TRT & Insurance: Part 2

**Low Testosterone** · 10-16-2014, 09:02 AM

Some of you may remember the thread several months back where I alluded to insurance companies no longer covering TRT for most men. We are without question inching a little closer. Here is a snippet from a recent article, Oct. 15th, 2014.

"If the FDA puts these restrictions into place, the new labeling would possibly put a damper on the rapidly-growing testosterone industry, according to the NY Times article. Far fewer men may be prescribed the drug, marketing would be restricted to indicated uses of the drug, and insurance companies would likely limit their coverage of testosterone, according to the NY Times article."

Full article: Insurance News Net : Error Occurred

**2Sox** · 10-16-2014, 09:12 AM

The link is not to the NY Times - but it IS to an insurance industry publication. Not surprised. Have the NYT link?

**Chauffeur** · 10-16-2014, 09:30 AM

Sounds like your company might be getting some more business pretty soon.

Shitty situation for people on a tight budget though.

**PistolPete33** · 10-16-2014, 09:47 AM

I don't go thru my insurance for my meds. I thought about trying to switch to my Primary and seeing if he would prescribe what I'm currently getting. Although, I like having a clinic that better understands bloodwork etc and it's an easy process. If it's not broken then don't fix it.

**Low Testosterone** · 10-16-2014, 09:53 AM

Originally Posted by 2Sox

The link is not to the NY Times - but it IS to an insurance industry publication. Not surprised. Have the NYT link?

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/18/he...-fda.html?_r=0

**MBOS** · 10-16-2014, 02:57 PM

You betcha, who knows better than our GOVERNMENT how to care for our health right? Can't run a post office, bring Ebola into our Country? Just who I want handling my health. ?

**2Sox** · 10-16-2014, 03:01 PM

Originally Posted by MBOS

You betcha, who knows better than our GOVERNMENT how to care for our health right? Can't run a post office, bring Ebola into our Country? Just who I want handling my health. ?

Oh, please. Take this comment to another thread.

**Metalject** · 10-16-2014, 03:30 PM

Originally Posted by 2Sox

Oh, please. Take this comment to another thread.

I have to agree with MBOS's comment a bit...the entire reason this issue exist, or any hormone related issue, is because of our government.

**2Sox** · 10-16-2014, 03:32 PM

Fine. I still (respectfully) suggest this be taken to another thread. You remember what happened last time, right?

**nuttyproffsser** · 10-16-2014, 03:45 PM

Originally Posted by Low Testosterone

Some of you may remember the thread several months back where I alluded to insurance companies no longer covering TRT for most men. We are without question inching a little closer. Here is a snippet from a recent article, Oct. 15th, 2014.

"If the FDA puts these restrictions into place, the new labeling would possibly put a damper on the rapidly-growing testosterone industry, according to the NY Times article. Far fewer men may be prescribed the drug, marketing would be restricted to indicated uses of the drug, and insurance companies would likely limit their coverage of testosterone, according to the NY Times article."

Full article: Insurance News Net : Error Occurred

it depends on what insurance u carry....some insurances cover injectables but not jells and some cover both and other cover neither.

**Metalject** · 10-16-2014, 04:08 PM

Originally Posted by 2Sox

Fine. I still (respectfully) suggest this be taken to another thread. You remember what happened last time, right?

I don't remember...what are you referring to?

**Metalject** · 10-16-2014, 04:10 PM

Originally Posted by nuttyproffsser

it depends on what insurance u carry....some insurances cover injectables but not jells and some cover both and other cover neither.

I think it implies that more insurance policies could likely not cover TRT in the future (the future being anyone's guess in terms of when)...I could be wrong but that's what I took from it.

**2Sox** · 10-16-2014, 05:18 PM

Originally Posted by Metalject

I don't remember...what are you referring to?

Part 1

**Beethoven** · 10-16-2014, 05:25 PM

The problem is that it's not enough that most insurance doesn't cover TRT, rather the all knowing FDA (government) wants to tighten your access to it even without insurance. Yet we have no problem letting in people from Ebola stricken countries. You practically can't smoke even in your own home but marijuana will be accessible just about everywhere. (Not necessarily a bad thing) lol, but you get the point. Ironically I have new insurance and according to the med list, test is covered for twenty bucks.

**Beethoven** · 10-16-2014, 05:26 PM

Originally Posted by 2Sox

Part 1

Sox, some of that was pretty stimulating.

**Metalject** · 10-16-2014, 08:50 PM

Originally Posted by Beethoven

Sox, some of that was pretty stimulating.

