Jump to content

  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate

Finding Money For Endoscopy Test

oaktownboy

Recommended Posts

oaktownboy Newbie
oaktownboy
Posted

my insurance will not cover the test and i need to know if there is any state or federal money available for tests like this one

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


mmaccartney Explorer
mmaccartney
Posted
my insurance will not cover the test and i need to know if there is any state or federal money available for tests like this one

Why won't they cover it??? If a doctor that is part of their "plan" deems it as medically necesarry, aren't they required to cover it?? (Mine did, but I still had to cough up 20% of the cost as I have an 80/20 plan....)

tiredofdoctors Enthusiast
tiredofdoctors
Posted

Call, complain and B**** like heck. Then write a letter stating that, should there be a significant problem that worsens because they won't cover the necessary testing your doctor requested, you will hold them responsible and will report it to all the news statios and your newpaper. That should do it. Trust me.

floridanative Community Regular
floridanative
Posted

tiredofdoctors is right. Raise total cain until someone gets a grip and lets you have the test. I have come to find out that there is not much worse in our culture than insurance companies. They are the driving force behind all the bad medicine we are all experiencing - from everything to sinus infections to Celiac disease being misdiagnosed.

For my biopsy I was told I had a $250 co-pay but then I switched docs to have the test. New doc says I only have a reg. specialist co-pay. Both my insurance company and the hospital where I had the test say I don't have to pay anything upon arrival, and I only have the $35 co-pay to the doc. This did not seem right so I called my insurance company again and they said since I'm now having the test in the hospital, I had no co-pay. So now three months later I get a bill for $250 co-pay. Oh and of course I have already paid the doc $35 and I had to have the test at 1 pm when I felt like jerking my iv out to drink it and was starving. All this to save $250.....which of course I didn't save and apparently, this way I'm paying $285 when you include the doc's co-pay. How people who own insurance companies sleep at night - I'll never know!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :angry:

cultureslayer Rookie
cultureslayer
Posted

IF it's just to confirm the diagnosis, I've skipped it. I work in a medical field and I don't trust doctors. They give me enough crap when I'm awake, no way they are putting me under for anything less than major surgery.

tiredofdoctors Enthusiast
tiredofdoctors
Posted

As far as being put to sleep, they didn't give me enough "juice" -- I was awake for the endoscopy and the colonscopy -- including polyp removal. I kept moaning to try to tell them that I could feel it -- they saw me watching it on the television screen :huh:

When it was over, I quoted exactly what the doctor said. The one nurse looked at the other and said, "She wasn't out NEARLY as much as we thought she was." DUH . . . . Didn't the sounds I made each time he cut give them a hint????? <_<

cultureslayer Rookie
cultureslayer
Posted

Yeah, I am one of those people that require an exceptional amount of anesthesia (my body processes it quickly obviously). I could definitely see that happening to me.

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):


tiredofdoctors Enthusiast
tiredofdoctors
Posted

That was the THIRD time it has happened to me. One time, it was when I was medically paralyzed, and I couldn't move anything to tell them that I was AWAKE! Yuck. I really didn't like that too much.

cultureslayer Rookie
cultureslayer
Posted

Ugh. I always tell them (even when I'm going in for a filling) that I'm hard to anesthetize and will take more than they think I should. It's also hard to get Drs to take me seriously when I complain of any pain because I don't take motrin. It takes about 1.5 to 2x the max suggested dose to do anything worth taking a pill for, and at that point I start to feel strange. Otherwise it just takes the edge off of light soreness.

CMCM Rising Star
CMCM
Posted
my insurance will not cover the test and i need to know if there is any state or federal money available for tests like this one

Is there a particular reason for an endoscopy, other than wanting "to know for sure"??? Why not just handle it yourself by going thru Enterolab....get the full panel gluten sensitivity test for $369 and you'll find out if you have antibody reactions going on, malabsorption, casein sensitivity, and a gene test is thrown in as well. Together with the knowledge you get from this easy to do test, you can then follow the diet for awhile to see how you do. Ultimately, the treatment for this is the diet and the doctors, after spending a ton of your money on all this often-vague and inaccurate testing, will just tell you to go on a gluten free diet and that's that. They're rarely any help in that part of things. For myself, I saw no reason whatsoever to support an inept and clueless medical system with lots of my hard earned $$$.....far more than the $369 I spent at Enterolab, that's for sure. I learned what I wanted to know very easily and cheaply. If you read this board thoroughly, you will find a LOT of people who went the traditional clueless doctor route and spent a LOT of money, time and continued suffering, only to eventually in desperation go to Enterolab to get their answers. By the way, you can bet $$ that your doctor will know nothing about Enterolab. Doctors aren't very cutting edge in most cases. If they haven't personally had experience with a condition, then in their minds it might not exist. Go to www.enterolab.com and do some reading....lots of information there about their testing and ideas about celiac disease.

oaktownboy Newbie
oaktownboy
Posted
  • Author

i have been on the gluten free diet for a couple months now and i keep getting worse and worse. my intestinal problems continue..i have no hope left..that's why i need the test..

