Holy (Mad) Cow!

[ndebord]

Holy Cow! Despite a 3rd case of Mad Cow disease, the Bush Administration is cutting back on tests for this uncurable and fatal ailment.
.

http://www.forbes.com/entrepreneurs/feeds/ap/2006/03/14/ap2594725.html

[lensue]

>Holy Cow! Despite a 3rd case of Mad Cow disease, the Bush Administration is cutting back on tests for this uncurable and fatal ailment.<

Nick, well does that make him a COWard! Regards, Len [r,d,g]

[Lindsey]

Holy Cow! Despite a 3rd case of Mad Cow disease, the Bush Administration is cutting back on tests for this uncurable and fatal ailment.
And this surprises you because . . . ?

--Lindsey

[ndebord]

>Holy Cow! Despite a 3rd case of Mad Cow disease, the Bush Administration is cutting back on tests for this uncurable and fatal ailment.<

Nick, well does that make him a COWard! Regards, Len [r,d,g]

Len,

Or perhaps a Cow-Ward (seeing as how he is a ward of that great cattle state Texas)!

[sidney]

Despite a 3rd case of Mad Cow disease

This makes perfect sense. As long as no cases were being discovered, the very limited tests served to assure people who don't do the math that there is no mad cow disease in their food. After three cases were detected, it was obviously time to stop before people start worrying and giving less of their money to the meat lobby^H^H^H industry.

-- sidney

[ndebord]

This makes perfect sense. As long as no cases were being discovered, the very limited tests served to assure people who don't do the math that there is no mad cow disease in their food. After three cases were detected, it was obviously time to stop before people start worrying and giving less of their money to the meat lobby^H^H^H industry.

-- sidney

Sidney,

I seldom drink cow milk, nor eat Beef. It's been a gradual change, but in the last year a serious one.

[Lindsey]

I seldom drink cow milk, nor eat Beef. It's been a gradual change, but in the last year a serious one.
I've largely given up beef. Dairy products would be more difficult... :(

--Lindsey

[Judy G. Russell]

At my age, I figure something is going to get me sooner or later, and at least I ain't going out feeling deprived. Gimme my steak, my ice cream and my chocolate!!!

[ndebord]

I've largely given up beef. Dairy products would be more difficult... :(

--Lindsey


Lindsey,

I draw the line at Cheese...I like Cheese and there are many different types, so I'm not restricted to one animal type there. As for milk. A pox on it. Try Silk Soymilk. The no sugar one in the green carton (If you don't mind the sugar content, go for the red carton). You'll find it tastes pretty good. Can't say the same about the rest of the soymilk products out there, but Silk comes closest to that Udder stuff.

[ndebord]

At my age, I figure something is going to get me sooner or later, and at least I ain't going out feeling deprived. Gimme my steak, my ice cream and my chocolate!!!

Judy,

Hey, I'm 100% with you....ah, make that 33%.

<weak grin>

[Dan in Saint Louis]

At my age, I figure something is going to get me sooner or later, and at least I ain't going out feeling deprived. Gimme my steak, my ice cream and my chocolate!!!
Ah, yes; the five basic food groups:
Beer
Hamburger
Pizza
Chocolate
Ice cream

[Judy G. Russell]

Hey, one third is better than nothing!!!

[Judy G. Russell]

Ooooh... I like THAT food pyramid!!!

[lensue]

>Ooooh... I like THAT food pyramid!!!<

Judy, yeah but it left out McDonald's french fries! Regards, Len [r,d,g]

[Judy G. Russell]

Oh yeah... McDonald's fries are the best... I have been known (kaff kaff) to get a Whopper from Burger King and go down the road for fries at McDonald's...

[lensue]

>to get a Whopper from Burger King <

Judy, would that be the infamous triple whopper with cheese!
calories from fat 740
total calories 1230
total fat 82
cholesterol 275
sodium 1590 Regards, Len [g]

[Judy G. Russell]

(a) No, not a triple. Never had a triple in my life.

(b) You, sir, are a definite Party Pooper.

[ndebord]

Hey, one third is better than nothing!!!

