Care for the Elderly

I just had an experience with my elderly mother.  She has a super bug urinary tract infection and needed IV antibiotics.  She was treated for a couple of days in the hospital to make sure she wasn't allergic to the antibiotic since she is allergic to penicillin.   The next step was either placing her in a nursing home for three weeks while she got the IV antibiotic or allowing her to go back to the assisted living with a visiting nurse who could administer the medication.

We first had a problem that the visiting nurses don't normally administer and just teach the patient and/or family how to do it themselves.  But my mother has dementia so cannot do it herself, and we do not live with her.  After a lot of discussion we finally found an organization willing to do it.

The more important problem is that the IV drug she is on is not covered with her prescription drug plan, which is supposed to be better or comparable to PLAN D.  The other PART B plan does not cover the drug either according to the IV company, nor does it cover the equipment used to administer it such as the IV pole, etc.

This is outrageous because if we put her in the nursing home for the three weeks she would be totally covered.  That would have cost the government and the supplemental insurance between $6000 and $8000 per month, not counting the drugs.  How insane is that?  But thank God my mother can afford the $96 per day, which is over $2100 for the series.  Most folks would have to be placed in the nursing home for the time, and possibly decline both physically and mentally in the meantime, never mind their dignity.

Thanks for listening because I can't believe how bad our system treats the elderly and this is an example of such treatment.

Patricia