Monday, October 9, 2006

Free is as free does.

BD is apparently not going to make meters anymore.

I am in no means in love with my glucose meter, but it is nice that it beams results directly to my pump.

However, other BG meter companies are offering free meters to people with BD meters who want to switch. Does anybody have a clue if this would involve a trade-in of the BD monitor? I don't really want to give it up if I can't find something that I prefer. I feel that the BD Paradigm Link I have is okay, but I'm really curious about the OneTouch Ultra2 and UltraSmart, as well as the itty-bitty sample size and no coding that goes with the Acensia Contour.

Tomorrow I may call up both companies and see what the deal is. I'd love to have mulitple meters to do multiple comparisons. I'll post whatever feedback I get from the two companies.

In the meantime, the insurance un-sureness (say that 5 times fast!) rages on. I have to call my former employer, because I'm not sure if I need to pay them for COBRA coverage, or if I need to call the insurance company and pay the insurance people. My former employer sent me a letter, which I promptly managed to misplace. I am in the midst of a post-wedding cleaning/redecorating spree, but if I don't find it by tonight, I should call somebody tomorrow. It's just a matter of knowing who to call.

Who is that? I still don't really know. I've also misplaced 2 prescriptions and the appointment sheet that says when I'm supposed to go meet with a dietician to reassess my meal plans. Ugh, phone calls galore tomorrow. I'm not exactly excited about this.

How are things with you?

4 comments:

  1. Amy posted about this on diabetes mine - apparently Minimed will find a new meter to partner with and the BD strips will be available until 12/07.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Whomever specializes in benefits at the Human Resources department is who you need to talk to about COBRA coverage. Usually you have to write a check every month to the company you were working for and they pay the insurance with what you give them. Hope this points you in the right direction-good luck with the dietician. I personally like Lifescan's products. Not having to code the Ascencia is a nice touch, but you can mark pre and post meal BG's with the OneTouch Ultra 2's, not to mention all sorts of other important info, like stress and illness. So that's my 2 cents on the meter:)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous2:17 AM

    I have 2 BD monitors, 2 One Touch Ultras, 1 off named brand I had to buy in an emergency and 1 One touch Ultra Smart. The Ultra Smart is cool becuase you can enter lots of info but you have to actually do that for it to be worth while :0). I use the Ultra's mostly because even though my insurance paid for my pump, they will not pay for the BD strips. They will only pay for the 1 touch strips! Lame, i know.

    The only thing that sucks with the 1 touch is that they require you to open a vein compaired to the BD Meter.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I use a One Touch UltraSmart and I really like that meter. I've heard there's a One Touch Ultra2 that's smaller and uses less blood, but doesn't have as many of the proverbial bells and whistles.

    I'm laughing at George's "open a vein" comment. It's true - it does want a good amount of blood. But I'm thinking back to the Accu-Check I had when I was first diagnosed that took 120 seconds to count down to a result and you had to wipe the blood of the strip with a cotton ball and compare the colors ... life is good in 2006, I'll say. :)

    ReplyDelete

Remember to use your commenting powers for good, not evil. Excelsior!