It's great to turn 21, then again. it stinks. Reason being is that I will no longer have medical insurance! Meaning all my insulin and supplies must come out of my minimum wage job's pockets. :-(
I just don't know where to turn. That is why I'm here! Any help or recommendations are greatly appreciated.
Contact the pharm manufacturer of your insulin. They all have Patient Assistance Programs for people who can't afford Rx supplies. There's an online form to complete. You can try doing the same for strips. Wal Mart sells a meter that has the cheapest strips. I order syringes from www.americandiabeteswholesale.com. Less expensive to pay their discounted price than get them from the pharmacy with my insurance co-pay. Crazy! Most states don't require an Rx for syringes.
Hope this helps.
Thank you Gerri, I will look into that.
Happy Birthday. And yeah... It sucks. I'm T1, and have bounced around from job to job most of my adult life (and currently) without insurance.
My advice: First of all, keep a positive attitude, be patient, and do what you can. Don't get depressed or self destructive. You will find a lot of dead ends. Life isn't fair. A lot of things that are supposed to help you won't. Even a minimum wage salary is too high to qualify for help sometimes. Do what you gotta do. Don't feel like you need to talk to collection agencies. Just hang up the phone and go do something else. You're worth more than your credit score.
You can order some supplies from Canada without a prescription, and a lot cheaper than in the US. You can also buy some things cheap on Ebay. Just be careful.
It's good to be friends with doctors. Sometimes they hook you up with a prescription, free samples, a bottle of insulin now and then.
Don't be to proud to ask your parents for help if you really need it.
Remember you're not alone. Keep your head up. Good luck, kid.
check this page out too
http://www.tudiabetes.org/notes/Diabetes_Patient_Assistance_Resources
It can be really hard not having insurance. I commend you for keeping your diabetes a priority. Although things may get difficult and you may have to make some compromises, you will get through this. But it may mean some "hunkering down." It is going to be hard to get pump supplies. That is going to be the real hallenge. You may end up needing to move to injections. For a while I used NPH and R insulin's from Walmart. $24/vial. I know that is like a last resort, but there is always a way for you to manage your diabetes not matter how much financial difficulty you have. And we will always be there to help with suggestions wherever we can.
And I know that Sam Iam mentioned your parents, but I'd like to also mention that I believe that you can stay on your parents health insurance until you are 26 years old now.
Aye, this is a problem for me too. It's frustrating and scary when it starts feeling that you can't afford the basic things you need diabetes in check. As others have mentioned, though, take a look around - there are still many options on the table.