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NEDA TOOLKIT for Parents This information can be useful when talking to the insurance company about benefits, because insurance companies value evidence-based care. Also, ask how the treatment plan will be coordinated and managed, and who will coordinate the plan. In the case of bulimia nervosa, the patient often has close to normal body weight. However, serious, but less obvious medical conditions may also be present (e.g., osteoporosis, heart problems, kidney problems, brain abnormalities, diarrhea, reflux, nausea, malnutrition, heartburn). Tests that are used to diagnose medical symptoms and criteria for levels of care are listed in First steps to getting help in this toolkit. Ask for “letters of support” from the healthcare team. See Sample letter #6 in Sample letters to use with insurers in this toolkit. Using language that is used by insurance companies is helpful to have common ground. For example, it’s important to point out care that is considered by the doctors to be “medically necessary” for the patient’s recovery. Enlist support from family members and friends you can count on. Make a list of people you can count on for moral support throughout the course of treatment. Keep their names, phone numbers, and email addresses handy. For this list, identify people who can help the patient remain focused and provide helpful emotional support and encouragement while navigating the system to obtain care and while receiving care. Find out from each of them their availability (i.e., times, dates) for support and the kind of support they can offer. Also consider distributing that list among key people on the list so they know who is in your support network. Also, list key healthcare provider (facilities and healthcare providers) contact numbers on that list in the event of an emergency. Documentation like this is useful to provide to the insurer when discussing reimbursement, because it gives both you and the insurer a framework for discussion. With regard to the healthcare providers, ask them how to and who can obtain copies of the patient’s medical records, who will provide progress reports, how often they will provide them, and to whom. Ask the healthcare provider (whether a facility or individual therapist) for an itemization of the estimated costs of care, which costs will likely be paid by the insurer, and which costs will be paid by the patient. Also ask how billing for reimbursement will be handled—ask whether you have to submit claims or whether the healthcare service provider submits the claims on the patient’s behalf. Page | 73