Day 273

I'm angry. I talked to three different doctors today and none of them would agree to give me the Peginterferon injections in their offices. I've been a patient of all of these doctors. They have large clinics with well trained nurses and proper refrigeration to store the anti-viral drugs. I've received shots for everything from dog bites to poison ivy from these doctors, but for some reason none of them want to give me these particular shots. When I ask them why, they just say that it isn't done that way. Something is very fishy about all this. Why would a clinic that gives all manner of shots day in and day out, refuse to give this particular shot? Even the doctor who prescribed the treatment wants me to give myself the injections.

Maybe I'm wrong, but I suspect it has something to do with money. It always comes down to money in the end. Either the drug is dangerous and the doctors don't want to assume the liability if something goes wrong, or the manufacturer is charging them just as much for the drug as they are trying to charge me. I'm sure everybody would rather have me pick up the tab. Either way, it doesn't seem fair. I hate these Catch-22 situations. My health insurance company says that if I can get my doctors to give me the treatment in their offices, all I will have to pay is a normal co-pay. The doctors say that if I had better insurance, the prescription drug charges wouldn't be a big deal anyway. It is a big deal though. It's $1400 per month vs. $75 a month for treatment that could last up to a year.

Janet, as always, takes a more pragmatic view of the whole situation. I asked her what she thought and she said "What's the point of trying so hard to hang on to your money if your only alternative is being dead?" She makes a good point, but I still think I'm being ripped off.

I told the Germans that I'd like to accept the writing assignment in Alberta. Hopefully, we can get the travel itinerary worked out quickly, so I won't be fretting about money for the rest of the month. I never used to care about airfares and hotel bills when my clients routinely picked up the tab. Now that I am expected to build travel charges into my bid, all these additional costs can be confusing. I've occasionally lost money on jobs by not keeping a good handle on travel costs. To add to the complications, I will be spending US dollars and Canadian dollars for travel expenses, but I will get paid in Euros. I'm not even sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing. Hey, it's a job though. In this economy, just about any job is a good job.

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