Judy,

Yeah! Particularly if it is the right 1/3!

I was just at Martine's picking up some chocolate. Deliciously decadent I have to say. I wish I could have sprung for more than a couple small gift bags of the stuff. As it was, I gobbled up shamelessly all the samples the sales girl was willing to offer. Yum.

[ndebord]

Oh yeah... McDonald's fries are the best... I have been known (kaff kaff) to get a Whopper from Burger King and go down the road for fries at McDonald's...

Judy,

I beg to differ, albeit historically speaking. Mr Hot Dog's fries were definitely better than McDonalds...back in the day, that is!

[Lindsey]

At my age, I figure something is going to get me sooner or later, and at least I ain't going out feeling deprived. Gimme my steak, my ice cream and my chocolate!!!
I have never really particularly cared for steak, and to tell you the truth, while I eat ice cream occasionally, I don't go all that crazy for it. Chocolate, on the other hand...

--Lindsey

[Lindsey]

I draw the line at Cheese...I like Cheese and there are many different types, so I'm not restricted to one animal type there.
Yep, I'm a big fan of cheese, too. I will have to say, though, that two cheeses that I really enjoy are goat cheese and manchego, which is made from sheep's milk, so I guess I'm not all that tied to what's made from cow's milk, but I would really, really, hate to have to give up cheddar.

As for milk. A pox on it. Try Silk Soymilk.
Oh, well -- I've always liked milk, too. And one of my favorite desserts is berries of one kind or another in cream. Or sliced apples sprinkled with cinnamon and mace and ground cloves and Splenda in cream. Soymilk? Um, um, um -- I'll think about it.

--Lindsey

[Judy G. Russell]

Sigh... lemme know the next time you're going to Martine's, will ya????

[Judy G. Russell]

I don't think I ever went to Mr. Hot Dog!

[Judy G. Russell]

I could give up steak, though I am very fond of it. I could give up ice cream, if my life depended on it. But I am never giving up chocolate. Period.

[Judy G. Russell]

Soy milk is a problem for any woman who has had or is at risk for having breast cancer. Soy ain't a good thing for someone who needs to keep estrogen under control.

[ndebord]

Yep, I'm a big fan of cheese, too. I will have to say, though, that two cheeses that I really enjoy are goat cheese and manchego, which is made from sheep's milk, so I guess I'm not all that tied to what's made from cow's milk, but I would really, really, hate to have to give up cheddar.


Oh, well -- I've always liked milk, too. And one of my favorite desserts is berries of one kind or another in cream. Or sliced apples sprinkled with cinnamon and mace and ground cloves and Splenda in cream. Soymilk? Um, um, um -- I'll think about it.

--Lindsey


Lindsey,

Goat Cheese, walnuts, greens... to die for.

As for Cream. It ain't milk by a long shot! I draw the line at giving up heavy cream and berries! But Silk Soymilk in my coffee is more than ok with me most of the time and in my cereal and and and.




<g>

[ndebord]

Sigh... lemme know the next time you're going to Martine's, will ya????


Judy,

I certainly shall. I seldom make the run, as her prices fit the neighborhood (82nd St just east of 1st Ave). She also has a shop in Bloomies, where she started out and where I first found her chocolates. Had to pick up a couple small boxes for a social worker and one decent doctor, ya see.

[ndebord]

I don't think I ever went to Mr. Hot Dog!

Judy,

A short-lived, midwest franchise, modeled after Ronnie, in the mistaken apprehension that hot dogs would go over as well as hamburgs.

[Judy G. Russell]

Ah! No wonder I never ate there, then!

[Judy G. Russell]

And they will appreciate them very much, I can assure you, from personal knowledge!

[ndebord]

Ah! No wonder I never ate there, then!

Judy,

Yup. If they had even thought about invading the East Coast, Nathan's would have handed them their lunch (so to speak)!

[ndebord]

Soy milk is a problem for any woman who has had or is at risk for having breast cancer. Soy ain't a good thing for someone who needs to keep estrogen under control.

