I have called every home infusion service in my area, and none of them bill Medicare for nursing services. Part D pays for 80% of the drug, but nursing care is not covered. I called Medicare and was told they pay for intermittent skilled nursing if it’s delivered through a home health service. (Infusion services are not home health agencies.)
Supplemental insurance (I have Plan F) requires that bills go to Medicare first before they are passed on. If the infusion service won’t bill Medicare and get approval of the charge, the supplemental insurance can’t pay.
I would like to know how some of you are getting Medicare to pay for your home nursing services. Are your nurses working for a home health care agency? Help me out here. Where do your nurses come from? I’d like to know how you are getting Medicare coverage for nursing when I’m told I can’t.
Skiptech— But you get your infusions at a hospital. They will be covered by Medicare in full. We’re talking about nursing care for home infusions. I have Plan F supplemental (medigap) insurance, and it pays all the leftover amounts from Medicare Part A and Part B, but it does not cover the 20% I owe for my Gamunex after Part D drug coverage pays 80%. I have to pay that 20% plus the total cost of nursing care.
If I had to pay 20%, I would go where I didn’t have to – an infusion center, no matter how far I had to travel. IVIG is so expensive, one infusion should use up all the yearly part D deductible. In 8 years of infusions at 2 different facilities, I haven’t paid a dime out of pocket.
We should all remember that Medicare is not the same across the country. It’s divided into regions, and big states may have as many as 3 regions. Each region makes its own decisions about what to cover and what not to cover. I live in Northern VA (DC area), where the StimWave pain relief device has not yet been approved. But right across the Potomac River in Maryland, it’s available to Medicare patients. And down in southern and central VA, it’s approved. These differences in Medicare coverage are maddening. Don’t assume that just because somebody in another part of the country can get something from Medicare, you can too. It doesn’t work that way.
Skiptech — My neurologist says I must have Gamunex, and no infusion center near me dispenses it. They have either Privigen or Gammagard, neither of which is specifically approved by the FDA for CIDP. If I can’t get a change to one of those drugs, I can’t go to an infusion center.
Interesting confusion – I was on Gamunex where I had an allergic reaction and was switched to Gammagard that was the cause of another problem so I was switched again to Privigen that had to be special ordered. Privigen is approved by the FDA for CIDP as stated in their advertising and web page.
Indications
Privigen is indicated for the treatment of:
Primary humoral immunodeficiency (PI)
Chronic immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) in patients age 15 years and older
Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) in adults
Limitation of use: maintenance therapy in CIDP has not been studied for periods longer than 6 months. Individualize duration of treatment beyond 6 months based on patient response.
I see from the web site the last line note, I have been on Privigen for 7 years without a problem. Could the FDA approval process be regionalized like you stated with Medicare policies?
I wish you the best getting this all sorted out. If I didn’t have Privigen, I would be in a wheel chair in just a few months.
I’ve done well enough on Gamunex, which is probably the main reason the doctor sees no reason to change. I’m so used to having infusions at home with a pump that I know I wouldn’t like sitting in an infusion center with a drip for hours. We can pay for the home nursing care, but I cringe at the bills. That’s why I urge everyone to try an infusion center before going to home infusions, especially if they’re on Medicare.
I called Silverscript yesterday about their Part D insurance and was told they don’t cover any form of IVIG. Their web site says they don’t cover any part of the cost of Gamunex, Gammagard or Privigen.
Yes, I’m in West Virginia. I have been getting my home infusions for over a year. She comes for 2 days and stays in a motel. I pay $100 each visit. I am on Medicare
I am not sure how it is billed.
I concur with the benefits of home infusions. I researched that a couple of years ago to find no one nearby provides that service. The closest provider I could find wasn’t interested as it would have been a trip total of 360 miles for them plus food and hotel expenses for my 2 day infusion.
Anne, it won’t be as expensive as you think. Whatever the hospital charges is not what Medicare will pay and then they pay 80% of that with 20% your responsibility. I carry a gap insurance and at your age it will be very modest. My wife is 71 and only pays 118.80 per month and it covers everything medicare doesn’t… Good luck to all. JDU
Here in Alaska, there are no Medicare gap or supplemental policies available. My condition has progressed to me being not able to walk more than a few steps. I can’t believe how much of a decline from last year to now. Wish I could afford to pay for infusions.
Hi, just reading this. If you cannot get IVIG treatment, switch immediately to Hizentra. Its the same medicine as IVIG only its administered subcutaneously…under the skin and not into the veins. Its taken once weekly. You get your medication delivered, probably by mail. A local nurse who does Hizentra training can train you how to administer it. After about 2 training sessions, you administer the Hizentra yourself. The system is designed so you can do yourself after training. It’s slightly less effective than directly into the veins, but its working for me…i was forced to stop IVIG after 6 treatments because at 5 months, my veins in my arms were collapsing from all the needle sticks into the arms. My veins just burst with every needle inserted, so i now do Hizentra! Anne
DocMac – I went to the Humana website and filled in the Humana Advantage page for prescription drugs with Privigen which was on their list. But, the page that recommends plans said my prescription isn’t covered for any of the plans it recommended. Are you on Privigen? Something else? Funny that you’re covered for meds and home nursing but the website indicates differently – unless it’s different in Pasadena, CA. Is your Advantage plan an HMO or PPO? Thanks.