Tag: athritis

Dealing With Failures

Look, no one likes to focus on negative things, especially when it has to do with failure. Here’s the harsh reality of life–we all fail! Sooner or later it’s going to happen! Everyone fails at some point in their life, but how they react to failure tends to define who are they are.

Whether you fail trying out for sports, asking out your crush, or even for work, failing is nothing to be embarrassed and quit over. Look at Michael Jordan, who was cut from his sophomore, and then went on to be one of, if not the greatest NBA player in history. Okay, so what that’s an example regarding sports. What about real-life? Heard of Steve Jobs? He was fired from his own company after having a disagreement with the board about plans for future growth. I’m pretty sure some of you right now are reading this from an Apple device.

What sets apart amazing people like Michael Jordan and Steve Jobs was how they responded to failure. Instead of being too humiliated to try again, they learned what they did wrong and came back stronger than ever! Every last one of us can learn from our mistakes and failures and become better people!

If you fail, don’t give up. Keep pushing and trying and learn from your mistakes so you don’t make them again. You are smarter and better than you realize.

How I Lowered My Infusion Bill from $2,692 down to $5

Tips on using copay cards to lower your medical expenses.

Nothing is more stressful than opening a bill from the hospital and seeing that your life-saving infusion is going to cost $2,692 AFTER insurance—let’s just say it can cause a few gray hairs to come out of nowhere!

After trying Remicade (developed antibodies), Humira (body didn’t respond), Remicade again, Simponi (developed antibodies), I’m now taking Entyvio to which my body is responding very well to. I’ve been able to achieve clinical remission and I’m no longer steroid dependent. I’d say this is cause for celebration!

However, there is a downside—there are only two infusion centers in the state of Utah that currently provide Entyvio infusions and only one is covered by my insurance. The total for one infusion? $17,890.80. The average person on Entyvio requires eight infusions per year. That means over $143,126 in bills for one year for the average person on Entyvio. I hope you are making more money than I am, because there is no way the average person can come even close to affording $143,126 in hospital bills each year. Luckily, after insurance my bill is only $2,692.44 which isn’t horrible considering my max out-of-pocket is $9,000 for the year. $9,000 is still pretty steep, but it’s better than not having insurance.

What a lot of consumers don’t know is the majority of drug manufacturers provide financial assistance. For example, Entyvio offers Entvyio Connect, Entyvio’s Financial Assistance program, which limits caps the drug price to the consumer to only $5 per dose. My explanation of benefits from my insurance, which breaks down the hospital bill into line items and explains how much the insurance company will cover, shows that the pre-infusion medication of Benadryl and IV Steroid cost $139, IV Supplies cost $537, Laboratory Work $149.80, and Entyvio Drug expense of $17,065. My insurance covered all of the pre-infusion medication, laboratory work, majority of the Entyvio drug expense leaving me with a bill of $2,692.44.

Since I’m enrolled in the Entyvio Connect program my bill has been further reduced to just $5! That’s a savings of over 99% off my original bill with and without insurance. It really does a make difference using a co-pay card like the Entyvio Connect program to help lower your medical expenses. If you are taking a medication it is worth checking to see if the drug manufacturer offers a financial assistance program. These programs can help you save some serious money over the long-run.

Let me know your favorite ways to help lower your medical bills! Good luck and take care of your health!