Judy,

SIGH. I always thought the reverse, that in general, soymilk was good for women.

http://www.pearlsoymilk.com/page/soyandhealth/womenshealthbenefits.asp

[ktinkel]

I always thought the reverse, that in general, soymilk was good for women.That’s old news; more recent studies have found otherwise, or they think they have, anyway.

Asian women have lower rates of breast cancer, but they do not usually drink soy milk. Instead they eat tofu in various forms, and probably at a lower daily rate than people here who replace cow’s milk with soy. And they have a really different diet from ours to begin with.

Maybe it is rice that protects against breast cancer! Or fabulous Chinese mushrooms! <g>

[Lindsey]

Goat Cheese, walnuts, greens... to die for.
You know, I'm having a hard time finding those conveniently-sized packages of walnut pieces any more. I can get a large bag, or a tiny bag with just a handful, and both cases with pieces large enough that I'd really need to chop them up further, but a decent-sized bag that would last me maybe a couple of weeks rather than one meal or a couple of months? Can't find 'em.

I draw the line at giving up heavy cream and berries! But Silk Soymilk in my coffee is more than ok with me most of the time and in my cereal and and and.
Well, I usually settle for half-and-half even for the berries. And I'm fine with milk for my cereal -- I can even live with skim milk for that. But milk in my coffee? Nonono. For that I want cream. (I even prefer the powdered stuff to milk.)

--Lindsey

[earler]

For walnuts plant some trees. We have several and have more than we really need to get through the winter, summer and until the following autumn.

-er

[Lindsey]

For walnuts plant some trees. We have several and have more than we really need to get through the winter, summer and until the following autumn.
I'd really like walnuts for my salad this week, not several years from now.

Sorry, Earle, I just have a quarter acre lot, not an estate. I dont' think growing my own is all that practical.

--Lindsey

[Judy G. Russell]

It may be true that, for the general female population, soy has a deterrent effect (though this isn't proved). But the general consensus now is that phytoestrogens (such as are contained in soy) can have estrogen-like effects in humans. So any woman who has estrogen-positive breast cancer or the risk of estrogen-positive (i.e., those with markers like LCIS or ADH) should avoid soy. Of course, that's today's theory. It may be different by tomorrow.

[Lindsey]

Of course, that's today's theory. It may be different by tomorrow.
It's frustrating, isn't it, when the advice changes every time you turn around?

--Lindsey

[lensue]

>It's frustrating, isn't it, when the advice changes every time you turn around?<

Lindsey, yeah, I thought I was doing good switching to frying with canola oil but someone really into health foods on our Costa Rican trip told me I should switch to macadamia oil--something about the oil changing when it reaches a certain heat--no way I'm switching! Regards, Len [g]

[ndebord]

>It's frustrating, isn't it, when the advice changes every time you turn around?<

Lindsey, yeah, I thought I was doing good switching to frying with canola oil but someone really into health foods on our Costa Rican trip told me I should switch to macadamia oil--something about the oil changing when it reaches a certain heat--no way I'm switching! Regards, Len [g]

Len,

What? I remember that rapeseed oil (used in large sections of China) was bad for you when it got too hot. Used to use Peanut Oil as it could handle serious stir fry, but I too have gone to Canola (and Extra Virgin Olive Oil, but not for serious heat of course).

I'm at a loss (again).

<sigh>

[lensue]

>I'm at a loss (again).<

Nick, about 25 tears ago I became the cook in the family--took it up as a hobby--my wife insisted that I use margarine instead of those initial recipes I learned using butter! 6 or 7 years later she threw out all the margarine I had and said it was okay to go back to the butter. Regards, Len [g]

[ndebord]

>I'm at a loss (again).<

Nick, about 25 tears ago I became the cook in the family--took it up as a hobby--my wife insisted that I use margarine instead of those initial recipes I learned using butter! 6 or 7 years later she threw out all the margarine I had and said it was okay to go back to the butter. Regards, Len [g]


Len,

My brother was a fantastic baker...for awhile, had his own little company doing just that. I, however, liked to cook and worked since middle school in various restaurants, the first being a B&B (we didn't call it that back then, it was just an "inn") in the Mtns. of Northern California where I was an unpaid "relative". <g>

I never liked margarine and refused to use it ever. My wife, being Chinese, never cottoned to most of the things that corporate "food" America was pushing, so we have eaten quite high off the hog for 25 years now!

