Is Big Brother watching my daughter?
I just got a letter in the mail from my health insurance company in which they expressed their concern that my daughter may not be getting the appropriate health care. Seems they've noticed that Danika hasn't gotten the Hep B series (although she's in the process of getting that at the health dept.) and the Chicken pox vaccine (which we won't be doing until she's 10, if she never gets chicken pox). They sent me a vaccine schedule and a form to have my doctor fill out at the pediatrician appointment I am supposed to make to discuss this issue with my daughter's doctor.
ARE THEY SERIOUS??
Are they threatening me? What are they going to do if they don't get their form back or notice in 6 months that (according to their records) Danika still hasn't gotten those vaccines? I know that these are questions for them, not you guys, but this letter arrived about 1/2 an hour ago and I am really freaked out. Are they going to try to get us for neglect if we don't do what they think we should be doing? Is it legal for them to interfere like this?
Help!
Danna
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Danna, Don't freak ou
Danna,
Don't freak out, it may just be routine. Alot of push is made to vaccinate and to do so on a schedule. Call them and find out. The Hep B series is via your health Dept so they won't have a record of that,although your pediatrician can mark it on Danika's record that the Health Dept is providing that. As far as chicken pox goes, it is still,at least here, an elective vaccine. The schools haven't required it yet though I bet it looms on the near horizon....
Heidi
don't forget
your insurance company isn't the government. It's a private company, right?? They can't force you or get you for neglect. All they can do is increase your preium on her because you aren't taking 'every possible precaution' according to their requirements. Check that there aren't specific requirements on their schedules. If they need x, y, z vaccinations done so that they can continue to cover Danika they could have you by the short and curlies on the chicken pox.
But this is different from being able to get Social Services onto you for neglect. Even if they did sound an alert in that direction it would be obvious to any social worker that Danika is not being neglected. As Heidi said, you're already getting Hep B done anyway, and chicken pox is still optional. If it's still optional here you've got a while!
Call them, sort this out for your own peace of mind, but make sure they know (even if you have to follow up with something in writing) that you don't appreciate being threatened, or feeling like you are. For tht you can probably report them to whichever watchdog oversees insurance practices.
you should get an apology in full and they will back off damn quick if they think you could get them in trouble over this practice.
oh yes, and remember that very often, I believe, insurance companies get money from vaccine manufacturers to promote their vaccines. There's some kind of mutual back scratching there.
Kerri.
Way to get out of paying?
There is only one way to find out what their intentions were. Call them. It may be that your health insurance will not cover any claims that are caused by an illness that could have been prevented with a vaccine (especially if they cover vaccinations). However, one should think that they would mention that in the letter. On the other hand, reminders may just be a service to their customers. I got a few postcards from the health unit, reminding me when my little DD needed shots. I just trashed those and nothing ever happened. The first time, I freaked out, though, and called to let them know that she is getting her shots at the local hospital. I was told that the reminders were computer generated...
like the twice-yearly reminders from the dentist
Also I imagine a lot of parents who don't have an interest in the subject don't really have Hep B and chicken pox vaccines on their radar, since they didn't get them themselves, so they may like to send out reminders that those things are available.
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