Chapter 5

Well here we are, I suppose “Chapter 5” of this very long and painful story.  Having Chris at the apartment near RIOSA has been challenging for sure, and mostly for my mom who isn’t able to escape back to work for a few days here and there like my father and I can.

The Good:

• Having Chris at the apartment during the day is fantastic;  you’re in your own environment, on your own schedule.
• Chris can go outside and get sunshine:  I’ve managed to carefully take him and our remaining beagle, Nula, on some trips around the apartment complex.
• Evaluations for outpatient PT/OT/speech therapy start at RIOSA tomorrow.  I’d guess next week we’d have a regular therapy schedule every day.
• I think – after a year of collecting part numbers at facilities – we have the required medical supplies nailed down (enteral feeding paraphernalia, condom catheters, drainage bags, briefs, wipes that work properly, etc.).

The Bad:

• The “night shift” – turning Chris every few hours through the night, handling accidents and so on – really kicks your ass the next day.
• Stupid UnitedHealth bureacracy:  they won’t approve renting an air mattress overlay to prevent bed sores until you have developed bed sores.  WTF guys?!?
• More stupid UnitedHealth bureacracy:  they won’t approve one of the more expensive medications (Armodafinil / Nuvigil) Chris was taking while at HealthSouth RIOSA.  The neurologist prescribed it on the discharge list, and even filed an insurance appeal with UnitedHealth for the drug, but they have flat out refused to fill the prescription now that we’ve switched to a different status in “the system”.  Apparently, you only need doctor-prescribed medication when you’re in a hospital setting?  WTF.
• UnitedHealth will only rent the patient lift and hospital bed for Chris out of his annual durable medical equipment (DME) budget.  That sounds like a great idea, until you realize that the first month’s equipment rental fee is actually 95% of the purchase price of the equipment in the retail market.  WTF #3, if you’ve ever wondered why healthcare costs so much more in the United States than it does in other “developed” countries*.

*See WGBH’s “FRONTLINE” Sick Around the World:

FRONTLINE: Sick Around the World

(and yeah, Chris and I were covered by German Allgemeine Ortskrankenkasse – AOK – while our family was stationed overseas…  no bullshit, it’s a better system than this nonsense in the USA)