care.
I spent the whole day with continuing hassles getting what I am entitled to from Medicare for my transition to becoming an Insulin Dependent Diabetic. I’d be having better luck if I was an illegal jihadi wearing a vest.
I talked with several friends who are on insulin and they all gave up and are just paying. There is a major problem in the system, but don’t ask anyone in gooberment to care.
I don’t understand. What is Medicare not paying for ? Insulin ? Needles ? Syringes ? I would think that would all come under Part D.
It’s uncharacteristic of me to say mean things but I just belted a doozey.
7:00 PM walking home and some mealy-mouthed beggar approached and ask “Got
any diabetic (incomprehensible) for a black gal?” I excused myself, saying,
” I didn’t quite understand you.” She repeated her request, again
incomprehensible, and I apologized, nodding and saying “Sorry, can’t do that.
Then she turned around and screamed at me, “You don’t like black chicks, do you?”
I replied,”I prefer ash, and only if it’s in a six pound box.”
My Insulin costs about AUD 36 for a supply that lasts at least three months. Needles are free, test strips are free within reason.
@lynn said:
Most is under Part D, some “can” fall under Part B and your supplemental if you have it.
Medicare is not wanting to pay for insulin syringes (which include needles), or if I was using an insulin pen I would have to buy the needles separately under Part B/F. Medicare also initially refused to pay for testing supplies, finally agreed to test strips and lancets but not a new meter (mine is more than 5 years old and Medicare is supposed to pay for a new meter every year as well as the batteries for it. Oh, and Medicare is also supposed to pay for alcohol swabs.
The Pharmacy Tech at Walgreens says this is all too common. Medicare is constantly changing the rules and requiring different/new paperwork. It is going to take a detailed letter from my physician detailing my diabetes treatment over all the years I have been a diabetic, that is more than 20. Since I have not started insulin yet I am not in danger, but the Tech says that at anytime Medicare can and will start refusing to pay for no other reason than they want new paperwork. The Tech at Walgreens was very helpful, spent nearly 2 hours on the phone with Walgreens HQ, Medicare, and my Part D and Part F “insurer”. She will be working with my doctor on Monday to get Medicare’s latest paperwork together.
I recently went through a 4 week (12 hours classroom) diabetic education class (with 6 other diabetics and their spouses) that is now a prerequisite before starting or changing any diabetic treatment. Everyone in that class had diabetes for 5 to 25 years, most on insulin, the horror stories were very discouraging (and enlightening for the RN “educator” who is not a diabetic so she had no real experience, a necessity IMHO).
And if you are a diabetic you had better be testing regularly and documenting it, and save forever. I have 20 years of testing records that I am digging out and preparing to send Medicare.
Be very very careful when you choose your 2018 Part D plan. You may get one that is very restrictive when it comes to insulin and related supplies, basically not covering all forms/types of insulin. I was very careful with this for my current 2017 Part D and my 2018 Part D.
My Mom was diabetic. During the four and half years she lived with me, I took over all her meds. When I brought her to Vegas, she was using syringes and injecting insulin. I found a doc for her and got injector pens prescribed. The only problem I had was when the drug company changed the name of the injector pen. Same stuff, different name. Walmart and her ins wouldn’t pay. Since she was low, I paid for the pen and got her doc to write a new script. Kind of a joke that the name change wasn’t automatic since the insulin was the same stuff. I got the money back, though.
Oh, yeah, the other problem with the Walmart pharmacy. They would constantly NOT fill a script if the insurance supplement was balking on covering it. Especially her thyroid pills. I had to go to the Walmart and screech at them that I would pay for the pills. They were cheap and critical. They wouldn’t even call me about it, just wait till I showed up to pick them up. “Uh, ins said they would pay so we didin’t fill it.” WTF does that have to do with it? Plenty of people don’t have ins coverage of a drug. Just because you are on Medicare doesn’t mean you don’t have money. That was a constant problem.
@dadcooks,
I think I’ve got a couple different test machines if you’re interested. They have no economic resale value, since Medicare usually pays for them.
I did sell a bunch of test strips. Some brands are more re-sellable than others. There must be a difference in who pays for them or something…
If you want something specific, I’ll look for it…
n
@nick, thanks for the offer. I do have a working meter and plenty of strips and lancets. I have used the OneTouch brand from the beginning and they used to solicit comments from longtime users in exchange for some products to test/try. OneTouch sent me a coupon last week for a free new meter.
So some may ask, why am I making an issue with Medicare? Medicare is supposed to provide “things”, some specifically specified as to type and brand and others in general. I am only expecting Medicare to provide what the regulations say Medicare (and their “contractors”) are supposed to provide.
Medicare is a Ponzi Scheme just like Social Security. All that money you paid does not go into some “account” for you but is used to pay for “beneficiaries” at the time your money was stolen by the gooberment. What a “beneficiary” gets today is being paid for by the payroll deductions of those working in the “system” today. The other dirty secret is that Congress is constantly raiding the so-called Medicare and Social Security “lock boxes/trust funds” to pay for anything but.
The market for diabetic testing supplies is big. There are signs on many of our street corners saying “Get Cash For Your Test Strips and Lancets”. Like with so many things today, the thriving “black market” is making it difficult for legitimate people to get what they need.
Medicare is a Ponzi Scheme just like Social Security. All that money you paid does not go into some “account” for you but is used to pay for “beneficiaries” at the time your money was stolen by the gooberment.
You may get Mr. ChuckW to post again after that blasphemous statement, Mr. DadCooks. lol! I agree with you, though.
“the thriving “black market” “–
but, but, but…. how can there be a black market for something that Obammy care was gonna give to everyone for free???
I mean, everyone now has coverage, right? Even for pre-existing like diabetes, so who’s buying the black market? [or mine on ebay?]
‘cuz the lightbringer solved all that, didn’t he?
n
The other dirty secret is that Congress is constantly raiding the so-called Medicare and Social Security “lock boxes/trust funds” to pay for anything but.
Just wait until Medicare for All ™. That will be a $4 trillion slush fund per year. Congress will be raiding it daily.
Congress will be raiding it daily.
Daily? More like every time they open their mouths.