ADRSupport Community  

Go Back   ADRSupport Community > General Discussion > New Member Introductions

New Member Introductions If you just joined, please introduce yourself here. Please add a signature describing your spinal history (use the "User CP) and ask us how we can help you get started.


Reply
 
Thread Tools
  #11  
Old 05-01-2015, 05:20 PM
NJ Gene NJ Gene is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Feb 2013
Posts: 376
Default

Randolf, why don't you think Cigna approve this or at least part of it? Is Dr. Pettine on your insurance plan? While not ideal, perhaps you can get insurance to cover the most critical levels. Very often insurance companies will be okay with you paying one level out-of-pocket. They just need to be aware of it. This way you save on hospital, anesthesia, etc. You simply pay extra $$ for the device at levels disallowed by insurance and for the extra time of the surgeon.

For me personally, I chose not to fight my insurance as I wrote in my previous posting on this thread. However, it can't hurt to have Dr. Pettine (or the surgeon you choose) find out what they will authorize.

Gene
__________________
Car Accident 2002 - Small Herniated Disc C3/C4
1998 Larger Herniation and Cervical Fusion C3/C4
2005 Herniation C4/C5 - 40 epidural steroid injections from Oct 2005, - Oct, 2007
2008 - Foraminotomy at C6/C7 on left side
Feb, 2010 - Cervical Fusion C4/C5
Dec, 2010 - Lumbar Fusion L3/L5
2013 - Bulge on C5/C6; herniation C6/C7 right side
Mar 26, 2013 - Foraminotomy at C6/C7 on right side
May 5, 2015 - ADR with Dr Blumenthal of TBI for C5/C6 using Mobi-C
Reply With Quote
  #12  
Old 05-01-2015, 07:48 PM
colorado babe's Avatar
colorado babe colorado babe is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2014
Posts: 345
Default

Dr. Pettine and Techy performed my multi-level ADR at C5-7 in Oct 2014. He used the Mobi-C and I have absolutely no neck issues now. I feel better than I did in my 20's. I know people rave about the M6 but honestly, I can't even tell I have artificial discs in my neck and have full mobility. I have United Health Care (Tricare) and had to fight through 3 appeals which took me about 2 months to finally get approved. The secret here is to respond to each appeal within a week. If you delay, the longer it will take. Dr. Pettine's office has some of the evidence based practices I submitted with my appeal that finally got approved. I say -- fight -- Don't let the insurance companies wear you down. If we all just give up without a fight, they will continue to deny everything.

You are in good hands with Dr. Pettine and Techy. They are the best and they gave me my life back. To top it off, the whole procedure cost me $25.00. It was well worth fighting the insurance and not letting them win!
__________________
1998- Injured neck and back in USAF
2011 - Started experiencing Severe Symptoms, Migranes, numbness, spasms in legs and feet and sciatica.
Feb 2014 - Received upper Lumbar Injection - Severe Allergy to injection
Mar 2014 - MRI of Cervical and Lumbar, protruding disc in C3-7, Herniated Disc in L5/S1, placed on STD and FMLA )
July 2014 - Stem Cell Procedure performed
Oct 20, 2014 - ADR (MOBI-C) at C5-7 and Anterior Fusion at L5/S1 by Dr. Pettine and Dr. Techy
Reply With Quote
  #13  
Old 05-05-2015, 12:53 PM
randolf's Avatar
randolf randolf is offline
Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2015
Posts: 47
Wink

NJ, i have talked to cigna cust. serv. 2 times with Dr. billing codes. other dr.s won't give me the billing codes. they make you sign on the Dr.s line for whatever they are selling before they will submit for approval. it doesn't make any sense at all to be forced to schedule a surgery when you don't know if it is "approved" as "medically necessary" not to mention if you can afford it or not. further ins. co. are not fans of "hybrid" spinal surgeries, and i have a fusion and i am not a fan of that aspect of the hybrid. as far as the implants all of the hard ball discs work more or less like a ball joint, which has no shock absorption, in that i agree with Synlite. the Spinal Kinetics and the AxioMed implants work more like a natural disc than any of the hardball discs. that also makes no sense, in order for me to buy a top notch product that is made in the USA like AxioMed and Spinal Kinetics, i have to go to Europe to get it.
__________________
2007 mri revealed all but 2 discs of entire spine are either bulged, some torn, a few herniated and compressing foramenal nerves or chord c3-4 fusion. myelomalacia at 2 levels, facet arthropathy, spinal and foramenal stenosis, yadda, yadda...
Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks

Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



All times are GMT -4. The time now is 05:19 AM.


© Copyright 2006-2023 ADRSupport.org All rights reserved.