I have Medicare. For years I've been suffering from leg pain, burning, heaviness, etc., but was only recently diagnosed with varicose veins. The pain is debilitating at night. Why do I have to wait many months before I can have treatment? The pain is bad now and there is a history of this dating back several years.
Did they tell you that you had to wear compression stockings for 3 months? That is fairly common with many insurance companies whether people have a lot of pain or not. That is just the way it is unfortunately.
Published on Jul 11, 2012
There is no scientific basis for this waiting time, but it has become a standard hurdle for patients prior to getting approved. Nevertheless, your symptoms should improve with conservative therapy.
Published on Jul 11, 2012
If you are having severe symptoms that are getting
worse, you may be able to get quicker treatment depending on the stage of your vein problems. Seek out an experienced vein doctor who can accurately determine the stage you're in and prescribe a treatment plan for you.
Published on Jul 11, 2012
I do not know why you are waiting. The doc just needs to be able to document what you have via a comprehensive ultrasound evaluation.
Published on Jul 11, 2012
Most insurance companies including Medicare require patients that have symptomatic (painful) varicose veins to complete a 3-6 month trial of conservative therapy (medical grade compression stockings, NSAIDS, weight loss, leg elevation etc...) to see if any of these treatments relieved the pain or other symptoms. Once this conservative therapy has failed they will approve your surgical procedures. If you had venous stasis or ulcers on your legs the conservative trial would have been waived.
Published on Jul 11, 2012
That is a great question. There truly is no medical evidence the that a trial of Compression stocking will cure or treat the underlying varicose vein disease process. The policy is primarily in place to stall or delay definitive treatment so that you might not follow through with the treatment or forget about the symptoms .
Published on Jul 11, 2012
There is a grading system for severity of varicose veins which has many variables such as symptoms, duration, types of treatment and physical findings. Depending on where you fall within those categories determines the acuity of your problem and the indications for treatment. Talk to your physician about this, since with the amount of your discomfort you may qualify for earlier treatment.
Published on Jul 11, 2012
Since I have not examined you, and since I did not make that decision based on the results of your examination, you need to address that question with your doctor. He or she has a reason for wanting to delay treatment and only he or she knows why.
Published on Jul 11, 2012