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

Go to topic listing
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):


  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      131,692
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748
    Linda M Rush
    Newest Member
    Linda M Rush
    Joined
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):

  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      121.4k
    • Total Posts
      1m
  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):



  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):


  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • Gigi2025
      How Come Gluten Didnt Bother Me In Italy

      By Gigi2025 · Posted

      Since 2015 we've spent extensive time in Italy and I've been able to eat their wheat products without incident. Initially, I was practically starving thinking foods in Sicily were not gluten-free.  An Italian friend who had lived in the US for over 20 years said she had celiac/gluten-free friends from the US who could eat Italian wheat products without problems. Hesitantly, I tried little by little without issues.  A few years later at a market, I asked a bread vendor if they had gluten-free loaves. Turns out she had lived in LA, said groups believe it's not the gluten that's causing our bodies harm, but potassium bromate; these groups have been trying to ban it.  Bromines and other halogens wreaks havoc to our endocrine system and, more specifically, our thyroids and immune systems. When bromines are ingested/absorbed into the body, it displaces iodine causing other health issues. Potassium bromate is a powerful oxidizing agent (dough 'conditioner') that chemically changes flour to enhance elasticity, bleaches the dough, and ages the flour much faster than open air.   Shortly thereafter while visiting friends in California, one family said they had gone gluten-free and the difference was incredible. The reason they choose this path was due them (a biologist/chemist/agriculturist scientist) having to write a portion of a paper about a certain product for the company he worked. Another company's scientist was directed to write the other portion. All was confidential, they weren't allowed to know the other company/employee.  After the research, they learned gluten was being removed from wheat, sent elsewhere, returned in large congealed blocks resembling tofu, and then added to wheat products. Potassium bromate has been banned for use in Europe, China, and other countries, but not in the US. Then we have the issues of shelf preservatives and stabilizers. What are we eating?  Why? We spend long periods of time in Italy and all has been good.  We just returned from an extended time in Greece;  no issues there either.  There is a man there we learned about on a travel show about Greece who walks the hills, picking herbs, pods, etc.  He is a very learned scholar, taught at the university level in Melbourne. It took a few days to locate him, but were finally successful. He too, is concerned about the additives and preservatives in American food (many of his customers are Americans, haven't been in the best of health, and have become healthier after visiting him). He suggested taking a food product from the US and the same product in Europe, and compare the different ingredients. Then ask why these things are being allowed in the US by the 'watch dog' of our foods and drugs. It would be amuzing if it weren't tragic. I'm presently looking for flour from Europe that I can make my own bread and pasta as the gluten-free bread is now $7.99 a (small) loaf.  BTW, studies are showing that many gluten-free individuals are becoming diabetic. My guess is because the gluten-free products are high in carbs. This is only my experience and opinion garnished by my personal research.  I hope it helps.  
    • knitty kitty
      Taking Probiotics but Still Getting Sick After Gluten – Advice?

      By knitty kitty · Posted

      Symptoms that get worse if you don't supplement is a sign of malabsorption, possibly due to Celiac disease. Blood tests for nutritional deficiencies are not very accurate, and should be done when you have been off of supplements for eight to twelve weeks, otherwise the vitamin supplements you've taken will be measured.  The blood circulation system is a transportation system.  It transports the vitamins you've absorbed around the body, but blood tests don't give an accurate picture of the vitamin and mineral stores inside organs and tissues where they are actually used.  You can have "normal" blood levels but still have deficiencies.  This is because the brain demands stored nutrients be put into the blood stream to supply important organs, like the brain and heart, while other organs do without.   If you are taking Thiamine Mononitrate in your supplements, you are probably low in thiamine.  Thiamine Mononitrate is used in many supplements because it won't break down sitting on a shelf.  This also means Thiamine Mononitrate is difficult for the body to utilize.  Only thirty percent of Thiamine Mononitrate on the label is absorbed and even less is able to be utilized by the body.  A different form of Thiamine called Benfotiamine has been shown to promote intestinal healing.   Talk to your doctor about doing a genetic test to look for Celiac markers.   I'm concerned that if you do a gluten challenge (10 grams of gluten per day for a minimum off two weeks) in your weakened state, the nutritional deficiencies will become worse and possibly life threatening.  
    • ElisaAllergiesgluten
      Allergy medication: cetirizine by the HealthA2Z is it gluten free?

      By ElisaAllergiesgluten · Posted

      Hello, good afternoon!   I apologize, I didn’t see a notification and I’m just reading this. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and the link. Yes you are absolutely right, even so trying to get a response from them has been extremely difficult. They don’t answer but I will your practice of “guilty until proven innocent.”   I like and have a sense of trust here in this website, everyone is honest and thoughts are raw. The mutual understanding is amazing!   thank you Scott!
    • Scott Adams
      Draft gluten-free ciders… can they be trusted ?

      By Scott Adams · Posted

      I'd go with a vodka tonic, but that's just me😉
    • Rejoicephd
      Draft gluten-free ciders… can they be trusted ?

      By Rejoicephd · Posted

      That and my nutritionist also said that drinking cider is one of the worst drink choices for me, given that I have candida overgrowth.  She said the combination of the alcohol and sugar would be very likely to worsen my candida problem.  She suggested that if I drink, I go for clear vodka, either neat or with a splash of cranberry.   So in summary, I am giving ciders a rest.  Whether it's a gluten risk or sugars and yeast overgrowth, its just not worth it.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

NOTICE: This site places This site places cookies on your device (Cookie settings). on your device. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use, and Privacy Policy.