The Battle for Insurance Coverage

As horrific as the suffering is for Lyme patients; with physical pain from syptoms, and emotional pain from the common abandonment from friends and family as years go by with no improvement, the situation actually get worse.

The financial devastation that can occur for serious cases of Lyme disease has bankrupted more than a dozen families who try to pay for medical tests not covered by insurance, and for the necessary antibiotic treatment that should be covered, but is almost always denied after 21 - 30 days (depending upon insurance company and state).

Most people have no choice but to abandon the treatment proscribed by their doctor and frequently turn to alternative treatments in ever more desperate attempts for a cure.

Then there are those with enough financial resources to try to continue IV antibiotics on their own, which can range upwards from $1,000.00/week.

However, there are also a few courageous souls who attempt to take on their insurance companies, like David and Goliath (if you can imagine David trembling in a wheel chair with dark glasses shielding his eyes, his face sagging with Bells Palsy, and his speech slurring frequently with embarrassing pauses as he struggles to remember simple sentences.)

The Lyme Times, a magazine published by the California Lyme Disease Association (see Links) has put together a cohesive collection of instructional articles, templates and legal guidelines to help the suffering Lyme disease victims face down the corporate giants with the most important amunition - facts.

If you go to www.lymetimes.org, you can order the "Insurance Issue" for $10.  It is well worth it!

UPDATE 11/25/2008

This imortant information was posted on my State's forum (Maine) and I would imagine every state has similar lists if you call the 800 numbers listed:

The research-based pharmaceutical industry has had a long standing tradition of providing prescription medications free of charge to physicians whose patients might not otherwise have access to necessary medications.

This list contains the name and telephone numbers of companies that  have been found to have such indigent programs in place.