Hey! It's been a while since I got really pissed off, hasn't it? I should probably do some of that soon, shouldn't I? How about now? Is now good for you
( Read more... )
I'm already on the poor-person scale for Planned Parenthood, and pay nothing for the basics (yesterday = free), but they told me flat-out that the program doesn't pay for certain things, unfortunately, and while I can still get them discounted, there's a minimum charge. The pharmacy at my therapist's office gets me stuff at minimum cost and has a person whose job it is to apply you for PAPs thru the drug-makers' programs, so I'm doing the best I can possibly do on that as well.
There's low-cost stuff available here, but I'm not kidding when I say that some of it is good and some of it is horrifically fucking bad, and the one low-cost clinic my therapist's office is affiliated with is to my knowledge pretty much total shit and I don't want to set foot in there. I'm going to make an appointment to go back in and see my case manager at the therapist's place next week if I possibly can and talk to her about this once I have test results in hand and see if she can do better than that. This is actually part of her job, in theory.
This should not be this fucking hard. This is fucking unbelievable.
It shouldn't. It really shouldn't. I find myself saying that about once or twice a day, sometimes, when I'm trying to pull things out of my ass for clients but can't quite manage it. I usually eventually find SOMETHING but it's often sub-par but the best I can do. If your case manager is any good, she will hopefully be as good at pulling miracles out of her ass as I am (or better, in which case I wish her godspeed.)
I figured you were already enrolled in every program ever but there are some that I swear to god I need to enter a secret code somewhere to unlock- if you have a letter from your case manager, it magically will let you use it. Take, for example, the Gift of Sight program, which gives people free glasses so long as they come in with an eye exam- which is usually super cheap to get, and free under Medicaid- and a note of advocacy from their case manager. Said note only needs to contain the agency name and the tax ID number. Most LensCrafters are participating stores, but all you need to do is call around to optometrists and see if they participate. My Sears optometrist participates, so there's another common optometrist.
Dental is a total pain in the ass because nobody freaking covers it. I have absolutely no suggestions here, other than calling your local hospitals that take indigents, as sometimes they have a dental clinic that also takes indigents, and while it might take three months to get an initial appointment, at least you've got one, and just pray your teeth don't fall out in the interim.
As far as physical health, it's easier to find, but by "easier" I mean it actually exists, somewhere, for x number of people, and most are full up with a waiting list. I still go to a clinic with a sliding scale because I figure, my insurance will help pay for other people, but waiting there sucks and it takes fifteen tries to get information, or they'll just deny a refill without telling me "we want labwork and/or a pap smear first" so I spend two weeks with my pharmacy trying to extract that information, then two weeks waiting for an appointment or trying to get a script for labwork faxed to the lab by my office so I can get it done when I take clients in for routine labwork. I want to switch but I'm also really lazy, and all I get there is my synthroid and my birth control.
There are also completely random resources that crop up, such as free haircuts somewhere, groups that offer professional clothes to people who are job hunting, and other little things that can add up to big savings for clients.
Long story short, while it's a pain in the ass, rope in your case manager and make it her pain in the ass too. She's likely got a folder of local resources that she's familiar with and can find what you need, and advocate for you to get it. Don't hesitate to call her and often to see where she's at, and what help you can offer, but put the ball in her court. It's what she's there for, and I know I would rather know what my client needs and be able to look for it, than assume they've got stuff already and/or don't want or need it to begin with. It is seriously well worth it to just ask. The worst she can say is, "Huh, I've never heard of anything, but I'll look around and see what I can find." Also, if you want my help, just give me your zip code and town name. I've been able to find crap for people all over the states and have zero problem calling and advocating from here.
You do know that most of the money supposedly going to poor people in various areas actually goes to the middle-class gatekeepers, whose job it is to deny help to those that need it? yeah, great priorities.
The system makes it hard because 1. that's what they're being paid for; and 2. that discourages enough people that they save money they should by rights be spending. It's like hazing.
And in my experience, they really don't care about the legalities. NOTHING was actually done for K within the legal requirements for response. SSDI kept asking for OUR income, when it is legally irrelevant to her case (and we only knew this because one of her group homes had a SSDI lawyer come in and give a talk and tips to all us desperate parents! SSDI itself tried to make it seem like a requirement, 100% illegally).
