Advice please if you have medicaid

• By Mare5785
• Reply 3453822
• October 12, 2012 at 7:52 pm
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I have never dealt with Liberator.. but that's outragious! They have no business deciding what you should be wearing. Why do they not offer Convatec? Have you tried EdgePark yet?
Good luck finding a supplier for the applicances you desire to use!!
I don't blame you for not going out...if you are leaking by end of day. My pouches just changed their style a bit.. Hollister.. They have made them so they are a bit more flexible around the stoma rather than stiff and attached fully to the wafer. At first I was a bit upset and didn't know how they'd work... but I like them even better and actually can almost get an extra day out of my wear time now!! : ) What I use can usually go for 10 days, supposedly.. but I can only get two... now nearly a third day each time!!

Prayers you can find an answer to this..
Mare

• By Dan53
• Reply 3453984
• October 12, 2012 at 9:18 pm
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I too use Edgepark. I don't have any problem getting Convatec supplies through them. you can contact them at 1-800-321-0591 or www.edgepark.com Best of luck to you.

• By Chriswife
• Reply 3454069
• October 12, 2012 at 9:55 pm
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edgepark has been WONDERFUL! I do not have medicaid but I have had nothing but good service from them. If you explain your situation, maybe they will give you some samples to hold you over until you can order?

Kerri

• By p3pattyo
• Reply 3454110
• October 12, 2012 at 10:16 pm
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Thank you all for your quick responses, I will be getting in touch with Edgepark ASAP, I noticed that alot of people mention them in this site and all good!! It's a crying shame that Liberator always advertises about being a caring company, bulls***!! They are also known as Liberty, so beware of them unless you have money to spend or awesome insurance and then I'm sure you can get whatever you want! A representative from there called me to see if I was ready to put in my order and I was explaining how I wasn't happy with their service and the lady HUNG UP ON ME!!! So anyway thank you my Inspire Friends, I already started my on-line profile with Edgepark and am awaiting to see if they can help me. I thank goodness have a few convatec left, but as you know they will be gone before I know it and I would like to get back to my somewhat normal life!!
Patty

• By tjane
• Reply 3454304
• October 13, 2012 at 12:28 am
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Patty that was real mature of Libety to hang up on you how disrespectful and unprofesional. I use Edgepark and have Medcare and Medicaid and can get Convatec and Holister supplies without any trouble . I have only had one order so far. It was for a 3 month supply. One thing I would advise new ostomy people is not to order a 3 month supply unless you are positive your stoma has stopped shrinking. I shrank another 1/4 " after the nomal 3 month time span. So I have been dealing with a bag with a too large of an opening. I am also fighting some sores close to the stoma. I am hoping they will clear up completly when I get the new bags with the smaller opeing in November. I use the stoma powder every time I change my bag but can't seem to get it to heal up.

• By JRo12
• Reply 3454346
• October 13, 2012 at 1:05 am
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Patty,

I am not sure how Medicaid works as far as what providers they accept and do not, but did you call Medicaid to see why this provider is giving you so much grief? I mean it is probably best to change companies anyway but I am kind of curious if Liborator is denying you these services because Medicaid truly does not cover them or because of the simple fact you have Medicaid. And if it is because you have Medicaid I would report them. It's not right. Hopefully you will have better luck with Edgepark. keep us updated.

TJane I am a bit confused if could tell me. The supplies that I have, the wafer and the bag always has the same size ring to fit each other, it is the wafer that I cut the hole to fit the size of my Stoma. I was getting pre-cut ones for a while which rocked because it saved so much time, but right now my stoma is changing sizes so i am holding off on the pre-cut for a while. But I am just curious why your bag differ in sizes compared to mine? Just curious. I hope your sores heal soon that is not fun.

Buenos Notches every one!

• By herbsgal70
• Reply 3454603 · In reply to 3454304 by tjane
• October 13, 2012 at 7:59 am
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terri - an Eakin ring will close the gap in the too-large opening. My WCON taught me that when she noticed that my barrier opening was 1/8" too large, allowing for "stuff" to leak under the barrier, causing blow-outs and sore skin from the contact. I am now down to just a skin prep wipe, Eakin ring, and barrier - and if I change every 3 days I have no leaks at all. We just came home from a 2700 mile car trip with no problems at all. Before I left home I put everything I would need for an individual change in a gallon-size baggie, and that worked so well, I may do that at home as well, instead of having to go through several different boxes to make a change. It would be so easy just to dump the contents of one baggie onto the bed before I shower.

