So after watching Home Alone again for the zillionth time, I realized how similar my insurance battle was to Kevin McAllister’s fight against the burglars.
“This is my house and I have to defend it.”
I realized that this fight was my battle and couldn’t just rely on the Cleveland Clinic to do it.
Like Kevin, I came up with a plan of attack from all angles:
1. Personal- I wrote them a letter explaining why I desperately needed this treatment.
2. Medical- The Bone Marrow Transplant doctor and neurologist wrote letters explaining the medical reasoning behind this.
3. Political- I wrote letters ( w/ the help of Sajay and Ali) to my representatives at the Michigan government. The external review was being done by the Michigan Dept. of Insurance and Financial Services, a government entity, so thought this could help.
4. Insurance- I had to figure out how they think 🤔 so I got myself a patient advocate( thank you Nancy!). My advocate was David Mair from Sotor health who understood HSCT’s role in MS and who used to work for insurance companies, so he knew exactly how to fight this. He drafted a well written letter for me in a couple of hours.
I don’t know what worked or if it all helped…but the decision was reversed. Blue Cross Blue Shield was forced to pay! 🥳
My husband, daughter and me celebrated with pizza, a piñata, and by watching home alone! 😀
One hurdle jumped over, now comes the hard part…the treatment 😋
But we’ll worry about that later! For now I’ll end with:
“Merry Christmas ya filthy animal!” 😉 (from Home Alone)
For a more detailed review of the insurance process, see:
I’m so happy for you and your family. A great blessing during this time. I will continue the prayers! ❤️
Thank you so much Cindy!!🙏 😊
Veena, I’m so happy to read your good news! Your yogi friends are cheering for you young lady. ❤️ You and your entire family are in our prayers. 🙏
Aww thanks so much Lori! So my plan is to join you guys in yoga from Cleveland if I’m feeling okay! Hehe this might be too ambitious but we’ll see! 😋
Thank goodness you got that sorted out! So proud of how you handled this. Remember to always advocate for yourself throughout this journey. All the best Veena, praying for you
Thank you so much Tina!! Yeah lesson learned- always helps to advocate for yourself 😋
Very happy for you Veena for the insurance approval next step is to be brave and praying for the treatment to be carried on smoothly
Thank you bharathi aunty!! 😀
Hope everything goes on smoothly God bless give u all the strength courage to face all difficulties
V v happy for u God give u the strength courage to face the next treatment best wishes from all of us
Amen for this great news
Thanks so much Jay! 😀