Various Topics on Diabetes

..o.. ..r..

Hi.

I need to obtain health insurance as my current coverage is running
out end of June.

I live in California. I'm 55. Unemployed.

Type II diabetic. Taking Actos, Lisinopril, and Lipitor. I think
I'm in pretty good shape though I'm 6'1" and about 230lbs. The meds
actually made me gain weight. I'm a large man so I'm really not
that overweight. If I weighed 200 I'd be skinny.

Any suggestions?

Thanks.

CB

..dal48..

Cloud Burst wrote in message ...
>Hi.
>
>I need to obtain health insurance as my current coverage is running
>out end of June.
>
>I live in California. I'm 55. Unemployed.
>
>Type II diabetic. Taking Actos, Lisinopril, and Lipitor. I think
>I'm in pretty good shape though I'm 6'1" and about 230lbs. The meds
>actually made me gain weight. I'm a large man so I'm really not
>that overweight. If I weighed 200 I'd be skinny.
>
>Any suggestions?
>
>Thanks.
>
>CB

I don't know anything about your options in California. Where I live,
it will be very difficult, perhaps impossible for you to obtain any kind of
standard health insurance.

If you cannot obtain insurance, you may be tempted to cut back on your
expensive medicines. May I suggest that there are some much cheaper
diabetic medicines available that could do a very good job for you.

You are taking three important medicines for a T2: the anti-Insulin
Resistance med Actos, the ACE inhibitor Lisinopril and the cholesterol
control med Lipitor. All of these are potent anti-Heart Attack meds and
that's a good thing since premature heart attack is the biggest single
problem a Type II (T2) diabetic faces.

The generic anti-Insulin Resistance diabetic medicine "metformin" does
about as well as the very expensive Actos. You can buy it as a generic in
California, or you can import metformin from Canada at much more reasonable
prices. I have a friend who uses

http://glenwaypharmacy.com/

There are probably other Canadian pharmacies with prices just as good. I
just don't know anybody who uses any others.

The Canadian pharmacies also sell Enalapril, a cheaper ACE inhibitor than
your Lisinopril. Most of them also sell Lipitor for less.

I was forced to stop taking Lipitor. However, I am getting good
anti-cholesterol results with some diet supplements recommended by the
cardiologist who advises my Diabetic Support Group, i.e.

a. Ground flax seed (better than just the oil)
b. Fish oil, 3 gram a day
c. Time release Niacin, 1000 mg/day
d. Psyllium (cheap, generic Metamucil from Wal-Mart)
e A handful of Walnuts every day
f. Benecol margerine
g. Olive oil instead of other cooking oils

They are a royal bother to deal with but they have pushed my cholesterol
down into the healthy ranges.

Regards
Old Al

....

"Cloud Burst" <sun@shine.com> wrote in message
news:jmh7d09100qmsaqp5cp7fuac1j1vult8mh@4ax.com...
> Hi.
>
> I need to obtain health insurance as my current coverage is running
> out end of June.
>
> I live in California. I'm 55. Unemployed.
>
> Type II diabetic. Taking Actos, Lisinopril, and Lipitor. I think
> I'm in pretty good shape though I'm 6'1" and about 230lbs. The meds
> actually made me gain weight. I'm a large man so I'm really not
> that overweight. If I weighed 200 I'd be skinny.
>
> Any suggestions?
>
> Thanks.
>
It won't help with doctor bills but most drug companies will discount drugs
if you are under certain income levels. I have cards from both Lilly and
pfizer. They get me Lipitor and my insulins for 12 and 15 dollars for a 30
day prescription. Not exactly what you take and of course I don't know your
income but it is something to look into. You can also get drugs sent to your
doctor to give you if you are poor enough.

..uthrnE..

>I have cards from both Lilly and
>pfizer

When I went to sign up my Dad about two years ago I was told you could only
register with one company and just to pick the one that would help him with his
most expensive medicine. Has that changed?

..o.. ..r..

On Sat, 19 Jun 2004 07:15:27 -0400, "oldal4865" <oldal4865@yahoo.com> wrote:

