Some of us with chronic back pain are looking to supplement our disability income with part time work or perhaps ease into a home business. Home business allows you to maintain a flexible schedule so you can rest when needed, attend physical therapy and exercise when it's necessary.

I would like to share an opportunity with you today. Please feel free to explore and see if it's right for you.

http://network.msmedianetwork.com/z/28/CD1070

Your Surgeries and Health Insurance

Having been absent from this blog awhile, I had not seen a comment here that deserves some attention. It had to do with health insurance and cosmetic procedures following surgery, in this person's case, a problem arising from casting. Many times the insurance company will try to tell you the scoliosis surgery itself is cosmetic. I love insurance. Heh heh. Michael Moore knows.

I, of course, am in no way able to guarantee your insurance company will pay for anything. I didn't find out until later (this was before I worked for an insurance company) that my doctor had to fight to get my son's surgery authorized, even though it was for medical reasons. The insurance company had wanted to kick it out as "cosmetic."

But since that time, I have worked for a large group health insurance call center for a couple of years, and I do have some suggestions. So here is my advice:

Cosmetic types of procedures, and those which have any possible way of being construed as such will be submitted to your health insurance company with certain codes that identify them. Chances are "autoadjudication" software will kick them out and deny them. To get such a procedure approved, you must send in, or your doctor send in, depending on your policy, complete medical records so that you can document that this problem arose from the surgery. Or, if it's the scoliosis surgery itself, that you require this surgery for medical reasons. Call your insurance company's pre-authorization department to find out exactly what they want.

Remember there's going to be a wait for preapproval on this type of surgery because although it may feel so to you, to the insurance company this is not a life and death situation and their volume of work is huge. If you wait a reasonable period of time, call. Make sure your records were scanned into their computer system. If you start hearing records weren't received, demand to speak to a manager or supervisor, get their name and FAX the records. If you still don't receive satisfaction, contact the Insurance Commissioner. This is the best advice I have.

New Inspiration to Get Back to Blog
Scoliosis Surgery for Cerebral Palsy Patients

Yesterday at the discussion forum myLot, I was inspired to return to maintain this blog. As you can see, I pretty much -- well I did abandon this blog for other pursuits last summer. However, yesterday a person was sent to me for scoliosis information and I realized how much I have yet to learn and share. My new friend's son is thirteen and has cerebral palsy. An orthopedist has recommended scoliosis surgery with rod insertion for the boy.

I have not had any contact with anyone in these specific circumstances, and this person has been quoted widely differing spinal curve measurements for their son. I am going to research further on the particular problems and challenges in scoliosis surgery for cerebral palsy patients and post here about this very important topic. I am sure where there are mobility problems to begin with, the rods and fusion recovery could be more difficult.

I hope that if you have experiences or knowledge in this specific area, you will leave feedback in here. I can send it to my friend as well as post it here. Thank you all so much for viewing my blog once again!

Spinal Fusion?

This morning I've been surfing sites on the spine and fusion, and came across an alternative offered for spinal fusion! My own spine had to be fused from the thoracic area down, and this creates inflexibility and discomfort. My daughter worked with a woman whose fusion was failing repeatedly after her scoliosis surgery, and she was in misery. She was having to undergo follow up surgery to try to correct it. I do not know if it ever did prove successful.

The procedure written of on the site I am looking at is arthroscopic laser surgery. It's minimally invasive and the patient walks out the same day. It appears they treat degenerative disc disease (one of the conditions I had), bulging or herniated discs. I'm interested whether any of you have had this procedure or know someone who has? If so, please share your experience here and I'd like to print your story for others.

You can read more about this procedure here:

http://www.laserspineinstitute.com/spinal_orthopedic_procedures/spinal_fusion/