Riley's Sickness
Saturday, November 14, 2009 by Amy
Riley missed school on Thursday and Friday. High temperature. Fun times. This morning, her fever is gone. Probably not for good, but at least it's not a constant fever anymore. She's not as lethargic this morning (which probably means she'll end up over-doing it and have a relapse). She also has a chesty cough.
BUT, one of Riley's top teeth is loose! She is beyond excited!
So, Rudi is also sick (because that's how it goes). He called the VA clinic on Thursday, asking to be seen. They told him to go to the ER, basically because he had flu-like symptoms and they didn't want to touch him with a 10-foot pole. So, we go to the ER, which is billed to the VA, so no worries. Well, he got a diagnosis of sinusitis and bronchitis and a prescription for antibiotics. So, we took the script in to Walmart so have it filled. Turns out, there's no way to have it filled and the VA billed (and it's a $162 script! Yikes!). The VA is already closed by this time, so we wait a day.
I get up early to go to the VA to have the script filled. I take a number at the pharmacy and wait. Then I am told that the VA doesn't fill outside scripts, that I have to have his PCP re-write the script. Now, the VA clinic here recently expanded and the offices are divided between two locations. Rudi's PCP is not in the same area as the pharmacy. I get in the car and drive to his PCP. I am told there that they need the progress notes from the appointment. I leave and go home and retrieve the discharge notes from the trash and drive back to the PCP. I am told that progress notes and discharge notes are different and they need to fax the hospital to get the records. I ask how long this will take, and I am told that they have up to 72 hours to re-write it. In addition, they tell me that the script is too expensive and they'll substitute it for something else. I come home and of course, Rudi is enraged. I don't blame him. It was Friday, and he was facing the weekend without his meds, and possibly Monday too. He called and left a few choice messages with the VA nurses. Loud messages that would make a sailor blush.
So, Rudi and I are yelling at each other, not arguing, but mutually angry at the VA. We were both so angry. Rudi storms out to get the script filled anyway, with $162 that we certainly don't have (I mean, we HAVE it, but it's for groceries and such). Meanwhile, I'm panicking over the money, and decide to call the main VA number. I speak to a customer care dude, and he was kind of nervous. He didn't understand what the issue was, or more accurately, why the VA clinic was making a huge issue about this. He transferred me to someone else who was equally as baffled. She transferred me to an accounts person or something who said that if the VA clinic told him to go to the ER (and he didn't just go in his own), the clinic is supposed to accept the care that he received at the ER and the script that was written there. They TOLD him to go to the ER, they DIDN'T WANT to see him at the clinic, and then refused to accept the care that he got at the ER!!! She told me to fax the receipt and prescription info directly to her and she will ensure that we are reimbursed. She said is usually takes 2 weeks, but she will look for it and expedite it since it's not like it's a $20 prescription. It's a lot of money. Phew. All taken care of.
I have to say, that I love the larger VA. They have a lot to do and a lot of people to take care of. They can't afford to screw around. They get their stuff DONE. The VA clinic, however, is a disaster. Ninety-five percent of the time, our calls aren't returned AT ALL. EVER. They flaunt how long they have to actually call you back ("Well, we HAVE up to 72 hours" like they're doing us a favor by getting their job done before the absolute last minute) and then say that they have no record of the previous dozen calls you made to them. Grrr. In the three years that we've lived here, Rudi has not seen an actual MD. His PCP is a NP, which is no biggie, but the woman has made GLARING medical errors in his care, like sending him into surgery without the proper pre-surgery tests, etc.
And this stupid town is going to hell in a hand-basket. Prop. 2C failed, which is going to make life here unbearable. Colorado Springs has a major budget shortfall. MAJOR. Prop. 2C proposed a gradual, over 5 years, increase in property taxes, which would raise taxes OVER 5 YEARS by $15/month. Meaning that at the END of 5 years, the average home owner will pay an extra $15/month. It failed. Now 6 of the 8 city pools are closing, the public fountains (including Uncle Wilber and the Julie Penrose fountain) will not be turned on, the majority of playgrounds will not be maintained (so the play equipment will be removed for liability reasons), public restrooms will remain locked, the Pioneer Museum and Rock Ledge Ranch will close, the Metro system will be drastically scaled back (they've already laid off 70+ employees), as will police and fire response, city-run summer camps with be GONE. Already, drunk driving response has been cut back, as well as crimes of theft and burglary (since they're not life threatening. What?) I hope I don't hear any belly-aching from the penny-pinchers about their property values going down when Colorado Springs is no longer a desirable place to live. I think, honestly, that the homeowners tax credit (otherwise known as welfare for those who own homes) needs to be abolished in Colorado Springs. If they won't fund the city, the city shouldn't fund THEM. I know the danger of having an opinion on this matter, since we don't own, but do you think that the owner of these 85 townhouses would just eat a property-tax increase? Of course not. Our rent would go up too, and we would have been fine with that.
