Health Insurance / Aftercare

[ANDREW]

I am looking at going over seas for cervical ADR's. Has anyone had problems with thier insurance on the follow up stuff(X-rays, PT, Dr's, etc), any insurance denials for that stuff? Any comments or opinions? Worried about coming home to the US and not having care .

[Justin]

I am looking at going over seas for cervical ADR's. Has anyone had problems with thier insurance on the follow up stuff(X-rays, PT, Dr's, etc), any insurance denials for that stuff? Any comments or opinions? Worried about coming home to the US and not having care .

I was denied coverage for my Artificial Disc Replacement surgery in 2003. However, all of my pre and post-operative testing and doctor's visits were covered at 100%. This may vary depending on your insurance company. You could call your insurance company and see how this is covered, so you won't have any (or less) surprises when you arrive home. Good luck.

[ANDREW]

I was denied coverage for my Artificial Disc Replacement surgery in 2003. However, all of my pre and post-operative testing and doctor's visits were covered at 100%. This may vary depending on your insurance company. You could call your insurance company and see how this is covered, so you won't have any (or less) surprises when you arrive home. Good luck.

Justin, What ins. co. was that? Also what happened to R2R? Curious how he is doin?

[laid up doc]

i had a similar situation to Justin... well, except i didn't even try to get it covered. have no coverage for international non-emergency care, and an appeal would have done emotional/mental damage. i wasn't able to get a definitive diagnosis of nickel allergy, so i knew it would be futile to fight Aetna, but dumb to get a prodisc given my history. on Feb 15th i will achieve my goal of returning to my career, almost exactly 4 months after my lumbar ADR. worth every penny.

my pre-op stuff was covered as a PCP visit (i did tell my PCP what was going on and asked her not to put anything as "pre-op" b/c i was afraid of it getting flagged as funny - though i could have had the wrong surgery here, covered 100% by Aetna!!!)

i had moved just before my ADR surgery and established a new spine/pain doc. new and old were both willing to "follow" me after for trigger point injections, ordering PT/xrays, etc. not that my PCP couldn't do the non-trigger point stuff --- but give my prior experiences, i knew i'd need myofascial help for a while after surgery

post-op, have had everything covered as well, same as pre-op. i just pay my usual copays.

[trkdoc714]

Andrew,

I had no issues with the follow up care being covered by Aetna. Even though the disc I have are not approved in the US, the follow up care was covered subject to the co-pay/ deductable portion of the policy.

Finding qualified surgeon (experienced in ADR) wasn't very difficult but I deemed it important for a successful recovery. The same criteria was true for the PT clinic I chose.

Good luck to you,

Bob

[Justin]

Justin, What ins. co. was that? Also what happened to R2R? Curious how he is doin?

BlueCross BlueShield. R2R might have "moved on" -- many Spine Patients move on from the Forums once they feel better. However, there are many that stick around as a way to give back and "pay it forward."