If it’s just for emergency backup just ask your doc for a few free samples… mine is usually really good about it… leave one in your purse for 6 months or so then throw it away and replace… it’s just a backup not an indefinite prescription…
While my example of just having a spare syringe (cash value maybe 10 cents?) was just to show how close to a solution we already were.
But say the pump (and its reservoir) got smashed to pieces. Then something like a prefilled (but not expired) backup pen or a vial (but not expired) would actually be necessary and those aren’t necessarily cheap. Of course R over the counter is good without refrigeration for a good while and is cheap, sort of as a backup plan in case all my supplies were completely destroyed. But that only helps if I think of it while on the ground near a pharmacy, and not on a 7-hour flight.
I keep all my drugs and supplies in my backback which is stowed under my seat. Never had an issue even when they indicated all carry on baggage must be checked.
Like @Sam19 says. I get an annual prescription for one box of Lantus and one of Novolog pens for backup in case of pump failure. Did have a pump crap out on me once and it was about 5 days to get a replacement so I was very glad to have it. And it means I can carry a pen around for emergencies when I’m traveling or when other circumstances dictate.
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Actually fanny packs are in fashion right now. Walk that runway 
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DEFINITELY contact them. But don’t telephone: put it in writing. Say your life was endangered by their actions, which it was.
In the future, keep some emergency insulin in your purse.
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In my opinion, this is really the summary of the whole experience. My question is: What are you hoping to get by contacting Delta?
If Delta is not informed that a bag contains medical supplies, then there’s no reason to expect that they’ll treat it as medical supplies.
I had a somewhat similar incident 10 years ago where I didn’t properly pack my diabetic supplies. It was an absolutely terrible experience, but it certainly wasn’t the airlines’ fault. I made a mistake, and it totally sucked.
If you didn’t inform anyone on the plane of your medical situation, then I don’t think you have any ground to stand on when you complain to Delta. You didn’t tell them that your carry-on must stay with you because it contains your diabetic supplies. You didn’t inform the staff on the plane of your medical emergency. You never gave Delta the opportunity to help you.
I’d just acknowledge the error and be doubly sure to avoid it next time.
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Did you get something from your doctor that said you had a medical condition that required you to keep your bag? I have a card I show from my doctor that says I am diabetic and must carry the items I need with me. Most of the time it is all in my big purse. Those buggers can hold a lot! Good luck with Delta.
LOL! Back in the late 90’s early 2000’s there were many fanny packs to choose from. I don’t see them in the stores any more. Maybe its a very new thing and I should check to see if I can replace my aging ones.
I hate flying–on any airline that I’ve tried. I hate TSA, I hate the 2-hour show-up time. I hate that there are no clean pillows, blankets, airline food, etc, on the plane. I hate the pitch of the seats. I hate that people bring stinky hot food on board (refer back to “no airline food”). I hate that they often won’t serve peanuts. I say if you are so allergic to peanuts that a peanut somewhere in a plane is going to kill you—DON’T FLY! I hate flying. There is nothing good about it other than the speed, if you are going far enough. Short flights make no sense to me whatsoever. Then there is the rental-car hassle. Don’t get me started. I hate flying. 
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Dave44. Oh I don’t fly anymore anywhere. Last time I got an upper respiratory infection that had me using an inhaler, steroids and taking antibiotics. The hassle of keeping my BG levels down was horrendous, checking every hour. My husband suggests I use an oxygen mask. Won’t happen unless we go to Hawaii, first class. LOL
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Yes fanny packs are back but much smaller. They wont carry large supplies. The larger fanny pack are actually tagged as the shoulder sling bag as noted above.
They’re much more practical and easy to use.
I only use a traditional fanny pack for a short run or a race. The only hold a meter, maybe some snacks and some money and ID.
Check amazon
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Its a good learning experience. I’m glad your OK. Next time, make it clear that they will have to kill you to get your bag.
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And tweet them. Just to bring attention to this issue. Shocking how quickly corporations respond when you use Twitter.
