Insulin. How does it work here for gringo with diabetes?

[dv8]

jessica:
costs of insuline, more or less:
accu-check testing meter - 3.500 pesos
a box of 50 strips - 1.500 pesos
insulina novolin (70/30, n 100, r 100) - 850 pesos
flexpen - 700 pesos, a box 3.500
lantus solustar - 750 pesos
lantus 100UI - 1.900 pesos
instituto de diabetes y nutricion in POP is actually just down the street from our pharmacy and i have been there myslef delivering medicine they order. the address is avenida isabel de torres 52, fairly close to the hospital. their phone is 809 261 0446.

campesina:
you may not know how things work in eastern europe. in poland (and i presume ukraina must be similar) everyone who works legally has a compulsory government insurance. this insurance covers doctors visits, medical procedures and medicine itself. the coverage is exactly the same whether you make one million dollars a month or one hundred. and why should it be different? both one million dollar and one hundred dollars dudes work and contribute to the sociaty with taxes. they should be treated equaly.
now, jessica wanted to know, i suppose, if the case was the same here in DR and it is not.

pib:
methinks that all insurance companies offer coverage for medicine, even with private insurance. it may not be included in a basic plan but check more expensive options.
ars humano - 809 200 4903 option 5
ars universal - 809 200 1283
ars monumental - 809 200 1769 option 221
ars palic salud - 809 200 1450
all above phones are free of charge. give them a call and check what they say. spanish only, i'm afraid.

 

[Campesina]

Thank you dv8. I misunderstood the OP, apologized and hope to put this behind me. Thank you for the insight and your great information. You efforts are commendable.

 

[dv8]

hey, i never got angry with you
just wanted to kinda explain stuff, we eastern europeans drink vodka differently too

 

[dv8]

oh, i called both universal and humano: with their voluntario plans (not affiliated with any company) they do have a coverage in pharmacies, regardless of the plan. BUT this is an optional extra you have to choose when taking on the policy. universal offers up to 10.000 pesos a year worth of meds with 60%-80% of price coverage (that depends on a plan). humano offers the same, more or less - coverage of 80% of the cost of meds but again it is optional extra and you would have to choose your yearly max. of course the more coverage you want the more you pay monthly but nonetheless it works.
cheers!

 

[Chuck T]

You guessed right.

In initially reading her post, I guessed that question number 1 meant if she moved him over here would he need to see a Dominican doctor or could he continue to take the medicine that he has been prescribed there.
But of course, in my DR1 travels, I also have been known to misunderstand a post or two.
But I am sorry, I defend where defense is warranted

SHALENA

There you go again , will you never mellow ? lol

 

[Tamborista]

Bro, you need to take a step back with your posts.

 

[DMV123]

Yes prescription coverage is available widely here on most plans. HOWEVER the pre existing condition will never be covered and neither will the meds. AND for the future any conditions linked to diabetes will not be covered either.

 

[JessicaRabbit]

But when i got my insurance they never tested me.... So how they will know he already had it since he was 12? What if i get him insurance but will not tell he has diabetes... It wont work still?
For example, i have problems with my back since i was little, now i will re-apply for insurance because i feel its getting worse and i might need a surgery, so im pretty sure insurance will cover the operation even though it was pre-existing condition, why its different for diabetes?...

Thanks to all you guys/ladies for your help!

 

[SKing]

But when i got my insurance they never tested me.... So how they will know he already had it since he was 12? What if i get him insurance but will not tell he has diabetes... It wont work still?

Thanks to all you guys/ladies for your help!

Act like you never knew a thing
"Diabetes?!? Are you sure doctor???"
Have him get enough medicine for 6 weeks, get his insurance as soon as he gets there, make him an appointment for 3 weeks after his arrival for a "yearly checkup" where your dad can conveniently say he has been very thirsty, peeing a lot, and very fatigued and irritable.
The doc should check his blood sugar and maybe even order a hemoglobin A1c.
Make sure your Dad does not take his insulin before the doctor's appt. (unless it may be detrimental)

SHALENA

 

[belgiank]

But when i got my insurance they never tested me.... So how they will know he already had it since he was 12? What if i get him insurance but will not tell he has diabetes... It wont work still?
For example, i have problems with my back since i was little, now i will re-apply for insurance because i feel its getting worse and i might need a surgery, so im pretty sure insurance will cover the operation even though it was pre-existing condition, why its different for diabetes?...

