Which monitor and prices differences-little confused.

[mattwisconsin]

So I am going to look into getting a home monitor. This sounds excellent and hopefully it will go through no problem. So I basically have two questions.

Which monitor is the best?

Why is there such a price difference between QAS and the price that physicians can get these?

http://www.claflinequip.com/ProductDetail/?productid=2428
http://www.shopqas.com/patient/

This reminds me of when I found out that single serving packages of name brand coumadin were being sold to hospitals for $5 for a box of 100 pills. Now this stuff is about $1 a pill for the generic in the US.

Thanks for the help.

 

[geebee]

I think it is because of insurance being involved. I know that, without insurance, QAS usually charges less.

Also, the physicians buy a lot more test strips than an individual so I am sure future sales are factored in to the cost of the monitor.

Doesn't make it right but.......

BTW - who pays $1/pill for generic coumadin? If you buy it at Walmart it is about 13 cents per pill.

Anyway - I have the INRatio and love it.

 

[catwoman]

This reminds me of when I found out that single serving packages of name brand coumadin were being sold to hospitals for $5 for a box of 100 pills. Now this stuff is about $1 a pill for the generic in the US.

Thanks for the help.

Get your doctor to write your Rxes for double the size of tablets you need, i.e., 90 tabs of 10mg that you can split and get 180 days out of them. My doctor writes me 3 Rxes: 1mg, 2mg and 10mg. Only need to fill these twice a year and it only costs me $60 max at Wal-Mart. (It actually carries me over into the next year.) I had taken 5mg X 7 for several months, am up to 5.5X4 and 5X3 now.

As far as which INR tester is the best, that's your call. I got an INRatio a year ago and am satisfied with it. Did a test yesterday and it took sooooooo long to come up with the results that I thought perhaps I was way over range. It was only 3.6. I did the test on battery, which probably takes longer than plugged in.

 

[Bugsy]

Matt,

I'm asking the same question. When I got my Inratio test strips were covered under my insurance through QAS. Well, my company has changed insurance and QAS is not a provider for my new insurance. I'm having a really hard time finding a provider through United Health Care and when I call Customer Service they think I'm talking about diabetic supplies no matter how many times I tell them that's not what I'm talking about. It's an incredible markup for the home tester vs doctors office.

 

[Karlynn]

Matt,

I'm asking the same question. When I got my Inratio test strips were covered under my insurance through QAS. Well, my company has changed insurance and QAS is not a provider for my new insurance. I'm having a really hard time finding a provider through United Health Care and when I call Customer Service they think I'm talking about diabetic supplies no matter how many times I tell them that's not what I'm talking about. It's an incredible markup for the home tester vs doctors office.

Oh boy, been there done that. People are clueless about what you are asking for.

 

[Eva]

I asked QAS the same questions that their price is way up...they said that if I had to buy the machine out of my own pocket, the price is way less ($1500). Anyhow, I shall see how much my insurance will pay for it, as normal the doctors always settle for much less than what they bill.

Good luck. I am getting the Coagucheck xs since my cardio has the same machine.

 

[catwoman]

Like others have already pointed out: If you're able to pay cash upfront, you can get a better price on an INRatio through QAS.
My guess is Hemosense allows a cash discount on its product. In the U.S., Roche does not allow its CoaguChek to be discounted.

Unless the insurance company employee is on warfarin or has a relative on warfarin, they definitely are clueless. I've encountered that situation with a few medical supply vendors, in fact.

 

[olefin]

I took my Cardiologist his form for me to start home monitoring. He faxed it that day to QAS and everything was approved within a week from Medicare and Blue Cross for the INRatio.

But QAS has since dropped the ball. It's been over 2 weeks since I was approved. It took a full week for QAS to mail the monitor to some trainer in a near by town. The trainer received the monitor at noon Monday. They were suppose to contact me within 48 hours. That would have been noon yesterday. I've called QAS half a dozen times but still not heard from the so called trainer. So far, I'm disappointed with QAS. I would have though Medicare and Blue Cross would been the slow one but they were on the ball!

 

[Eva]

Qas will send the monitor to me and I shall take it to my cardio for training. I hope I won't have more delay...have been waiting since December! I did not like Roche...they delayed me and the rep was not sure whether they had a contract with my insurance or not and after two months, they want to charge me a lot for strips!

 

[catwoman]

Olefin:

I can sense your frustration. Perhaps QAS is having difficulty reaching the trainer. But it does seem that the trainer should have contacted you by now to set up an appointment.