Hugs from Marge

• By alan41241
• Reply 3454605
• October 13, 2012 at 8:01 am
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I use Holliser products and order through Liberty. I have had no problems with them and am satisfied with their service. I can't imagine someone at Liberty hung up on you. Are you sure you didn't just lose the connection? Did you try calling back?
I hope this all gets worked out for you.
Blessings,
Alan

• By Mare5785
• Reply 3454735
• October 13, 2012 at 9:07 am
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Patty.. Glad you are right on top of it and already working on your profile. I have no doubt that they will do right for you!!!

Terri.. .Why suffer through a larger opening than you need? If you call them, tell them your stoma has shrunk a bit.. I know they will take them in exchange and issue you a smaller size... That is..unless you cut your own, but it doesn't sound as if this is the case for you.
I have had a few issues with my pouches over the years and they have been awesome! At one point, I had an issue with a batch and they took the whole shipment back .. repalaced it with more pouches manufactured with a different date code. Sometimes things happen and items that might have been rejected, get through the process..
Being how important it is for us to have our pouhes..and we just can't go without them..there is huge angst when we have issues!

Praying you will get service today from Edgepark and have your ostomy supplies in no time.. or at least several to hold you over until everything is approved!!!

I agree Marge.. the Eakin seal will help close the gap. For me though..and anyone who has high, acidic output... it does eat away at the seal very quickly... but it sure does help in the interm!!!

Happy Saturday all!!! A very cool morning here in Vermont.... 28 degrees, but the sun is shinning and the trees are glistening with frost... A beautiful sight!!! : ) We had a flurry of snow and sleet yesterday!!!! It's coming!!!

• By alan41241
• Reply 3454972
• October 13, 2012 at 10:46 am
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Yes, it is, Mare. But not in Louisville, Kentucky yet. We have had minor frost at night once and that's it. The temp. here today is supposed to be 80 degrees. Yesterday the high was around 60 degrees. Fall is always strange here.
Blessings,
Alan

• By tetz
• Reply 3454987
• October 13, 2012 at 10:51 am
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Medicaid can vary state by state as to what supply companies you must use but I doubt that they would have a limitation on a reputable manufacturer. I'd push this both with Liberator and Medicaid. Saying they can't get Convatec doesn't make sense either since it is a leading brand. Convatec's customer service is wonderful and I'd suggest a call to them to find out why they are not available from Liberator. I know companies sometimes cut deals with supplier to get a better price and promise to push their products. With a little push back, you may find that they do have Convatec products after all. I also get my supplies through Medicaid from Sterling and I do have be assertive sometimes when they suggest an alternate brand for some of the accessories. I wish you the best of luck. We should not have to fight for supplies that work.

• By msmikkle
• Reply 3455025
• October 13, 2012 at 11:02 am
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I have been using Liberator as well and hate them! The insist that I must order Coloplast products and never send me any other brand.

I ordered a support belt and my surgeon wanted to see me before approving it. Liberator medical harassed them all day everyday until I called them and told them to leave my doc alone! I want to change companies as well and get these whackos out of my life..lol.

Good luck!

• By tjane
• Reply 3455033
• October 13, 2012 at 11:05 am
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Marge I was told by my WOCN to use both the paste and the Ekin seal because of the dip that I have. It is kind of hard to get it just right. I am hoping with the smaller opening I want to try just the seal and maybe just a little paste right at the dip. I realy don't like having to use both. The seal without the paste would be so much easier. Mare I can not return them because I allready put the ez vent on them and cut away the fabric on the top so I could put the vent on. I also called Hollister to get some samples with the smaller precut bag and they will only send 2 at a time.Since I am on disability with limited income I am going to just put up with it till I can get a new order. My new shipment should come Nov. 13th so not too much longer. Jro I am using pre cut bags and since the stoma shrunk more after my order the opening is a 1/4 to large. I also have an oblong stoma so hope the round opening will not let too much skin show with the round opening. The sores I have are real close to the stoma and don't think the will completely heal till I get the new bags. But so far I amd coping ok. Just am ready for November to get her. Mare it is going to be in the 80's today. last week it was in the 60's and got down to 39* at night. I would say winter is on its way in Vermont. Have a great day all. xox terri

