Mouther-Effer...

I have come to the conclusion that our family has been spoiled by "good health insurance".

Being that I work for Kaiser, I haven't had to deal with ANY of the bureaucratic bullshit that insurance companies put other members of "my community" through. (Watch this video if you want to find out more.) However, all that could all change in a moments notice. I could "die from skydiving" (LOL!) or worse...I could lose my job.

Luckily, as of right now we don't have to worry about monstrous premiums, copays, hospital bills, or lifetime caps.

We're very, VERY fortunate when it comes to health insurance. I have yet to see a hospital bill Niki and Ethan's hospitalizations cost several HUNDRED THOUSAND dollars! My copay is minute for medication and office visits. Niki's factor is completely FREE.

When I pick up her NovoSeven (14 vials), it's not unusual for meto see amounts like this on my receipt. I've seen even higher!
I wasn't exaggerating when I said that Niki has used $1,000,000 worth of factor in her first year of life. I'm telling you, it pays to work in the medical field when you have a child with a serious health condition. It would be an absolute nightmare if we didn't have this blessing. And that's why I chose to withdraw from the Radiography program rather than lose my insurance. I'd much rather have health insurance than go to school to earn more money. John has health insurance, but his copay is 20% for a 30 day supply of medication.

I shudder at the thought of what his copay would be if I were indeed to die from skydiving. ;-)

I'm also equally blessed to have awesome dental insurance. However, getting Niki a dental appointment has been a "mouther-effer". Normal dental procedures end up becoming highly complicated because of her Broviac AND her bleeding disorder. Also, finding a dentist that will work with her has been equally difficult.

All of this hassle just for her tiny little mouth!

It has been TWO months of filling out paperwork, searching for a dentist that will touch her, ordering medical records, obtaining pre-authorizations for anesthesia, hours of talking to Delta Dental, getting recommendations for dentists from HFNC (our local chapter), and talking to the Hematology Social Worker. Two friggin' exhausting months and Niki FINALLY has an appointment for consultation today. . Her pearly whites need some extra attention despite our diligent tooth brushing and going-to-sleep-with-a-bottle-avoiding.

It's been a mouther-effer, but I'm hoping all will go well today at UCSF. Wish us luck!