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Definitely let Delta know. It should have been announced, And maybe next time a small backpack, in which you can put your purtse would work better. If they try to take your backpack, you can tell them you have necessary medical supplies in the backpack. If they insist on taking it, let them know you know how to reach the FAA>
But it’s not one peanut somewhere in the plane. When they are served by the airline, it’s everyone with peanuts opening them all at once. That gets peanut crumbs all over the seats and tray tables, peanut oil on all the surfaces people subsequently touch, and peanut dust in the air.
You can always bring peanuts on board the plane yourself. Then it’s just one person or a few people eating them and it’s not as problematic.
I sure hope that you would be someone who would put your snack away if I told you I had a life-threatening allergy to whatever you were eating and offered an alternative snack. It’s a condition I asked for as much as I asked for Type 1 diabetes.
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Oh, I do bring peanuts with me (sometimes).
Of course I would not deliberately endanger someone nearby–what kind of a person do you think I am? And I was referring to the super, super allergic person who can’t be within many feet of a peanut–those are the ones I suggested shouldn’t fly–FOR THEIR OWN SAKE.
That’s good to hear. You’d be surprised at the number of people who go, “No, I woudln’t care, not my problem,” in response to that issue.
That’s pretty much anyone with an anaphylactic allergy, though, which is far more people than the number of people with Type 1 diabetes. People with allergies react to proteins, and if those proteins (which are not the same as smell) get into the air, they will react to them. There are very few people who would react to a food allergen many feet away, the exceptions being things like 200 packages of peanuts being opened at once or steam from hot food wafting all over the place or tiny particles of the food spraying everywhere like when cutting fruit. But almost anyone with anaphylaxis would react to someone eating something they’re allergic to, walking back to the bathroom, touching a bunch of seats along the way, touching the door handle. Then the allergic person touches one of those things, then touches their face or eats food with their fingers, and boom, a reaction. So I think it is totally reasonable that an airline should take steps to keep passengers safe where they can. Though of course we also all need to take personal responsibility in doing everything we can to keep ourselves safe. I fly many times a year with that level of severe food allergy (not to peanuts, though) and do so safely, so I’d be ticked (not to mention it would be discriminatory) if I suddenly wasn’t allowed to fly.
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I wasn’t implying that allergic folks be denied boarding. All I’m saying is that if they have a known potentially fatal reaction to substances that could be on a plane, then it behooves them to consider other modes of transportation–transportation in which they can be assured that no similar allergens exists (highly unlikely except for their personal vehicles).
We all need to ultimately be responsible for our own wellbeing and take the necessary precautions. For example: I don’t bungee jump, base jump, parachute, hang glide, or stand in the middle of a road.
But that’s what I’m saying—by definition, anaphylaxis is a potentially fatal allergic reaction. So you’re basically saying the possibly hundreds of millions of people worldwide diagnosed with anaphylaxis shouldn’t use public transportation. So for me, that would mean going nowhere outside of walking distance of my home, since I can’t legally obtain a driver’s license amd do not have a significant other to drive for me.
Not a fan of that idea when airlines and other businesses can take simple steps to provide reasonable accommodations like not serving peanuts to keep people with some allergies a bit safer. It is easy enough to say things like don’t fly (or don’t go to school, or don’t eat at restaurants, or don’t go to movie theatres, or don’t work in this or that job, or don’t buy food from a supermarket…all things I’ve heard suggested). But doing that in practicality is quite difficult while still living a normal life. And, as with diabetes, living a normal life despite the life-threatening nature of the condition is possible. It would be like telling someone with diabetes not to do anything that might knock their blood sugar out of whack. The key is learning to do these things while keeping blood sugar stable. Similarly, people with severe allergies can do these things while staying safe, especially if they receive reasonable accommodations.
And yes, of course people also need to take personal responsibility, which everyone I know with food allergies does. Some of the precautions I take are wiping down surfaces around my seat, bringing all my own food and drink, cleaning hands frequently, keeping emergency medication on me, and sometimes wearing glove or a mask in specific circumstances. The bonus of doing all this is that I never get sick after flying, unlike so many people.
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