Well as many of you know, Gannon my sweet little grandson had surgery today. He had a testicle that didn’t descend. That’s a fairly routine surgery but in Kramer style it all turned into a little more.
They found two hernias and repaired them while they were there..and ended up doing something else too (Kalissa will explain it all in a blog post on her blog The Pink Shoelaces soon)
Well Gannon woke from anesthesia with a bit of a problem. His breathing wasn’t the best. He was crying a lot and the doctor ended up deciding to admit him.
This is related to pain management more than anything so once that gets a little better under control we’ll see him back home soon.
BUT…on a side note, Craig is in Iowa City with Kalissa and Gannon. He has to get home tonight. He has a chemical applicators test that he has been studying for that he has to get taken. It’s only offered a couple times a year and tomorrow is the day. So some scrambling will be done between the family to get Craig home. Iowa City is about 2 1/2 hours from here. Buck lives closer and he’s off of work because of his hand so he might run to Iowa City and get Craig then Karl or I will run and get Craig from Buck. It’s a whole thing. If Gannon’s issue was serious, Craig wouldn’t come home but it’s manageable so we’ll do what we can to get him home.
There’s news on my cancer hunt too…Here it is.My surgeon called me today. You might remember that my doctor called me yesterday and said it was a no-go on the CT scan guided needle biopsy. Well the surgeon sent my info to a different interventional radiologist and he feels comfortable doing the biopsy.
UGH. This is hard to be pulled one way and then another.
So the plan has slightly changed. I will get the PET and CT scan mid-March-ish. If they are clear, then we’ll try to do the CT scan guided needle biopsy in Lacrosse.
It’s not a lot of change…but some. After I wrote my post on Monday night a blog reader left a comment….Anne wrote:
“You don’t have to be” sent” to the Mayo Clinic. You can be seen there anytime you want to be.”
Well…in my case that is not true. Because I am self employed and because I no longer have a spouse whose job provides my insurance, I have Obamacare or Marketplace for my insurance. Obamacare doesn’t allow me to “just go to the Mayo Clinic”…for others with insurance provided by their workplace or if they independently purchase insurance, that is likely true. I didn’t have any problem on my previous insurance going to Mayo.
I was told I couldn’t go to Mayo Clinic when I got my Obamacare. I discussed this with my doctor. She said that she will likely have to do a lot of extra paperwork and put in a few calls to my insurance, and being I’ve been seen at Mayo Clinic before, she’ll likely be able to get my Obamacare insurance to pay for being seen at Mayo.
Insurance isn’t the same across the board….I’m very thankful for the insurance I do have and feel blessed to have it. If I didn’t have Obamacare and a way to pay for insurance more reasonably priced, I am able to keep my childcare job. Without it, I’d have had to give up childcare. I would have been so sad.
I know Obamacare is controversial. I know many are against it…but there are many cases that people are working…people are providing a service and people need the option for healthcare. I am one such person. Can you imagine with my health history from my cancer how hard it would be for me to get health insurance?
Enough of that…I have family to wrangle. I am a matriarch of a family full of needs and I have to help figure out how we’re getting Craig home and Georgie home to her dad. There seriously is never a dull moment here.
As always…thanks for the prayers you have all sent on our behalf. #kramerstrong
Prayers for you and Gannon. I hope you get approved to go to Mayo. I always thought it was a matter of Mayo accepting the payment terms of your insurance. My husband and I have great insurance but we love Obamacare for our adult son. He would be without insurance if it didn’t exist. He’s had testicular cancer twice now and is taking an orphan drug for another condition that could be up to $10,000 a month without insurance. His insurance approved it and our copay would be $2500 a month until we reached the out of pocket maximum for the year. The drug company picks up $15k a year of costs so we haven’t had to pay for it. Even though my son got his insurance from the marketplace we were fortunate to get a great plan for him. And even though our excellent cancer center is out of network they have approved him being seen there. It has been a huge blessing for us and we can’t imagine what we’d do without it.
This may have been corrected, I certainly hope so, but I think most people who are against “Obama” care do not realize that the definition of “preexisting condition” is so broad the insurance companies can refuse or highly increase the premium for almost everyone. Even slightly overweight can disqualify a person for insurance. No matter what one’s politics, simple human compassion dictates that Affordable Care Act insurance should be expanded, not deleted. Enlightened self-interest dictates that we support it; we all have loved ones who sorely need it.
Enough of the soap box. Take care, keep soldiering on in the Kramer Army.
Recently my 25 y.o. niece was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer. Because of Obamacare, she is able to be covered under my sister’s workplace insurance. When she turns 26, she will be able to get coverage through the Marketplace and not be declined because of a preexisting condition. Thank goodness for Obamacare!!
People with good insurance have no idea. My son does not have insurance through his job, so has obamacare insurance so that he doesn’t get penalized at tax time and because he has crohn’s disease and frequent kidney stones that are too large to pass. He has to pay $350 dollars a month for insurance that pays 1/2 of his covered expenses after he pays the first $6,000. Now I ask you, what good is that??? Ridiculous!! Hope things go well with the search! I’m sure your upbeat attitude helps immensely!! Thinking of you!!
Lots of thoughts, lots of things I could say on this but I think I’ll keep it brief. Karen, I don’t know anyone that thinks they have ‘good’ insurance these days. I wish I had the insurance your son has. I am self-employed, I make too much for Obamacare, and I pay through the nose for my own personal insurance. My insurance does NOT allow me to go anywhere I want. In fact, I am only covered in the state I live in and one adjoining state. In the rest of the world, including the other 48 US states I am covered for emergency care only. I do not get to pick my doctor, I only get to choose from the list that the insurance company provides. My annual deductible is over $5,000 and I pay 35% after I reach that deductible. I had an issue that required attention while visiting my grandchildren in one of the 48 states and paid 100% and that payment is not considered part of my deductible. And this is a nationwide well-known health insurance company. There are good things about Obamacare, and there are some things that are absolutely ridiculous. I’ll get off my soapbox now.
Jo, continuing to lift your family up in prayer. I love how you support each other.
The affordable care act is like a necessary evil and it all depends where you live. I live in TN and some of the plans offered in MN are not offered here because we did not the federal money for the lower cost plans in the early years. I buy my insurance on the affordable care act and I’m blessed to have it and I do like my plan even with my health issues. I do hope that you get all your family back where they need to be Jo and hang in there, Kramer strong!
I am so grateful to have retired from the military and have Tricare and Medicare. My son and wife will be looking for insurance soon and I dread what they will have to go through. https://mychristiancare.org/medi-share/what-is-medishare/
Are you familiar with medishare for Christians? With your situation, I wouldn’t suggest changing anything now but it might be something to look into. I have just heard it advertised on the radio.
It is good to hear about Gannon, I keep wondering how he is doing. Both you and him are in my prayers. Keep us informed. Ear scratches for sweet Rosie.