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[naturallyselected]

141. I have had many a fight with Anthem about non-approved medication

Won some, lost some. It stinks, but I didn't expect this to change under the ACA. I have found it is sometimes worth the fight - I have unexpectedly won a couple of battles.

I came across this article from the Toronto Globe and Mail. A couple years old now; I don't know if the situation has improved.

Link:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/time-to-lead/the-cost-of-drugs-breaking-the-bank-to-stay-alive/article4263623/?page=all

Clip -

Julie Easley had just graduated from the University of New Brunswick when she was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma. She was 23 and broke - with exactly $9 in her bank account.

Thankfully, in Canada, her medical care was free of charge - or so she thought.

In fact, while physician visits and in-hospital care like chemotherapy are covered by medicare, Ms. Easley soon learned that the essential medication she needed to take out-of-hospital was not.

End clip -

So single payer doesn't necessarily solve this problem. I don't know what percentage it is, but many in Canada buy private drug insurance for just this reason.

I'm sorry to hear this. As long as the pharmaceutical companies want the prices they do for some medications, we're stuck with these tragic occurrences.