I agree, I thought it was a good thread. I'm sure there could have been some heated comments here and there...but anything that's even remotely government related will always produce heated comments.

Back on the topic of insurance...I've never had insurance pay for my TRT. My past policy might have, but it didn't matter...I never met my deductible. Currently looking for new insurance and I do expect my deductible to be high, which is fine. Would just like a sane monthly fee, and apparently that's gotten hard to find...at least so far it has.

**MBOS** · 10-16-2014, 09:26 PM

Apologies 2Sox, not my intent to offend by stating my feelings. I appreciate all I have learned here and you have been very helpful.

Regards,

**lovbyts** · 10-17-2014, 05:50 AM

Originally Posted by Beethoven

The problem is that it's not enough that most insurance doesn't cover TRT, rather the all knowing FDA (government) wants to tighten your access to it even without insurance. Yet we have no problem letting in people from Ebola stricken countries. You practically can't smoke even in your own home but marijuana will be accessible just about everywhere. (Not necessarily a bad thing) lol, but you get the point. Ironically I have new insurance and according to the med list, test is covered for twenty bucks.

You guys worry to much. So what if they take TRT/HRT away from men, what's the worse that can happen. I mean if you start to feel depressed I have no doubt they will be quick to approve a prescription for one of the many antidepressants. If you start to get more aches and pains it's easy enough to get a RX for opiates no questions asked.

**MBOS** · 10-17-2014, 06:44 AM

?. Love the comedy, or is it?

**lovbyts** · 10-17-2014, 07:30 AM

Originally Posted by MBOS

?. Love the comedy, or is it?

Satire. Yes our government/FDA is a joke but not funny.

**Beethoven** · 10-17-2014, 07:37 AM

Originally Posted by lovbyts

Satire. Yes our government/FDA is a joke but not funny.

Yes. I call it the pussification of our society. Manliness is not looked at in a good way these days. We're supposed to be in touch with our feminine side.

Well if the FDA pushes tighter restrictions, we'll just have to go underground.

**APIs** · 10-17-2014, 08:48 AM

Originally Posted by Beethoven

Well if the FDA pushes tighter restrictions, we'll just have to go underground.

I would hope that you're wrong here, but it wouldnt surprise me. I would like to think that there's too much money in TRT now for the FDA to try and pull it back in...

**APIs** · 10-17-2014, 08:54 AM

Originally Posted by Metalject

Currently looking for new insurance and I do expect my deductible to be high, which is fine. Would just like a sane monthly fee, and apparently that's gotten hard to find...at least so far it has.

Right with you. Good luck. Obamacare just canceled our business policy due to new laws. Now have to obtain a personal policy. Rates jump from $550/month to $900/month for the same coverage. Welcome to the real world...

**Low Testosterone** · 10-17-2014, 08:56 AM

Originally Posted by Metalject

I think it implies that more insurance policies could likely not cover TRT in the future (the future being anyone's guess in terms of when)...I could be wrong but that's what I took from it.

That is what it implies. But you are correct, the timing is anyones guess, but at the moment it's all but guaranteed unless there are some major changes to the healthcare system (unlikely) and educated men are put on these FDA boards (again, unlikely).

These recent statements by the FDA panel are reminiscent of an statement that existed in U.S. by physicians for decades in that there is no proof that anabolic steroids enhance athletic performance. This was accepted by most physicians in the U.S. as factual truth for a very long time. Even the Physicians Desk Reference makes this claim. And while most physicians have finally let this idea go, the new one is it does nothing for anti-aging.

**Beethoven** · 10-17-2014, 05:46 PM

Originally Posted by Low Testosterone

That is what it implies. But you are correct, the timing is anyones guess, but at the moment it's all but guaranteed unless there are some major changes to the healthcare system (unlikely) and educated men are put on these FDA boards (again, unlikely).

These recent statements by the FDA panel are reminiscent of an statement that existed in U.S. by physicians for decades in that there is no proof that anabolic steroids enhance athletic performance. This was accepted by most physicians in the U.S. as factual truth for a very long time. Even the Physicians Desk Reference makes this claim. And while most physicians have finally let this idea go, the new one is it does nothing for anti-aging.

Low T I remember doing my first cycle back in the day. My gear believe it or not came right off the drug store shelf. I remember reading the insert for the gear and remember seeing that statement. I thought to myself how ridiculous that statement was when most if not all the big body builders I knew ALL had accomplished this with that same gear.