[Lindsey]

Lindsey, yeah, I thought I was doing good switching to frying with canola oil but someone really into health foods on our Costa Rican trip told me I should switch to macadamia oil
Macadamia oil sounds très cher to me. But I'm an olive oil fan, myself...

This may be what the guy on your trip was referring to:

Does Canola oil cause lung cancer?
Rapeseed oil, as well as other unrefined vegetable oils, have been linked to increased rates of lung cancer in people breathing the cooking fumes, according to a 1995 Wall Street Journal article. Cooking at lower temperatures (so the oil does not produce smoke) is recommended and will prevent this risk. It is recommended that canola oil be subjected to no higher than medium-high heat. In general, canola oil is appropriate for use in baking and other oven cooking, crisp sautéing and medium stir-frying.
http://www.wholefoods.com/healthinfo/canola.html


--Lindsey

[lensue]

>I never liked margarine and refused to use it ever. My wife, being Chinese, never cottoned to most of the things that corporate "food" America was pushing<

Nick, all this sounds good--I'm trying to cook a little more with tofu. Regards, Len

[Judy G. Russell]

It's frustrating, isn't it, when the advice changes every time you turn around?Lord, yes... I am sooooo tired of having to be the one most in charge of my health care. I didn't learn this stuff in law school!!!

[Lindsey]

Lord, yes... I am sooooo tired of having to be the one most in charge of my health care. I didn't learn this stuff in law school!!!
And for those of us with aging parents, we have to be in charge not only of our own health care, but that of our parents as well.

I got really ticked off with the president recently (OK, I've been ticked off with him for a long time, but this made me even more so) when he answered a woman at one of his little "meet and greet" events who was complaining about how confusing her elderly mother found the options presented to her under the new Medicare bill by scolding her for not helping her mother more. I'd like to see him try to sort through that confusing thicket if he had reason to think it might end up being a matter of life or death for someone close to him. (He obviously has no difficulty about things that are a matter of life or death for people he doesn't know.)

--Lindsey

[ndebord]

>I never liked margarine and refused to use it ever. My wife, being Chinese, never cottoned to most of the things that corporate "food" America was pushing<

Nick, all this sounds good--I'm trying to cook a little more with tofu. Regards, Len

Len,

Tofu is good. It will take on the characteristics of whatever sauce/marinande you subject it to, so you can do some very creative things with it. And there are more than a few types of tofu that you can play with.

[ndebord]

And for those of us with aging parents, we have to be in charge not only of our own health care, but that of our parents as well.

I got really ticked off with the president recently (OK, I've been ticked off with him for a long time, but this made me even more so) when he answered a woman at one of his little "meet and greet" events who was complaining about how confusing her elderly mother found the options presented to her under the new Medicare bill by scolding her for not helping her mother more. I'd like to see him try to sort through that confusing thicket if he had reason to think it might end up being a matter of life or death for someone close to him. (He obviously has no difficulty about things that are a matter of life or death for people he doesn't know.)
--Lindsey

Lindsey,

Today's press conference was particularly galling, depending upon your perspective on things political. GWB was asked about the debt extension to around $9 Trillion and responded by saying it was a result of entitlement programs, specifically mentioned were Social Security and Medicare. He did take time to thank the Congress for funding the war in Iraq.

[Judy G. Russell]

And for those of us with aging parents, we have to be in charge not only of our own health care, but that of our parents as well.BTDT, and can only say that, while I'm not happy to be an orphan (today would have been my mother's 80th birthday), I am very grateful that I don't have to try to guide them through the nightmare of the current bureaucracy.

[Judy G. Russell]

Today's press conference was particularly galling, depending upon your perspective on things political. GWB was asked about the debt extension to around $9 Trillion and responded by saying it was a result of entitlement programs, specifically mentioned were Social Security and Medicare. He did take time to thank the Congress for funding the war in Iraq.Hey hey now... what's a few hundred billion among friends? Or fiends...?