I am soooooo glad that we are getting out this crap-hole next summer! Portland, Maine, here we come!
BUT, one of Riley's top teeth is loose! She is beyond excited!
So, Rudi is also sick (because that's how it goes). He called the VA clinic on Thursday, asking to be seen. They told him to go to the ER, basically because he had flu-like symptoms and they didn't want to touch him with a 10-foot pole. So, we go to the ER, which is billed to the VA, so no worries. Well, he got a diagnosis of sinusitis and bronchitis and a prescription for antibiotics. So, we took the script in to Walmart so have it filled. Turns out, there's no way to have it filled and the VA billed (and it's a $162 script! Yikes!). The VA is already closed by this time, so we wait a day.
I get up early to go to the VA to have the script filled. I take a number at the pharmacy and wait. Then I am told that the VA doesn't fill outside scripts, that I have to have his PCP re-write the script. Now, the VA clinic here recently expanded and the offices are divided between two locations. Rudi's PCP is not in the same area as the pharmacy. I get in the car and drive to his PCP. I am told there that they need the progress notes from the appointment. I leave and go home and retrieve the discharge notes from the trash and drive back to the PCP. I am told that progress notes and discharge notes are different and they need to fax the hospital to get the records. I ask how long this will take, and I am told that they have up to 72 hours to re-write it. In addition, they tell me that the script is too expensive and they'll substitute it for something else. I come home and of course, Rudi is enraged. I don't blame him. It was Friday, and he was facing the weekend without his meds, and possibly Monday too. He called and left a few choice messages with the VA nurses. Loud messages that would make a sailor blush.
So, Rudi and I are yelling at each other, not arguing, but mutually angry at the VA. We were both so angry. Rudi storms out to get the script filled anyway, with $162 that we certainly don't have (I mean, we HAVE it, but it's for groceries and such). Meanwhile, I'm panicking over the money, and decide to call the main VA number. I speak to a customer care dude, and he was kind of nervous. He didn't understand what the issue was, or more accurately, why the VA clinic was making a huge issue about this. He transferred me to someone else who was equally as baffled. She transferred me to an accounts person or something who said that if the VA clinic told him to go to the ER (and he didn't just go in his own), the clinic is supposed to accept the care that he received at the ER and the script that was written there. They TOLD him to go to the ER, they DIDN'T WANT to see him at the clinic, and then refused to accept the care that he got at the ER!!! She told me to fax the receipt and prescription info directly to her and she will ensure that we are reimbursed. She said is usually takes 2 weeks, but she will look for it and expedite it since it's not like it's a $20 prescription. It's a lot of money. Phew. All taken care of.
I have to say, that I love the larger VA. They have a lot to do and a lot of people to take care of. They can't afford to screw around. They get their stuff DONE. The VA clinic, however, is a disaster. Ninety-five percent of the time, our calls aren't returned AT ALL. EVER. They flaunt how long they have to actually call you back ("Well, we HAVE up to 72 hours" like they're doing us a favor by getting their job done before the absolute last minute) and then say that they have no record of the previous dozen calls you made to them. Grrr. In the three years that we've lived here, Rudi has not seen an actual MD. His PCP is a NP, which is no biggie, but the woman has made GLARING medical errors in his care, like sending him into surgery without the proper pre-surgery tests, etc.
And this stupid town is going to hell in a hand-basket. Prop. 2C failed, which is going to make life here unbearable. Colorado Springs has a major budget shortfall. MAJOR. Prop. 2C proposed a gradual, over 5 years, increase in property taxes, which would raise taxes OVER 5 YEARS by $15/month. Meaning that at the END of 5 years, the average home owner will pay an extra $15/month. It failed. Now 6 of the 8 city pools are closing, the public fountains (including Uncle Wilber and the Julie Penrose fountain) will not be turned on, the majority of playgrounds will not be maintained (so the play equipment will be removed for liability reasons), public restrooms will remain locked, the Pioneer Museum and Rock Ledge Ranch will close, the Metro system will be drastically scaled back (they've already laid off 70+ employees), as will police and fire response, city-run summer camps with be GONE. Already, drunk driving response has been cut back, as well as crimes of theft and burglary (since they're not life threatening. What?) I hope I don't hear any belly-aching from the penny-pinchers about their property values going down when Colorado Springs is no longer a desirable place to live. I think, honestly, that the homeowners tax credit (otherwise known as welfare for those who own homes) needs to be abolished in Colorado Springs. If they won't fund the city, the city shouldn't fund THEM. I know the danger of having an opinion on this matter, since we don't own, but do you think that the owner of these 85 townhouses would just eat a property-tax increase? Of course not. Our rent would go up too, and we would have been fine with that.
I am soooooo glad that we are getting out this crap-hole next summer! Portland, Maine, here we come!
