UnitedHealthcare Takes Away Diabetes Devices

If you've heard about UnitedHealthcare (UHC) limiting members to only Medtronic insulin pumps beginning July 1 and feel this is wrong, please go to "We are DPAC" (Diabetes Patient Advocacy Coalition) and say so. UHC members will no longer have an in-network choice among insulin pump providers. UHC has chosen Medtronic as their preferred, in-network durable medical equipment provider of insulin pumps. The Diabetes Online Community is rallying its social media power and our collective voice to like David, bring down Goliath -- this time in the guise of UnitedHealthcare. Whether you are a UHC member, or even use an insulin pump, which I do not, you should care. Because this is the trend in healthcare. Health insurance companies, not patients and physicians, are deciding what our therapies, treatment and devices will be. I've written about this before. The strategy is short-term savings for which we will all pay dearly in the longer-term -- financially, in productivity loss and loss of health. Kelly Close, founder of CloseConcerns, wrote in diaTribe details of this stunning move, and while she notes Medtronic as an innovative company, she also points out that exclusive payer-manufacturer agreements hinder smaller, more nimble companies from bringing us new breakthroughs. And, taking away patients' choice to personalized therapy and devices, is a threat to everyone's personal health. Wanting to unify our muscle to overturn UHC's decision, Close and the diaTribe Foundation ...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news