[ndebord]

Hey hey now... what's a few hundred billion among friends? Or fiends...?

Judy,

Make that a few trillion and I'm with you.

<SIGH>

[Judy G. Russell]

Make that a few trillion and I'm with you.Billion, trillion, details details details.

[Lindsey]

Today's press conference was particularly galling, depending upon your perspective on things political. GWB was asked about the debt extension to around $9 Trillion and responded by saying it was a result of entitlement programs, specifically mentioned were Social Security and Medicare.
Yeah, certainly couldn't possibly be the result of cutting taxes while trying to fight a war.

Did you notice that in the process of giving a testy answer to Helen Thomas's question, he asserted once again that the reason he had to invade Iraq was that Saddam Hussein refused to let the weapons inspectors in? To quote Keith Olbermann from "Countdown" last night: "Who does the president think he is effing kidding?"

--Lindsey

[Judy G. Russell]

"Who does the president think he is effing kidding?"Himself!

[ndebord]

Himself!

Judy,

Gotta give the frat boy a break here. It's just that he doesn't have the ability to recall which lies he's recycling!

<g>

[Judy G. Russell]

That's one of the reasons why I generally tell the truth. I'm not capable of remembering what lies I may have told in the past!

[lensue]

>And there are more than a few types of tofu <

Nick, the extra firm seems the easiest for me to cook with. Regards, Len

[ktinkel]

Moderation in all things — including moderation!

[ktinkel]

I never liked margarine and refused to use it ever. Me, too. My mother used margarine, and I had the good sense to hate it from birth (I think — certainly from consciousness).

For me, it is butter, olive oil, or dry (when it comes to bread). Or give me some nice olivata or white bean spread — but never margarine.

[ktinkel]

Tofu is good. It also tastes good. I use it a lot — Ma Po Tofu being a family favorite (lots of Sichuan pepper, Sichuan bean paste, garlic, ginger).

You can sauté it and serve it with black bean sauce, oyster sauce, chili sauce, or some other sauce (or all of them); stuff it with little shrimp and steam it in an array of dim sum; marinate it in soy and 5-spice powder, press it to make it firm, shred it, and stir-fry it with shredded pork or toss it with celery shreds to make a light salad — tofu is fabulous stuff.

Just don’t pretend it is meat.

[ktinkel]

… I'd like to see him try to sort through that confusing thicket if he had reason to think it might end up being a matter of life or death …I am going through that right now for myself. I am computer-savvy, as compos mentis as I have been in the recent past, and so on.

It is a nightmare! I was going to sign up with the only Medicare HMO in CT (which includes drug coverage), but just last week found out that they will not cover some of the procedures I am undergoing.

So all of a sudden I have gone from being blasé about this Part D prescription coverage to needing to choose not only a prescription plan but a medigap plan. (I have one monthly prescription that lists for $285, another for $90, as well as four or five other medications, so don’t want to go it alone.)

I figured I was smart enough to figure it out (and probably am, given enough time) — but I have to make a one-year decision by next week. The medicare.gov site is useful, or seemingly so — but when you check out their recommendations at the provider sites, you discover that they do not gibe.

I wish every voter had to go through this mess — it would create a ground-swell for major change in health care for the elderly in a New York minute!

[ktinkel]

Billion, trillion …Hey — add up enough of them and you get to real money!

[Judy G. Russell]

Hey — add up enough of them and you get to real money!At which point they'll just print more...

[Judy G. Russell]

It is a nightmare!That's what everyone says. Geez...

[Lindsey]

Himself!
And he's the only one who is fooled, I think!

--Lindsey

[Lindsey]

Gotta give the frat boy a break here. It's just that he doesn't have the ability to recall which lies he's recycling!
Someone suggested that some of his more rambling answers (like the one he gave Helen Thomas yesterday, explaining his reasons for invading Iraq by explaining the invasion of Afghanistan) are the result of his having a stock set of generic answers when he is given a difficult question, and he has to start the tape loop at the beginning.

