Medical Supply Companies, Medicaid, and the Madness: A Second Update of the Continued Debacle

Here we go again.

Yesterday, after not hearing from Bellevue Healthcare (BHC) for three days, I gave them a call; on Tuesday afternoon, my mom took my power chair to BHC to have a full diagnostic test preformed on it, but after three days of waiting, I decided that I had given them a sufficient amount of time to figure out what is wrong (or at least tell me they cannot find anything wrong) with my chair. 

When I called, the tech who said he would perform the diagnostic test, was not there. About fifteen minutes later, I received a call from that same guy; he informed me that the problem with my chair was a cable that is a part of the joystick, not the batteries. I requested that a new joystick be ordered. I also asked if the prescription -- indicating that I do indeed have a power chair and that I am in need of new batteries -- that my primary care physician faxed to the main BHC office, would be sufficient for Medicaid when ordering a joystick rather than batteries. The tech said no, and that my primary care physician should send a new prescription indicating that I am in need of a new joystick. I thought this would be the case. 

So, the two months that I waited to get new batteries has been a waste. Yes, even if BHC would have preformed the diagnostic test to begin with, I probably still would have had to wait on Medicaid, but at least the correct part would have already been in the process of being ordered. However, the two months could have been a shorter wait if BHC would have actually tried to figure out why Medicaid kept denying the approval of purchasing new batteries, sooner than they did. Fortunately, there is a positive side to this; if Medicaid had approved the new batteries right away, they would have arrived and not have been the solution to the problem. It is very possible that Medicaid would not have approved the joystick after sending new batteries. Never the less, both Medicaid and BHC have been culprits of not doing their job, and in turn, making me, the consumer, go to extreme lengths to get the product that I need. Neither Medicaid, nor BHC, act like other businesses; they know that those of us with disabilities need them, so they do not have to persuade us to utilize their services. The system is so far from being sufficient, and does not care about the people it was put in place to assist.  

I tried to be preventive; I went in to BHC when my chair began to act wonky. There is no reason that it should have taken this long to get where we are now. I feel as if I am back at square one, even after waiting for two months. I do not have any idea of how much longer I will be without my power chair -- my means of freedom -- and I do not even want to imagine how long it would have taken to fix my power chair if I would have waited until my chair actually died to begin this grueling process. 

I am absolutely sick of this system.