I am in the process of getting started on the Omnipod. I have everything that is necessary to start, except the pods. They are coming from an online pharmacy - Medco (Express Scripts). I had an original ship date of the 20th of February, but they keep pushing it back. Almost every day when I check the order status, the estimated ship date shows a day later. The people at the pharmacy help desk don't have a clue, other than to tell me that there is nothing pending on my account and the pods should ship.
Has anyone else had a supply problem? It is very frustrating, as it has been almost 3 weeks since I was approved to start on Omnipod. It also makes me nervous as far as not being able to get them in a timely fashion once I get started. Any advice as to who to call to get answers?
Hi birdy. I have never had a problem with pods arriving late. In fact, I am very surprised at how fast and consistent they arrive. I’m from Canada, so I don’t know if the supply chain is any different where you are, but for me, it’s been a non-issue for sure.
I would think whoever your Omnipod rep is would be able to help you. Whenever I’ve had an issue, concern, or question, my local rep has been extremely helpful and gets back to me quickly.
I seem to get mine pretty quickly too. But mine don't come from Medco, they come from a place called EdgePark Medical Supplies. But curious that I get all my other meds from Medco. So I'm going to look into that and thanks for the tip. You might call your insurance and ask if you can switch suppliers.
It might have something to do with Insulet releasing the new smaller pods, and the shift in inventory from the old to the new. If that's the case, a bit of a wait would be a good thing. I get my pods directly from Insulet and they are ususally very fast on order fulfillment.
I found out by fluke that my insurance (PCIP) will cover the pods as medication under the prescription portion of the coverage, as opposed to durable medical equipment under the medical portion of the coverage. This is a huge advantage, because I have a a 2K deductible for medical and only a $950 deductible for "non-preferred" prescriptions. I also ended up getting the PDM straight from Insulet for $500 cash instead of the $927 that EdgePark wanted to charge. I have very little costs that fall under the medical portion - it's all prescriptions. Since you are using EdgePark and Medco, you might want to do some digging yourself to see if it would save you money.
I've never had a delay in getting my pods - always prompt - but I use a different supplier.
Years ago I had horrible experiences with delays in getting my insulin from Medco. My husband's company insurance at the time required us to use Medco. A couple of times the delay was so extended that I had to get vials of insulin from my endo's office because I was out. I was so thankful when our insurance changed and I no longer had to use Medco.
clubkobe, my daughter will be starting on the opod sometime next month and just learned today that my insurance also contracts with Edgepark for the pods. Have you been happy with the service you get from them? Any advice you have regarding dealing with them is appreciated.
Edgepark has been okay. At first they wanted to charge me too much because they wrongly concluded I hadn't met my deductible. But that got resolved and pods arrived on time with free shipping. Interestingly, I will no longer be using them. Quite by accident, I learned they are no longer in my network which means I would have to pay 40% of the cost, at least that's what insurance says. Edgepark is still analyzing it. So I had to find a supplier in my state. Omnipod helped me locate them. I wish I could still order from Omnipod directly but I hope the new supplier will be reliable. Edgepark should be good for you. They are a big operation and they will remind you in plenty of time to reorder.I have nothing negative to say about their service.
My company also contracts with express scripts but my Omnipod and Pods come from Edgepark Medical Supplies. I spoke to Edgepark today and was informed that Insulet will begin replacing the current PDM’s beginning April 1, 2013. Edgepark will distribute the new Pods. Sounds like your order is caught in the middle. You may want to call express scripts and speak to a supervisor/manager and see if the orders are on hold until April 1st. Good Luck!