Sounds about right to me.

--Lindsey

[Lindsey]

but I have to make a one-year decision by next week.
This is one of the things I think is so unfair about the whole thing. You're locked in for a year, but the insurer can change the coverage any time it chooses. This is not a free market, it's a captive one.

This whole setup is simply insane. It's definitely not a program that was designed for consumers; it was designed for the insurers and the drug companies.

--Lindsey

[Judy G. Russell]

And he's the only one who is fooled, I think!Would that that were true. He still has 30% of the poll numbers on his side.

[Lindsey]

Would that that were true. He still has 30% of the poll numbers on his side.
<sigh> True. Probably the same 30% that think things are going well in Iraq. :confused:

--Lindsey

[ndebord]

Would that that were true. He still has 30% of the poll numbers on his side.

Judy,

That would be the 30% that only reads Christian programming of one kind or another. The only mainstream media they follow is Fox.

[Judy G. Russell]

<sigh> True. Probably the same 30% that think things are going well in Iraq. :confused: And the same 30% that Saddam Hussein is responsible for 9/11...

[Judy G. Russell]

The only mainstream media they follow is Fox.Did you hear that Cheney has standing orders whenever he travels that all the televisions in the rooms where he stays have to be preset to Fox News? :eek: :eek: :eek:

[Lindsey]

Did you hear that Cheney has standing orders whenever he travels that all the televisions in the rooms where he stays have to be preset to Fox News? :eek: :eek: :eek:
Jon Stewart just ran that on "The Daily Show." What a surprise. :cool:

God forbid he should turn on the TV and have to listen to ten words from someone who hasn't completely OD'd on the neocon Kool-Aid.

--Lindsey

[Judy G. Russell]

I wish I could have a list of things that absolutely had to be done whenever I travel. Let's see... diet peach Snapple in the room refrigerator, temp set at 72, cute pool boys...

[ktinkel]

This whole setup is simply insane. It's definitely not a program that was designed for consumers; it was designed for the insurers and the drug companies.Not sure it was really designed for anyone but the drug companies — imagine not allowing negotiated drug pricing for a prescription program! I think that is unique in all the world.

Cynically speaking, I would say the real objective is to torpedo Medicare altogether.

[Judy G. Russell]

I still just find it absolutely baffling that we don't allow (indeed require) negotiated drug pricing. It just boggles the mind.

[ndebord]

Not sure it was really designed for anyone but the drug companies — imagine not allowing negotiated drug pricing for a prescription program! I think that is unique in all the world.

Cynically speaking, I would say the real objective is to torpedo Medicare altogether.

Kathleen,

That's not cyncial analysis, rather it is realpolitik. If you read the conservative manifesto(s), you'll see that repealing all the NEW DEAl is a number one priority. (Let the poor use the poor house for charity could be their mantra.)

[Lindsey]

Not sure it was really designed for anyone but the drug companies — imagine not allowing negotiated drug pricing for a prescription program! I think that is unique in all the world.
Yeah, when I first heard about that provision, my head whipped around so fast it's a wonder it didn't snap my neck. "What? Are they completely nuts??" It wasn't until sometime later that I realized why they had set it up that way: as a gift to Big Pharma, a generous campaign donor.

Cynically speaking, I would say the real objective is to torpedo Medicare altogether.
I think you may have something there. And, as an added bonus, to enrich their friends along the way.

--Lindsey

[ktinkel]

I still just find it absolutely baffling that we don't allow (indeed require) negotiated drug pricing. It just boggles the mind.Yes, especially as there is a huge Rx program in the U.S. that does permit negotiated drug prices: the VA. And it works really well.

Maybe they should have put the VA in charge of the Medicare Rx program!

[ktinkel]

That's what everyone says. Geez...Well, it took me something like 40 real hours to unravel it, but last night I finally chose a Medigap policy (Anthem Blue Cross) and a Part D prescription policy (Humana) that promises to cover my weirder and more expensive meds and to cover the so-called “donut hole.”

