Trigirl13

That is horrible. Luckily for me I have never gone down with out a brutal fight. LOL! john999, They asked for my private insurance and I refused to give them the info. They try to update it every time I have an appointment but I will never provide them with that information. Thankfully because of this site, I have been able to safe guard myself from many of the heart aches that I have read can happen. I am so thankful for the internet and its limitless amount of resources.

I haven't been on here in awhile. Still in the waiting process for my appeals and have been laying low in general. Really been trying to simplify my life. I had my C&P exam back in march. At this appointment I had blood work done and then a couple months later more blood work for the same exam. Well QTC failed to pay for both the lab work done. After 3 months on getting on them they finally paid for the one in May. The thing that is a blow is I thought that they had paid for the March one, but recently had a collection agency call me demanding payment. So basically since March this bill has not been paid and I had no idea about it until this last Friday December 6th, and was informed so by a collection agency. This has negatively impacted my credit score and is unacceptable. I contacted the lawyer I am using for my appeal, and my local senator, who both have to wait for me to get the bill before they can do anything, ugh. So now I wait for it to arrive in the mail until it is resolved. All attempts to contact QTC are a bust. Do any of you have any further advice? This whole thing makes me sick, not because it happened to me, but because I am pretty sure it is a common thing that happens to vets. It is sad and we deserve so much better. :)

I totally agree, unfortunately you cannot teach common sense!! I lived in California for most of my life and there was a certain individual that I never voted for, because they were horrible and yet they are still in congress. It seems to me that a large group of people cannot see what is right in front of them, or they choose to just not look. It really is sad.

Johnjr "When a man's or woman's ego gets in the way of getting the job done, it's time to get rid of them." Totally agree. Too much money, power, ego, greed, and time in congress ruins people. I wish there was a time limit on Congress members, just as there is for the president. Some of these congressmen/women, have been doing this too long to be effective anymore.

Most definitely agree!!!

I will believe it when I see it. Sorry to be so negative about it, just been dealing with this myself and I am very frustrated with the process.

I wouldn't doubt it! I will always turn down the narcs, just because I don't trust the VA doctors to know what they are doing.

It is ridiculous! I just get so frustrated about the whole situation. If I had other insurance I would have just gone that route, but I don't. John999 That is horrible that they were that late, I wish there was a better option for those of us that are not anywhere near a large VA hospital.

Okay, I thought of another question and don't know if there is an answer for it. I am on a medication that suppresses my immune system, so I tend to get sick frequently and need antibiotics. Does anyone know how that would work not having a local VA pharmacy, because waiting a week for an antibiotic could land me in the hospital. Thank you in advance for your replies

Thank you.

Hello, I recently had my first VA appointment, which was an odd experience to say the least. But, I had a question. There is no VA pharmacy at the local clinic so they mail the medications to me. The problem I have is it has been a week and I only received one of the medications, and not the one I needed the most (I had to have my thyroid meds increased due to low thyroid). Does anyone else here ever dealt with having to have their meds mailed to you and know how long it should normally take and what the process is like. The city they sent it from takes 2 days for regular postal mail so this week long crap and only receiving one of the meds really had me concerned. Thanks in advance for your replies.

Had my appointment yesterday. It didn't go too badly. The doctor was very odd, I think that is the only word that could accurately describe her. All in all though, I found out my thyroid was low again so my meds are being adjusted, which is good because I have been needing to get my levels checked, but been unable to.

Thank you. I actually made a list of all my questions and medications so I don't forget anything when I get there (I always forget something). Thank you again, It took me 4 years after getting out of the military to find a doctor I trust, so I can relate to not seeing one because of the treatment received in the military.

Hello, Wasn't sure if this was the right forum to post this. I have a new patient appointment in a week at my local VA clinic and I am really nervous about it. I have never dealt with the VA doctors before and I do not know what I should expect. I never had a good experience with my healthcare while in the military and I am worried I will be dealing with the same crap. (the only exception is the doc. I had when I had my son, she was amazing). I guess I just needed to voice my feelings of anxiety about this upcoming appointment to someone, I hate the unexpected.

So I have an appointment with the local VA clinic at the end of the month!!! So happy that I was able to get in to see someone!!! Now I will be able to get all my meds set up and get the process for the non-va care taken care of. I feel like I have an angel watching over me!!

I am in the process of dealing with my congressman here in Utah. My lawyer actually directed me towards them for an issue. I don't know how it will play out or if they will be able to help, but I will keep you posted on how it works for me. I hope it all works out for you!!

So I have everything sent in for SSDI and I am in the process of trying to see a local doctor. I have been struggling with my auto immune disorder the last couple of weeks, and I really believe the stress of having to deal with this is the trigger. I had to stop school because the stress there triggered inflammation and unnecessary pain and illness. "One day at a time", that has always helped me in the past!!

I don't think so since it is widely used for patients whose immune systems are already compromised, i.e. cancer patients, AIDS patients, etc. It is a hard core anti-biotic. Were you prescribed this? and have you been on other antibiotics that didn't work? Usually this is given if all other antibiotics haven't been working or for specific pneumonias.

This is just sad!!!

I just applied for CHAMP last week and after talking with you about SSDI went straight to apply for it. Thanks for all the advice, it has been a God send!!!!!

I havent applied for it. To be honest I really didn't know what all my options were. It wasn't until I found this website, that I realized what was there to help me out. And when I called they told me no new patients at all. I am in the process of figuring out the non-va care program. The closest clinic is a 2 hour trip one way and I have little ones that I would need to find child care for a full day for a trip like that trip (4 hours worth of travel for one trip). Besides the child care, being in a car for that long has always been very painful for me, my joints get really sore and I usually am out of commission for 3-4 days after a trip like that. So far it looks like I will be able to see someone local, I just have to get the authorization.

No I don't qualify for it, I am too young . We were on medicaid. My hubby finally has a stable job, so we don't qualify for that either. He should have insurance by sept. sometime, but we don't know if the insurance will even cover me. My doctor was talking about needing surgery in the next year or two, and I just don't want that, I can still walk and get around (even if it is painful at times). I just get really nervous thinking about surgery on my spine.

Ankylosing Spondylitis, I have a few fused vertebrae and my lumbar spine is straight instead of curved. Without the medication I am pretty much useless, it takes me a couple of hours after waking in the morning before any stiffness starts to go away and my ability to do basic everyday things becomes very hard without the medication, this medication has literally given me my life back.

yes mine do, when you look at my X-ray there is no space between the ones that have fused together and there is minimal space between the ones that aren't quite but will possibly fuse. The progress of my disease has decreased since I started my new medication, since it has decreased the inflammation significantly. Unfortunately, I had to do a lot of trial and error with the meds before I found one that worked.

I can totally relate. I hated it before I got diagnosed because the doctors would immediately mention a pain medication. I had to go through several doctors before one took me serious. I hope everything works out with your doctor and you are able to find something that helps!!! I almost forgot to mention that I have found that there are certain foods that make things worse for me, and I have learned to avoid them. Everyone is different though. Just hang in there and keep trying to find a solution, because there always is one!