• By herbsgal70
• Reply 3455334
• October 13, 2012 at 1:01 pm
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Hi terri - have you used the Eakin ring before? It is round, but the opening in the middle can be stretched any-which-way to snug right up to your stoma and will fill in any gap you have in the barrier opening. Apply the Eakin ring to your skin separately, and kind of push it here and there to fit it in snugly, after you have stretched it to an oblong opening. I have the same sort of oblong stoma, and find the Eakin ring is probably the reason I have not had a leak in a couple of months now. I change every 3 days, and a couple of times I noticed that there was just the smallest amount of "stuff" on the ring when I removed everything - if I had tried to stretch wear time to 4 days or more, it might have broken through eventually - better be safe than sorry! I also still wear my Depends Silhouette for Women every night, even though I have not had any problems at night for quite a long time. I also wore them in the car on last week's 2700 mile trip, and in the 5 hotels we stayed in. I can't imagine how embarassing it would have been to have a super blow-out in a hotel bed!

Good luck and hugs from Marge

• By herbsgal70
• Reply 3455358 · In reply to 3455025 by msmikkle
• October 13, 2012 at 1:09 pm
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Hi msmikkle - Edgepark seems to be the supplier of choice here - most people have good luck with them. I used them for about 5 months after my ileostomy, and had a small disagreement with them (to the tune of $138!). I looked in my local phone book and found a supplier about 10 miles away from me in south Florida called NationsHealth. They have been wonderful. I asked if they were elsewhere in the country, and they told me their headquarters is here, but they have distribution centers at several different points throughout the United States and can take care of anyone. My advice would be to look in your phone book for "Medical Suppliers" and call them to ask if they can help you. Or just search for "Ostomy Supplies" here on the net - they will probably have listings according to your zip code, state, etc.

Hugs from Marge

• By kimsa
• Reply 3462830
• October 16, 2012 at 11:18 am
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I have Medicare and Medicaid. I buy supplies from edge park. I live in PA. No problems with edge park. I have a sales rep I go through for my section of PA. She is good with me. In fact I told her about this site (she did not know about it) and she was excited to learn of it. She was going to share it with others. The only thing is that Medicaid in PA does not allow them to take money from me. This created a problem for something I wanted that was not covered by insurance, but I just ordered it somewhere else or I would have had my daughter order it for me. So far so good with edge park.

• By WyoJane
• Reply 3587077
• December 1, 2012 at 12:03 am
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There is a major issue happening at the National level about DME or ostomy supplies. Please contact your suppliers make sure they are still carrying the right type of contract with your insurance. Some companies may try to pass on supplies that are substandard. Liberator did that to me over a year ago. I left them and went to Bryam and Edgepark then because they were nationally accepted providers with BCBS. Liberator and Liberty Medical have both been investigated for DME fraud and that is fraudulent practices they follow. Liberator are sales people, they do not offer WOC nurses or have real healthcare professionals help you. They just want to sale to you. They very well could have been kicked out of the Medicare and Medicaid and are trying to push off cheap stuff to you because they can no longer bill the insurance and are trying to keep you as a customer. They do not have your best interests at heart.

When I raised a big hissy fit with Liberator a year ago, suddenly the "case manager" I had and anyone at Liberator that I had talked to before was no longer with the company. Some had been there for over 16 years.

Also I lost access to Bryam and Edgepark is no longer a PPO provider for BCBS as of today except in the state of GA right now. That means that many patients who try to fill orders will be told they owe a co-pay, when they may have already met their co-pays. The problem is the PPO contracts were dropped just over the Thanksgiving holiday. So we need to raise our voices and make loud shouts everyone. This is all tied to a new regulation that was rolled out from the ACA bill on October 1st of this year that requires all DME suppliers to submit claims to the health insurance in the state that the DME is shipped too. That means that you may have items that use to be covered that are excluded or not covered anymore, but your plan still covers it.

Please see https://www.facebook.com/StopRationing?ref=hl

• By herbsgal70
• Reply 3587357
• December 1, 2012 at 7:09 am
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I have had no problems since I switched from Edgepark to NationsHealth. They are great folks there - there are two women and a man who are working an ostomy department and they keep track of what I have, and call me to see if I need any supplies. They usually ship the very next day. I have plenty on hand at all times - including Eakin rings. And they are located about 10 miles away in south Florida where I live.

Love and hugs from Marge