Financial tips and advice for Endometriosis sufferers

Advice to help with the costs of dealing with Endometriosis

What you need to be aware of!

The financial cost of dealing with endometriosis can be a huge burden for some women. This burden is more relevant for women living in the US where there is no state health care system provided by the government.

This financial burden can also be compounded for women who are so debilitated that they are unable to work. This probably means they have no insurance cover at all!

The actual treatment costs for this disease can vary hugely depending on the type of treatment. The cost of drug treatment alone can mount up over months; this is without paying for consultation time, tests and other fees that can creep in.

The cost of surgical treatment usually costs in the range of a few thousand dollars. On top of this you will need to add the cost of an anesthetist and your stay in hospital.

Even if you do have insurance, there may be many items and clauses in the policy that will exclude vital needs for your treatment costs. There are some insurance companies who will not cover the cost of any treatment for gynecological problems, including endometriosis for the first year. This means a woman who suspects she may have endometriosis would not be covered by insurance to get a confirmed diagnosis with a laparoscopy. In this instance she would have to pay for the surgery herself.

Here are a few tips and suggestions �

Get a clear understanding of your insurance policy - talk to your companies insurance representative at work if you are still in work. Review your coverage choices and policy benefits. Make sure you understand what you are covered for. Ask how you submit a claim; ask which procedures will be covered; what are the provisions for surgery including, emergency hospitalization and the cost of staying in hospital. Ask about prescription costs and disability coverage. Be sure to ask about the �gray areas� contained in your policy. If your policies are inadequate it may be worth getting additional coverage.

Federal Programs - There are Federal programs that can provide assistance. It can be a lengthy application process, but once you are approved, you can receive coverage that will help. Ask your local health services office about Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security Disability Insurance.

Get advice from an Accountant - Find out if you can take out-of -pocket expenses as a deductible on your tax return. This is particularly helpful for those who travel out of State to seek treatment with an Endometriosis specialist. Ask your tax advisor if this is an option for you.

Sliding Fee Scales - Some physicians still actually work with fee scales and payment plans to assist their patients. Ask your doctor about lowering the costs of your office visits and payment plans for visits, test, procedures etc.

Another way to reduce physician fees - ask if your doctor does clinic and/or teaching hospital coverage. This way you can get to see them in an alternative setting and have your insurance accepted ( or be eligible for sliding fees if you do not have insurance coverage at all ).

Generic drug costs - are you eligible for the generic version of your prescription, or must you have the brand name? Ask your doctor and pharmacist if your prescriptions can be filled with the lower cost generic version. ( In some instances, this is not possible because the brand names are more effective than their generic counterpart ).

What about other circumstances?

- What if you have no insurance?

- What if you have no job - maybe you have been fired or lost your job because of the amount of time you have taken off suffering with endometriosis?

- How do you pay for the dietary supplements that are so highly recommended for women with endometriosis?

For those of you in financial need there are other sources of help you can tap into.

Grant Assistance

This year over $30 Billion Dollars In Free Government Grants Money will be given away by US Government Grants Agencies

There are currently over 1,400 Federal Programs, 24,000 State Programs, 30,000 Private Foundations and 20,000 Scholarship Programs available.

All U.S. citizens and residents can apply and are eligible to receive these U.S. Federal Government, State Government and Private Foundation-funded grants and low interest loans.

These are tax-free grants that do NOT have to be paid back. You could apply for any manner of financial assistance. Each grant budget will have its criteria, but you simply need to check through to find a grant that is relevant to your needs.

There are grants to help with medical treatment; there will be grants to help with general financial hardship and dealing with debt; you could apply for money to help you with the dietary supplements; you could apply for funding for re-training so you could change to a career that will fit better with your health needs and energy levels �� you name it, the money is there.

You have every right to apply for this grant money.

You will find information on every grant available at the on-line database from:

The American Grant Provider Directory

Click here or all the details

Free prescription drugs

Medicine For Free Is an internet resource which provides complete information on nearly 2,000 FREE MEDICINE programs which are available to people living in the US.

To access this information all you need to do is go to the web site, click on the link for your medicine and the complete information on its free medicine program will "pop up".
Follow the directions, and your medicine will be sent to you "FREE OF CHARGE"

There is a small registration fee, but this is small in comparison to the costs that can and do mount up for the medical treatments of endometriosis.

You will find the information on FREE medicine programs from:

Medicine Programs - Click Here!

Work from home ideas

There are ways you can continue to work without being at the mercy of an employer who would fire you for not getting to work regularly, for taking too much time off sick or for not working to your full capacity because you felt unwell.

There are opportunities to work at home where you can put your computer to good use. You do not have to sign contracts, or be expected to work fixed hours. You can suit yourself when to work with some of the new on-line opportunities.

These opportunities are especially beneficial if you are able to sit in comfort with a laptop and/or you have one of the internet services which allows you unlimited access to the internet rather than paying by the hour for your internet access.

Get paid to do surveys

Doing surveys online is not going to be taxing or stressful and is something you can do in the comfort of your own home. The payment for this work varies but here are some examples:

Get paid to take online surveys - $5 to $75 per survey!
Get paid to participate in online focus groups $50 to $150 per hour!
Get paid to try new products - keep the products and get paid too!
Get paid to preview movie trailers $4 to $25 per hour!

These opportunities give you the freedom of working in your own time and when you feel up to it. You set your own hours so you are in control.

You can find out more about these opportunities from:

Online Surveys

Home Jobs Directory

Homejobstop provides a directory and supplies jobs that you can do from your own home. They offer an extensive Job Bank of work from home jobs, an exclusive online guidebook, email update reports, and more.

If you've spent any amount of time looking for work online, chances are you've spent most of that time dismissing junk ads and poor offers. The opportunities offered by Homejobstop are realistic and they have a good reputation not only for the quality of information and the jobs they offer, but also for excellent customer support.

They offer a lifetime membership for a one-time only joining fee of $24. This is very good value for money as the membership is for life and they offer excellent service.

There are many scams out there, but this is not one of them.

To find out more Click Here!

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