It SHOULD be straightforward. It's not- and I blame the Reagan/Bush years and attitudes for at least some of that- poor= unworthy, that kind of thing (what Romney is running on now, in fact). It stinks.
I'm wishing you the best. I know that when one is at the end of one's rope, that's the LAST time people should be requiring the jumping through hoops... and yet, that's when they seem to enjoy doing so.
There's low-cost stuff available here, but I'm not kidding when I say that some of it is good and some of it is horrifically fucking bad, and the one low-cost clinic my therapist's office is affiliated with is to my knowledge pretty much total shit and I don't want to set foot in there. I'm going to make an appointment to go back in and see my case manager at the therapist's place next week if I possibly can and talk to her about this once I have test results in hand and see if she can do better than that. This is actually part of her job, in theory.
This should not be this fucking hard. This is fucking unbelievable.
Reply
I figured you were already enrolled in every program ever but there are some that I swear to god I need to enter a secret code somewhere to unlock- if you have a letter from your case manager, it magically will let you use it. Take, for example, the Gift of Sight program, which gives people free glasses so long as they come in with an eye exam- which is usually super cheap to get, and free under Medicaid- and a note of advocacy from their case manager. Said note only needs to contain the agency name and the tax ID number. Most LensCrafters are participating stores, but all you need to do is call around to optometrists and see if they participate. My Sears optometrist participates, so there's another common optometrist.
Dental is a total pain in the ass because nobody freaking covers it. I have absolutely no suggestions here, other than calling your local hospitals that take indigents, as sometimes they have a dental clinic that also takes indigents, and while it might take three months to get an initial appointment, at least you've got one, and just pray your teeth don't fall out in the interim.
As far as physical health, it's easier to find, but by "easier" I mean it actually exists, somewhere, for x number of people, and most are full up with a waiting list. I still go to a clinic with a sliding scale because I figure, my insurance will help pay for other people, but waiting there sucks and it takes fifteen tries to get information, or they'll just deny a refill without telling me "we want labwork and/or a pap smear first" so I spend two weeks with my pharmacy trying to extract that information, then two weeks waiting for an appointment or trying to get a script for labwork faxed to the lab by my office so I can get it done when I take clients in for routine labwork. I want to switch but I'm also really lazy, and all I get there is my synthroid and my birth control.
There are also completely random resources that crop up, such as free haircuts somewhere, groups that offer professional clothes to people who are job hunting, and other little things that can add up to big savings for clients.
Long story short, while it's a pain in the ass, rope in your case manager and make it her pain in the ass too. She's likely got a folder of local resources that she's familiar with and can find what you need, and advocate for you to get it. Don't hesitate to call her and often to see where she's at, and what help you can offer, but put the ball in her court. It's what she's there for, and I know I would rather know what my client needs and be able to look for it, than assume they've got stuff already and/or don't want or need it to begin with. It is seriously well worth it to just ask. The worst she can say is, "Huh, I've never heard of anything, but I'll look around and see what I can find." Also, if you want my help, just give me your zip code and town name. I've been able to find crap for people all over the states and have zero problem calling and advocating from here.
Reply
You do know that most of the money supposedly going to poor people in various areas actually goes to the middle-class gatekeepers, whose job it is to deny help to those that need it? yeah, great priorities.
The system makes it hard because 1. that's what they're being paid for; and 2. that discourages enough people that they save money they should by rights be spending. It's like hazing.
And in my experience, they really don't care about the legalities. NOTHING was actually done for K within the legal requirements for response. SSDI kept asking for OUR income, when it is legally irrelevant to her case (and we only knew this because one of her group homes had a SSDI lawyer come in and give a talk and tips to all us desperate parents! SSDI itself tried to make it seem like a requirement, 100% illegally).
It SHOULD be straightforward. It's not- and I blame the Reagan/Bush years and attitudes for at least some of that- poor= unworthy, that kind of thing (what Romney is running on now, in fact). It stinks.
I'm wishing you the best. I know that when one is at the end of one's rope, that's the LAST time people should be requiring the jumping through hoops... and yet, that's when they seem to enjoy doing so.
Reply
Leave a comment