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.
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