Comment by dbg31415

Comment by dbg31415 4 hours ago

100% agree.

Insurance companies shouldn't get to pick and choose what drugs are in or out.

I was at a company, and Wegovy was covered.

Then randomly I got an email from HR, "Your medication is no longer covered."

The fuck is my insurance company doing telling my HR what medication I'm on? Even if they didn't say it outright, it wouldn't be hard to figure out giving the drugs that came off the list that were paid for that quarter. =P

Going cold turkey on these drugs is hard... like the doctors tell you that once you start taking them, you really aren't supposed to stop taking them. Or if you do, you have to do so gradually.

The drugs mimic the feeling of being satisfied from being full, by overloading your system with a synthetic version of that hormone that makes you feel that way.

Now... imagine going from "my parents used food to control my behavior growing up, and 40 years of bad behavior cemented that conditioning in place, so now it takes a lot of food to make me feel full / content," to "Oh this is nice, thank you drugs! Now I don't have to eat so much!" to "You're on your own, kid! And by the way, now that your body was used to the drugs, virtually no amount of food will make you feel full / content now. Let's see what happens!"

Fucking insurance companies. People are nothing but pre-existing conditions and behavioral patterns. It shouldn't be up to the insurance companies which ones they elect to cover. "Oh, did you think smoking was cool as a kid? Too bad, hope you die from lung cancer!" It just shouldn't be on them to choose.

alluro2 3 hours ago

I know it's a worn-out stereotype to point out, but from an European, I just hope you realize how jarring it sounds that there is a medication that a doctor determined you need, and TWO companies - entities driven by and existing exclusively for profit - are involved in deciding and communicating with each other on whether you will get it or not.

I do think that this should still actively be regarded as scary and abnormal, even if it's the norm for so many people in the US.

Reply View 1 reply

Cumpiler69 an hour ago

IT IS a worn out stereotype. I'm also European and here the doctors are also limited by the national health insurance company on what medication and treatments they can prescribe you due to cost reduction pressure. Their hands are also tied except not by a private corporation but by the government.
My boss recently moved from Germany to the US and was pleasantly surprised how much better the diagnostic, treatment and medication options are for his child who suffers from some rare mental disorder that's basically ignored in Germany by comparison. US seems to always be on the cutting edge of medical research and treatment which of course comes at a cost since research is very expressive.

Reply View | 0 replies

nextaccountic 3 hours ago

> Then randomly I got an email from HR, "Your medication is no longer covered."

> The fuck is my insurance company doing telling my HR what medication I'm on?

Isn't this a straightforward HIPAA violation?

Reply View 2 replies

hypeatei 2 hours ago

I'm 99% sure HIPAA just applies to medical personnel (i.e. nurses, doctors) so they can't outright share private information. Third parties (i.e. your mom or insurance companies) can share it all day without violating HIPAA.
It does not protect your medical data whatsoever.

Reply View | 0 replies
MajimasEyepatch 3 hours ago

No. HIPAA is rarely straightforward, and in any event it’s not uncommon for employers to have some degree of access to claims data. In a case like this I assume the company self-funds the plan.

Reply View | 0 replies