Thanks to all you guys/ladies for your help!

you will not be covered, as your x-rays will show this to be a pre-existing condition. The same for diabetes. In most cases some simple tests will show this was a pre-existing condition.

I can understand the urge to do this, but you also have to realize these scams make insurance more and more expensive. They are not here because they love us and want to help us, they are here to make money. The more scams, the more expensive it will get to be for honest folks.

 

[SKing]

you will not be covered, as your x-rays will show this to be a pre-existing condition. The same for diabetes. In most cases some simple tests will show this was a pre-existing condition.

I can understand the urge to do this, but you also have to realize these scams make insurance more and more expensive. They are not here because they love us and want to help us, they are here to make money. The more scams, the more expensive it will get to be for honest folks.

Everything is a "pre-existing" condition until it is discovered

SHALENA

 

[belgiank]

Everything is a "pre-existing" condition until it is discovered

SHALENA

true... hence the request of most European insurance companies for a medical examination before acceptance. And hence the waiting period of 6 months before you are actually covered... like most insurance companies here request as well...

 

[SKing]

true... hence the request of most European insurance companies for a medical examination before acceptance. And hence the waiting period of 6 months before you are actually covered... like most insurance companies here request as well...

Well maybe that's what's wrong with Europe. Like I said, everything is an existing condition until it is discovered. I could have my Blood Sugar checked tomorrow and could be told that I have Diabetes. I could've had the Diabetes since childhood but it was never checked. Is my insurance going to deny me coverage? Hell no, that would be stupid. I could have my insurance for 2 months and then have it discovered that I have a tumor the size of a grapefruit on my ovaries. The way you tell it the insurance company could deny me whether I knew about the tumor or not, not in my country.....maybe in yours. But a tumor the size of a grapefruit? Pre-existing. Tumors just don't "pop" up that size. Are you saying that in Europe you have to have perfect health to get health insurance? O
If so, I feel sorry for you Europeans. But the reason it sounds a little crazy is because
- I could have Diabetes and not know it
- I could have Cancer and not know it
- I could have Osteoporosis and not know it
- I could have Infertility issues and not know it
Etc.....

Technically, these are all pre-existing conditions as they existed in my body whether I knew about them or not. But I am still covered if they are "discovered" after I start my insurance. You Europeans really should lobby if you can't get coverage for newly diagnosed conditions

SHALENA

 

[SKing]

true... hence the request of most European insurance companies for a medical examination before acceptance. And hence the waiting period of 6 months before you are actually covered... like most insurance companies here request as well...

I don't know who you have your insurance with in DR but I had Humano and I never took Any medical exam nor did I have to wait 6 months to be covered. They did not cover my pregnancy as I was already 4 weeks pregnant when I got coverage (I knew this and told them). They covered my daughter's asthma appointments with a specialist, and she's had asthma since toddlerhood (this would be a good example of a pre-existing condition)

SHALENA

 

[Chirimoya]

Humano only requires medical exams if the applicant is over 50. All companies, as far as I know have a 6-month waiting period for new affiliates during which only urgent procedures and routine consultations are covered.

At least in Europe you have the back-up of a state health system.

 

[DMV123]

Chiri has it right. ALL pre existing conditions will not be covered. IF you think your fathers years of diabetes does not leave any signs you are mistaken. Almost all coverage has a mandatory waiting time for non emergency or non accident surgeries. Some are 6 months and some are a year depending on the condition you have.

And FRAUD is FRAUD no matter where you are. Trying to defraud a Dominican insurance company is NOT OK. Having a condition or being diagnosed with a condition that you honestly did not know about is one thing - covering up and lying are FRAUD.

 

[Campesina]

Thank you DMV123. Maybe I wasn't so far off base after all in answering the OP in my post #2. Fraud by covering up, purposely omitting or condoning by silence is still fraud and is what I believe the OP was alluding to in her first statement.

SKing, don't you work in the medical field? You should be one to understand. Point is, The medical condition has been existing and known and moving to another country doesn't mean you get a "do ever". Lying to obtain a benefit is fraud.

 

[gonzo two]

you are a strange one sking on the one hand complaining about people coming to America for free hand outs and on the other encouraging people to lie to medical insurance companies I dont get it

 

[dv8]

note on FRAUD from planner? interesting.

 

[JessicaRabbit]

Saint Dominicans, they never did no fraud to gringos....

Of course it is bad to hide facts, but hey, there are no 100% healthy people! We just dont check!