Diabetes putting a strain on your piggy bank?

Anna's Blog
By: FatCatAnna

The Roller Coaster Ride of Diabetes! Whoo! Whoo!

I am a Type 1 diabetic diagnosed back in the early 60's as a child. I am living in Montreal, Canada and enjoy scribbling about diabetes from time to time. I’ve had my ups / downs just like any person would experience with going through life - diabetic or not. My motto in life? Diabetes does not control me – I control it!!

You can find more posts/discussions at my Facebook page called "The Roller Coaster Ride of Diabetes" and also on Twitter under the name of FatCatAnna. Feel free to follow me at both places or send me a private message!

<< July 2012 >>

	Blog Entries
The joys of having Bowie my CGMS – Chapter 1 - Sep 02 Okay, for those of you who have never read my #dblogs before, I give names to all my little gizmos that I use for controlling my diabetes. What we have today, ... more
In a slump and scared - Jul 21 It’s rare for me to compose a #dblog that is not all “chirpy chirpy” … I think the last time I did one that was kind of down was at Diabetes1.org ... more
Surviving the Holocaust with Type 1 diabetes - Mar 27 " To the best of my knowledge, I am the only diabetic who survived years of imprisonment in German concentration camps. This is my story " The above words ... more
Sugar and Your Health - Mar 06 The other day I emptied out a 4 kg (about 10 lbs) of white sugar that I had dated a year ago when I opened it. I use white sugar purely for cooking (I make my own ... more
Eating from the ground - Yuca Fries - Feb 20 I am home now from a working holiday, in the Bahamas and Miami. Despite the weather being abit cooler then normal (they only get 2 weeks of winter - we were there in ... more

Posted: Jul 17, 2012 12:10	0 Comments.
Diabetes putting a strain on your piggy bank?

Last year I'd written about going to the big box store of Costco in order to obtain my "legal drugs" that I use to control my diabetes at a less expensive rate then what I pay at my local pharmacy here in the province of Quebec. I mean, when you save almost $10 CDN per bottle of insulin - that is a big savings - especially when you are not flush with monies (who is these days?). I know that many Americans do not really know what they pay for their prescriptions - due to the insurance companies doing all the leg work (or that's my understanding from my American friends). Here in Canada - and other countries that don't have the same health set up as Americans - we either have private health care plans from our workplace - government assisted (it varies from province to province here in Canada) - or you pay out of pocket. For myself, I luckily have a package through my workplace - but in about 5 years time - that's no longer going to be my option when I retire.

Yesterday, I went to see my "legal drug dealer" aka the pharmacy at Costco (BTW - the pharmacy now knows that my pet name for my endo/GP who hand out my prescriptions are called "pimps" - they think it's quite funny - they like being called the "legal dealer"). I was picking up some ketone strips - due to having strips that were past due their date by a few years (that's how often I have to test for ketones in my urine). Lately, with my hormones going wacko with menopause - keeping a tight control of my blood sugars has been a challenge - but at least I'm doing my best - and know what needs to be done to recitfy the situation (I must be patient <lol>). Speaking with the pharmacist I discovered that the laws here in Canada - make the pharmacy section in Costco open to ALL people - not just Costco members (though she said that of course - Costco would like you to get the membership). I was astounded to learn this - but then it should have dawned on me that the same thing applies to the eyeware section (I always get my specs from there) at Costo - you do not have to be a member as well.

The only stipulation when it comes to payment - you either use an AMEX or debit card, or cash. They actually were surprised that I didn't pay for my prescription with the insurance issued card from work - but as I keep on telling them - if I can earn 2% cash back by using my personal credit card - then I might as well make the most of being a sicko!!! It'll help go towards paying for some exotic holiday - or whatever tickles my fancy.

So, if you live close by to a Costco, and need a prescription filled at a reasonable price (they will give out the price of the item you want over the phone - handy if you have limited access to a set of wheels) - then I say GO FOR IT! It's as easy as saying to the head counter at the entry way of the Costco store - "I'm here to go to the pharmacy!".

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It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year ... NOT! | My shocking endo appointment | Swine influenza - A (H1N1) virus | Questioned by my pharmacist on my insulin regime | How this D-gal handles her A1C results | Life is Good - Hockey - Nutella - Insulin! | Ontario doctors urge fast-food chains, schools to list calories | The lows and the highs of diabetes | The Roller Coaster Ride of Menopause for a Diabetic Gal | The NovoPen Echo must be made of gold

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