I just checked my certificate of insurance with HealthNet online and lo and behold! there is now an attachment which is new and which we never received (and subsequent to my and others' appeals) entitled "Evaluating New Technology."
They claim they depend on the Hayes Technology Assessment Manual to determine whether or not a device is investigational and depending on Hayes' rating, may use other sources. I googled Hayes and found that this is the equivalent of an "independent medical examiner"
staffed by master's and doctoral level employees and nurses. The closest thing to a medical doctor on their staff is a veterinarian.
Aren't insurance company shams grand?
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2001 MVA; C5-C6 disk extruded
ongoing physical therapy, exercise and massage
ESI's, oral prednisone, trigger point injections
foraminal and central stenosis C5/C6 and c6/C7
2007 EMG/nerve conduction shows pattern of chronic radiculopathy
January, 2008: Prestige ST Artificial Disk Replacement, C5/6
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