[CindyLou]

Nairek,

We'll be thinking and praying for you on your big day. I hope you will be satisfied with the outcome. Most importantly, I hope you get the desired pain relief you deserve. I know how disappointing it is to lose your insurance battle, as many do here on the boards. It just isn't right. I went through my 3 appeals and an in person interview with my husband's HR president. I talked and worked feverishly with The Insurance Warrior author. Who, by the way, was a huge help, even though I lost my battle. It's just such a major disappointment when you feel like you have written and presented a thesis on your appeal. My husband's company is privately insured so I had especially high hopes. Add to that he has been with the company for 19 years and one of their top executives, I even thought that might help. I recall the HR lady comparing me to her 80 + mother who had had fusion and was doing great. She also indicated my husband was already highly compensated, to which I could only conclude was reverse discrimination. You can afford to pay, so pay! At the end of the day, out of compassion, the company finally did offer to pay half our expenses in the form of a payroll check, which was subject to all the withholding taxes, so it ended up being about 1/3 the amount. But, as they say, it was better than a poke in the eye. And they also paid for a roundtrip first class ticket for me which I was very thankful for, especially flying home from Germany with 3 new lumbar discs in me. The crazy thing was, flying home, I had the ONLY seat in first class that was broken. It wouldn't recline at all. I freaked out, to say the least. After discussing my situation with the airline staff, they made an announcement in first class, offering anyone who was willing to give up their sit for me another set of roundtrip first class tickets, and fortunately, 1 person, a woman about my age, raised her hand and said she would take the broken seat. I was beyond thankful. I like to think the amount of compensation I did receive was totally linked to how hard I worked to present my case. If I hadn't appealed, I likely would have received nothing.
We'll be here when you get to the other side!