Not cheap (though cheaper than what I was paying CIGNA even with partial coverage from pension). And the brand-name prescriptions will cost more (but the generics less).

Now to see how it all works out in real life. Meanwhile, I am glad to have this off my to-do list!

If anyone is grappling with all this, I will be glad to share some of the mysterious things I discovered along the way. The gotchas are numerous.

[Judy G. Russell]

Yes, especially as there is a huge Rx program in the U.S. that does permit negotiated drug prices: the VA. And it works really well.I can't for one minute understand why it can work for the VA and be soooooo bad for Medicare (well, I do understand, and it has to do with campaign contributions...)...

[Judy G. Russell]

If anyone is grappling with all this, I will be glad to share some of the mysterious things I discovered along the way. The gotchas are numerous.That'd be terrific. We're all either facing or going to be facing this!

[ktinkel]

I can't for one minute understand why it can work for the VA and be soooooo bad for Medicare (well, I do understand, and it has to do with campaign contributions...)...Guess so. Ugh.

[fhaber]

o Torpedo Medicare

o No Negotiated drug buys

Those were my epiphanies when I chose in December. I also factored in what my pharmacists said about the likeliness of snafus. That was worth $10/month to me.

What a scraming pain. In my case, nothing decent offered renewals at longer than 30-31 day intervals. I had to give up the 90-day convenience factor.

And then there are the dosage limits. Find a plan that covers your weird remedy; scour the web to find out whether your dosage is covered. Healthy mental exercise for the Alzheimer's patient, what?

So, KT, what were your other obscure nuggets?

[ktinkel]

So, KT, what were your other obscure nuggets?Once I discovered that off-formulary drugs were not considered in calculating the “donut hole” threshold, it all became sort of easy.

I took the real screamers on my list and searched for coverage of those only; that narrowed the list of possibles to 8. Then I opted for a Part D that covered the donut hole. Costs something up front, but to the extent I can figure (only time will tell), the bottom line is better, and I will not be nickeled-and-dimed over every little thing.

I gave up the ability to use out-of-network pharmacies, but can buy 90-day-supplies, so unless I am a dunce (or extremely unlucky), I should make out okay. But check back in 6 months or so.

Dosage limits are another story — so far it appears it will work out. But doctors change things (especially with an evolving chronic ailment like mine). And of course the insurance companies reserve the right to change their coverage at any time.

I ended up buying Cadillac coverage (both for Part D and for medigap) in order to hedge my bets. (Would have preferred a Mercedes or BMW, all in all, but that doesn’t seem to be available.)

The helpful woman at Connecticut CHOICES (state elderly service) was very helpful — she suggested searching only on the difficult drugs. And my local pharmacist was helpful too — he pointed out that they didn’t really know the problems at this point because they were required by the state to cover every RX until April 1 (because they couldn not get through to the Medicare authorizers); then they will have a clearer idea of which insurers cause the most problems. Sigh.

And then there was my orthopod, who said that the HMO plan I was first considering would not cover the procedures that basically make my life tolerable. I was not exactly glad to hear that, but it sure was useful information.

My advice is to talk to everyone: especially the people who actually have to obtain authorization (not the doctors, the grunts in the doctors’ offices) to find out what might work.

Oh — sometimes the medicare.gov site and the provider sites disagree; the latter are what matter, of course.

I used a whole set of ink carts printing out crucial information in order to deal with this. If I had been a die-hard Republican before I began, I sure wouldn’t be one now. (In fact, I feel like moving to Canada or France!)

[Lindsey]

In my case, nothing decent offered renewals at longer than 30-31 day intervals. I had to give up the 90-day convenience factor.
Tell me about it. :mad: I prefer to deal with the local pharmacist rather than some faceless entity via mail. And for that, I am penalized by Anthem by not being allowed renewals that run longer than a month. (One medication I can get for 90 days onloy because the price falls below the co-pay anyway.)

And then there are the dosage limits. Find a plan that covers your weird remedy; scour the web to find out whether your dosage is covered.
Oh, damn -- something else to worry about!

