Home Monitoring Newbie

[Kyyoungfarmer35]

I'm very active and my INR has fluctuated the last few weeks. I've been tested (blood draw) every 2 weeks. My Coumadin clinic suggested going to more frequent testing and my Dr ordered ahome tester. I'm good with this as I like to stay on top of things. I had a call today from the service they sent the order to and she said it would be a rental system and would cost me $150 a month till I met my deductible ( which would be in 5 months) and $18 a month thereafter, as my insurance picks up 85% then. This would cover strips and tester. I thought this seemed high? Insurance really isnt helping much in the cost of this is the case.
am I better off buying a meter myself out of pocket and then ordering strips and self reporting results? Or is this the going rate for this service and sound like a good deal? I have no clue and trying to research and ask questions to learn. Thanks in advance.

 

[dick0236]

The $18/mo for testing is competitive with mine.....I'm paying about $20/mo for weekly testing (which is 20% of the monthly cost of $100). The $150/mo x 5 mo is probably the balance of your annual deductible?? You may satisfy that deductible sooner depending on your other health costs that are also subject to the annual deductible. Remember that you will have to meet your annual deductible each year.......not just the first year. The alternative would be to go on ebay and pay out of pocket for the meter (+/- 400) and strips +/- $6 ea. Some docs are hesitant in allowing the use of products from ebay since they have a fiduciary responsibility in your self-test without using a service.

 

[DachsieMom]

I pay $101 a month. My deductible is $4000 or $5000 I think.

 

[Juli]

If you buy the meter yourself it is about $550 and you can get 48 test strips for about $170. Other supplies are also fairly inexpensive. This is what I did and it turned out to be the most cost effective solution.

 

[pellicle]

Kyyoungfarmer35

If you buy the meter yourself it is about $550 and you can get 48 test strips for about $170. Other supplies are also fairly inexpensive. This is what I did and it turned out to be the most cost effective solution.

this is of course what I do too ... and there is the aspect that one doesn't know what will happen with insruance over time. Still there is no rush to make a move on that reason.

Best Wishes

 

[Protimenow]

I've been buying my meters (I have bought a number of different meters, for comparative testing, and for my own testing) over the years. Most of this time, I either had no insurance or inadequate insurance, so there wasn't much choice. If you're not in a hurry, you can occasionally find very good deals for the meters on eBay. I didn't have to worry about insurance or deductibles when I got my meters -- if I had deductibles to worry about, I may have overpaid for a meter (like many people seem to do) in order to meet the deductible.
There have been reports here over the years about services that gouge insurers or the Government by charging extreme amounts for providing a meter and strips and calling a clinic or physician with the results. It's good for these companies, but certainly not a great way to keep health costs down.

If you choose to do this out of pocket and are not in a hurry, you might consider waiting for a good deal on eBay (although these may be getting harder to find if there's much of a demand for the meters or strips). Also - when you buy strips, be sure of the expiration date - sometimes people dump MORE strips than you'll be able to use before they expire, for very low prices. (Something like 48 strips that expire this July, for $80, or something like that - most of these will expire before you get to them).

 

[Kyyoungfarmer35]

The $150 a month is the balance of my annual deductible. Question I had is I will pay almost $750 until my deductible is met. Will I have to turn around and do it all over again next year? If that's the case it would be like buying a new meter every year when in reality I'm only renting one.

 

[Protimenow]

I've been buying my meters (I have bought a number of different meters, for comparative testing, and for my own testing) over the years. Most of this time, I either had no insurance or inadequate insurance, so there wasn't much choice. If you're not in a hurry, you can occasionally find very good deals for the meters on eBay. I didn't have to worry about insurance or deductibles when I got my meters -- if I had deductibles to worry about, I may have overpaid for a meter (like many people seem to do) in order to meet the deductible.
There have been reports here over the years about services that gouge insurers or the Government by charging extreme amounts for providing a meter and strips and calling a clinic or physician with the results. It's good for these companies, but certainly not a great way to keep health costs down.

If you choose to do this out of pocket and are not in a hurry, you might consider waiting for a good deal on eBay (although these may be getting harder to find if there's much of a demand for the meters or strips). Also - when you buy strips, be sure of the expiration date - sometimes people dump MORE strips than you'll be able to use before they expire, for very low prices. (Something like 48 strips that expire this July, for $80, or something like that - most of these will expire before you get to them).