>>Type II diabetic. Taking Actos, Lisinopril, and Lipitor. I think
>>I'm in pretty good shape though I'm 6'1" and about 230lbs. The meds
>>actually made me gain weight. I'm a large man so I'm really not
>>that overweight. If I weighed 200 I'd be skinny.
>>
>>Any suggestions?
>
> I don't know anything about your options in California. Where I live,
>it will be very difficult, perhaps impossible for you to obtain any kind of
>standard health insurance.
>
>If you cannot obtain insurance, you may be tempted to cut back on your
>expensive medicines. May I suggest that there are some much cheaper
>diabetic medicines available that could do a very good job for you.
>
>You are taking three important medicines for a T2: the anti-Insulin
>Resistance med Actos, the ACE inhibitor Lisinopril and the cholesterol
>control med Lipitor. All of these are potent anti-Heart Attack meds and
>that's a good thing since premature heart attack is the biggest single
>problem a Type II (T2) diabetic faces.
>
> The generic anti-Insulin Resistance diabetic medicine "metformin" does
>about as well as the very expensive Actos. You can buy it as a generic in
>California, or you can import metformin from Canada at much more reasonable
>prices. I have a friend who uses
>
> http://glenwaypharmacy.com/
>
>There are probably other Canadian pharmacies with prices just as good. I
>just don't know anybody who uses any others.
>
>The Canadian pharmacies also sell Enalapril, a cheaper ACE inhibitor than
>your Lisinopril. Most of them also sell Lipitor for less.
>
>I was forced to stop taking Lipitor. However, I am getting good
>anti-cholesterol results with some diet supplements recommended by the
>cardiologist who advises my Diabetic Support Group, i.e.
>
> a. Ground flax seed (better than just the oil)
> b. Fish oil, 3 gram a day
> c. Time release Niacin, 1000 mg/day
> d. Psyllium (cheap, generic Metamucil from Wal-Mart)
> e A handful of Walnuts every day
> f. Benecol margerine
> g. Olive oil instead of other cooking oils
>
>They are a royal bother to deal with but they have pushed my cholesterol
>down into the healthy ranges.
>
>Regards
> Old Al

Thanks.

CB

..o.. ..r..

On Sat, 19 Jun 2004 09:08:55 -0400, "harv" <harv@nospam.com> wrote:

>> Type II diabetic. Taking Actos, Lisinopril, and Lipitor. I think
>> I'm in pretty good shape though I'm 6'1" and about 230lbs. The meds
>> actually made me gain weight. I'm a large man so I'm really not
>> that overweight. If I weighed 200 I'd be skinny.
>
>It won't help with doctor bills but most drug companies will discount drugs
>if you are under certain income levels. I have cards from both Lilly and
>pfizer. They get me Lipitor and my insulins for 12 and 15 dollars for a 30
>day prescription. Not exactly what you take and of course I don't know your
>income but it is something to look into. You can also get drugs sent to your
>doctor to give you if you are poor enough.

Thanks. I'll look into this.

CB

..anutja..

"Cloud Burst" <sun@shine.com> wrote in message news:jmh7d09100qmsaqp5cp7fuac1j1vult8mh@4ax.com...
> Hi.
>
> I need to obtain health insurance as my current coverage is running
> out end of June.
>
> I live in California. I'm 55. Unemployed.
>
> Type II diabetic. Taking Actos, Lisinopril, and Lipitor. I think
> I'm in pretty good shape though I'm 6'1" and about 230lbs. The meds
> actually made me gain weight. I'm a large man so I'm really not
> that overweight. If I weighed 200 I'd be skinny.
>
> Any suggestions?
>
> Thanks.
>
> CB

Try Medicaid or MediCal.

..o.. ..r..

On Sun, 20 Jun 2004 20:24:53 -0400, "Peanutjake" <peanutjakeNO@usa.com> wrote:

>
>"Cloud Burst" <sun@shine.com> wrote in message news:jmh7d09100qmsaqp5cp7fuac1j1vult8mh@4ax.com...
>> Hi.
>>
>> I need to obtain health insurance as my current coverage is running
>> out end of June.
>>
>> I live in California. I'm 55. Unemployed.
>>
>> Type II diabetic. Taking Actos, Lisinopril, and Lipitor. I think
>> I'm in pretty good shape though I'm 6'1" and about 230lbs. The meds
>> actually made me gain weight. I'm a large man so I'm really not
>> that overweight. If I weighed 200 I'd be skinny.
>>
>> Any suggestions?
>>
>> Thanks.
>>
>> CB
>
>Try Medicaid or MediCal.

Good idea. I looked at the websites but I can't figure out anything
important. Like what the benefits are and how eligibility is determined.
Little stuff like that...

..e ..rus..

Cloud Burst wrote:
> On Sun, 20 Jun 2004 20:24:53 -0400, "Peanutjake" <peanutjakeNO@usa.com> wrote:
>
>
>>"Cloud Burst" <sun@shine.com> wrote in message news:jmh7d09100qmsaqp5cp7fuac1j1vult8mh@4ax.com...
>>
>>>Hi.
>>>
>>>I need to obtain health insurance as my current coverage is running
>>>out end of June.
>>>
>>>I live in California. I'm 55. Unemployed.
>>>
>>>Type II diabetic. Taking Actos, Lisinopril, and Lipitor. I think
>>>I'm in pretty good shape though I'm 6'1" and about 230lbs. The meds
>>>actually made me gain weight. I'm a large man so I'm really not
>>>that overweight. If I weighed 200 I'd be skinny.
>>>
>>>Any suggestions?
>>>
>>>Thanks.
>>>
>>>CB
>>
>>Try Medicaid or MediCal.
>
>
> Good idea. I looked at the websites but I can't figure out anything
> important. Like what the benefits are and how eligibility is determined.
> Little stuff like that...
>

It is better to go to one of their offices. Two other things that
might apply:

1). If you are in southern California, go down to Mexico and
get drugs there - MUCH cheaper.

2). If your employment was in some profession, check out the
professional societies. Many have group insurance that has no
exam requirements, and will cover pre-existing conditions after
a waiting period.

Speaking only for myself,

Joe Durusau