My grandfather used to say that insurance policies were written so that the insurer never had to pay unless he chose to. I am beginning to think he was absolutely right about that.

--Lindsey

[Dan in Saint Louis]

My grandfather used to say that insurance policies were written so that the insurer never had to pay unless he chose to.

I have had some success, when an insurance company denies a claim, by simply writing them a letter and requesting a written explanation for their denial. So far they have found it easier to allow the claim than to write the letter.

[ndebord]

I can't for one minute understand why it can work for the VA and be soooooo bad for Medicare (well, I do understand, and it has to do with campaign contributions...)...


Judy,

Sad to say, but the VA has just gone under the Bushie knife. Prescriptions are now limited to only certain drugs and the prices are becoming closer to retail. Just last year, if you fell below minimum federal poverty levels, drugs were free (within reason), but that is no longer the case. Now they charge regardless. They've also cut off access to eye and dental care for the poor too, unless you are 90% disabled or have certain health problems, such as diabetes, etc.

[Judy G. Russell]

We can afford to wage war... but not to care for those who were on the front lines. Cute.

[Lindsey]

I have had some success, when an insurance company denies a claim, by simply writing them a letter and requesting a written explanation for their denial. So far they have found it easier to allow the claim than to write the letter.
Oh, that's an interesting idea. I'll have to remember that.

--Lindsey

[ktinkel]

Sad to say, but the VA has just gone under the Bushie knife. Prescriptions are now limited to only certain drugs and the prices are becoming closer to retail. Just last year, if you fell below minimum federal poverty levels, drugs were free (within reason), but that is no longer the case. Now they charge regardless. They've also cut off access to eye and dental care for the poor too, unless you are 90% disabled or have certain health problems, such as diabetes, etc.I knew there were some cuts (kind of catches your attention at a time like this!) but not that they were so deep.

Crappy.

[Judy G. Russell]

I have had some success, when an insurance company denies a claim, by simply writing them a letter and requesting a written explanation for their denial. So far they have found it easier to allow the claim than to write the letter.Yep. And cc: the letter to your state Insurance Commissioner. That helps too.

[ndebord]

I knew there were some cuts (kind of catches your attention at a time like this!) but not that they were so deep.

Crappy.

Kathleen,


They'll still pull your teeth at the VA, but they will charge retail for the privlege and I'm not convinced they are anywhere as good in that regard as private practice. Like Medicaid prescriptions, it forces you to look around for alternatives for parts of your health care. A few years ago, when I was making yet another career change in my writing and editing, I had no money and the VA saved my bacon. Now that I make enough, I'm more than willing to do co-pay with them instead of to an HMO. For a decade I was a freelancer and used a professional organization in NYC to get a group rate. But it was much more expensive than any corporate plan I ever heard of.

The health care pie can't be divided up into so many slices, which is why I want some kind of single payer solution.

[ktinkel]

A few years ago, when I was making yet another career change in my writing and editing, I had no money and the VA saved my bacon. …

The health care pie can't be divided up into so many slices, which is why I want some kind of single payer solution.I honestly do not know exactly what should be done. I lean toward a single-payer solution — but then wonder about the brilliance of the Congress, which does seem to ebb and flow with the times. (Just look at this draconian immigrant bill.)

But this business of allowing insurers to call the shot with no restraints, to have people pay for drugs with no possibility of negotiation, to have insurance bureaucrats interfering with decisions about medical care: well, that is simply wrong.

There were tensions between patients and doctors. But these were (or could be) human relationships. I canceled my first Medicare choice because my orthopedist (on whom I depend for mobility) said that the provider I had chosen would not authorize procedures he prescribed for patients (or would take months to do so). So I had to find someone else (and I sure hope it works out).

The insurance companies introduce a level of bureacracy that we (patients and doctors) pay for. We also have to pay when they invest their profits in high-flying stocks that go bust. That is insane.

Oh, well. In a week I will discover whether my new choices will work. ;)

[Lindsey]

which is why I want some kind of single payer solution.
You and most of the rest of the country. We just have to get Congress to listen to some voice besides that of their corporate contributors.

--Lindsey