Lost my insurance, any advice?

[rockrobot]

Hey Guys,

I just graduated college and am now off my family's insurance. I got a job that I truly love and don't want to leave but it's a very small company (I'm one of three employees) and they and they can't afford to provide health care for us. (My boss is on state's health care system only because he is technically below the poverty line and he has a child) For the past two years I was on enbrel and it was great, my skin cleared up to the point where I could where shorts and short sleeves w/o feeling self conscious. Needless to say I can't afford to pay the $1500 a month for it out of pocket and I'm flaring up terribly.

I don't know what to do, any suggestions?

[MikeK]

Hi Rockrobot,

I don't think that we've met so let me take this opportunity to welcome you to the Board! :cool: Nice to meet you.

I'm sorry to hear that you've lost your insurance. :(

A couple of people who post here were able to get assistance from Enbrel's patient assistance program, which is called the ENcourage Foundation (www.encouragefoundation.com).

Here's some links to some recent discussions about the ENcourage Foundation:

http://www.psoriasis.org/forum/showthread.php?t=19941&highlight=ENcourage+Foundation;

http://www.psoriasis.org/forum/showthread.php?t=22405&highlight=ENcourage+Foundation;

http://www.psoriasis.org/forum/showthread.php?t=22392&highlight=ENcourage+Foundation.

At least two people who sometimes post here were able to get Enbrel for free thanks to a program called www.needymeds.com. (It sounds like a scam site, doesn't it?) Miranda (LadyFraser) got help from www.needymeds.com while her husband was transitioning from being self employed (with no insurance) to working for the government (with excellent benefits). Jessica (stormechaser) was able to get both Enbrel and Remicade thanks to www.needymeds.com. Links to both Miranda's and Jessica's stories can also be found in a thread that was started by Leslie (Momtotwogirls). She took the time to post the links and information about some assistance programs that she came across. I added the links and information to programs that people have either told me about or that have been discussed here on the board. There's even a link to a very helpful post from NPF staffer Alyssa Brown that gives the links to the assistance programs that the NPF knows about. Here's a link to Leslie's thread: http://www.psoriasis.org/forum/showthread.php?t=12379.

I hope this helps.

Good luck. Keep us posted.

Mike

[SCCatman]

If you lost your insurance because you had to leave your parents insurance, you may be eligable for state mandated insurance. Typicaly you have to apply within a fix time 60 or 90 days. It is a part of the health insurance portablity act.
Call your state insurance commisinor for details.
You have to pay for it, and it is not cheap. I am on it in Ga. and it cost $450 a month, but it covers embrel, uv light treatments, and all medical, dental, and eye glasses.
The price depends on age, and I am 50, so you may get it cheaper.
Dennis