The high cost of treatment for cancer places a heavy burden on patients and their families, often leading to stress-related illnesses. Is there a solution?
BY Bonnie Annis
PUBLISHED December 11, 2018
Bonnie Annis is a breast cancer survivor, diagnosed in 2014 with stage 2b invasive ductal carcinoma with metastasis to the lymph nodes. She is an avid photographer, freelance writer/blogger, wife, mother and grandmother.
The call went straight to voicemail as the recording stated the staff was busy helping other patients. I'd made a special point of calling during office hours, but at a time I felt would be less busy. Plan B would need to be implemented. At my last oncology visit, the scheduler had given me her email. She stressed the importance of keeping it handy since the cancer treatment center served many. She said it was sometimes next to impossible to schedule an appointment over the phone.
Pulling up the email address she'd given, I sent a quick note. Giving all the details, I included the reason for needing an appointment and the one date I was unavailable during the month. My purpose, I explained in the email, was trying to get an appointment before the end of the year since I'd met the insurance deductible. I knew if I could get in during the same calendar year, I would only have to pay 20 percent of that visit.
The nurse responded later that day saying there were no appointments available. Since I already had an appointment scheduled for a six-month checkup in February 2019, she stated I should just keep that one. I explained I wasn't only trying to get in under my deductible for the year, I was also experiencing new pain in my hip joint and was concerned about it. She apologized, and the call ended.
Pulling up the email address she'd given, I sent a quick note. Giving all the details, I included the reason for needing an appointment and the one date I was unavailable during the month. My purpose, I explained in the email, was trying to get an appointment before the end of the year since I'd met the insurance deductible. I knew if I could get in during the same calendar year, I would only have to pay 20 percent of that visit.
The nurse responded later that day saying there were no appointments available. Since I already had an appointment scheduled for a six-month checkup in February 2019, she stated I should just keep that one. I explained I wasn't only trying to get in under my deductible for the year, I was also experiencing new pain in my hip joint and was concerned about it. She apologized, and the call ended.
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