**ElSupremo** · 11-01-2014, 11:42 PM

Originally Posted by lovbyts

You guys worry to much. So what if they take TRT/HRT away from men, what's the worse that can happen. I mean if you start to feel depressed I have no doubt they will be quick to approve a prescription for one of the many antidepressants. If you start to get more aches and pains it's easy enough to get a RX for opiates no questions asked.

I get depressed just realizing how correct this is.

Originally Posted by APIs

Right with you. Good luck. Obamacare just canceled our business policy due to new laws. Now have to obtain a personal policy. Rates jump from $550/month to $900/month for the same coverage. Welcome to the real world...

Similar situation here. My policy through work was 'too good', so they did away with it. Now I have a higher deductible, etc. It's sad when the government deems your policy too good, and wants to add a tax of 40% onto your premiums.

**Beethoven** · 11-02-2014, 09:15 AM

Originally Posted by ElSupremo

I get depressed just realizing how correct this is.

Similar situation here. My policy through work was 'too good', so they did away with it. Now I have a higher deductible, etc. It's sad when the government deems your policy too good, and wants to add a tax of 40% onto your premiums.

Just remember, it's not FAIR that you have money to pay for that "Cadillac" plan and the others don't.

**Beethoven** · 11-02-2014, 09:19 AM

I seem to recall there was another place that used to believe that it wasn't fair that all these "capitalists" were able to have all these things and the poor didn't. Well they got their way and now everyone is equal. That place, Cuba. Misery is now spread equally.

**kewe** · 11-03-2014, 11:50 AM

Originally Posted by MBOS

You betcha, who knows better than our GOVERNMENT how to care for our health right? Can't run a post office, bring Ebola into our Country? Just who I want handling my health. ?

You are so ignorant... post office issue have nothing to do with the service but with the GOP paid senators requiring changes to the pension..

Please stop watching Fox news and take your political comments up your @#@%

**buttslinger** · 11-03-2014, 03:23 PM

Any time you set up any system it will take about 5 seconds before people start gaming the system to their own benefit.
Doctors provide health care, not steroids , steroids are illegal. Ask Lance Armstrong.
Where there is a will, there is a way.
Apply for a license to buy and sell pharmaceuticals. Get your 70 year old neighbor to go to the urologists and ask about them thar testosterone creams they advertise on TV. Make friends with a kid earning his Chemistry degree.
Your plan is only good if you can pull it off.
I'm not trying to be a troll, a goal can't be met if it's not realistic. I had to go to Baltimore and get a Johns Hopkins letterhead to apply for my HGH, and even then with all the tests backing me up, they still had to fight tooth and nail to get it approved because it is so expensive and it sets a precedent. If you want to move over to the HAVE column from the HAVE NOT column, nobody is going to hand it to you.

**Metalject** · 11-03-2014, 05:40 PM

Originally Posted by kewe

You are so ignorant... post office issue have nothing to do with the service but with the GOP paid senators requiring changes to the pension..

Please stop watching Fox news and take your political comments up your @#@%

So since the post office has been open, 200+ years, the GOP is the reason it's finished in the red every single year?
The fact that they lose packages at a greater rate than FedEX, also the GOP?
How about their predominantly rude staff when you walk into the post office? Not always but most are like DMV workers.
And no, I'm not a republican. I do laugh at the Fox news comments some people make. Fox, IMO, is the only news org that doesn't lean hard left, therefore, in left leaning peoples minds it must lean hard right. Could it be that they simply don't lean left?

Anyway, wasted post I know but anti-Fox News people are generally ideological zealots and the post office comments are always too good to pass up. The USPS is one of the top 5 failures in U.S. history.

**kelkel** · 11-03-2014, 06:13 PM

Originally Posted by kewe

You are so ignorant... post office issue have nothing to do with the service but with the GOP paid senators requiring changes to the pension..

Please stop watching Fox news and take your political comments up your @#@%

Be nice please.

**Beethoven** · 11-04-2014, 10:37 AM

Originally Posted by Metalject

So since the post office has been open, 200+ years, the GOP is the reason it's finished in the red every single year?
The fact that they lose packages at a greater rate than FedEX, also the GOP?
How about their predominantly rude staff when you walk into the post office? Not always but most are like DMV workers.
And no, I'm not a republican. I do laugh at the Fox news comments some people make. Fox, IMO, is the only news org that doesn't lean hard left, therefore, in left leaning peoples minds it must lean hard right. Could it be that they simply don't lean left?

Anyway, wasted post I know but anti-Fox News people are generally ideological zealots and the post office comments are always too good to pass up. The USPS is one of the top 5 failures in U.S. history.

Metal, people just don't understand economics. He knows the big reason why but can't see it. The postal salaries and benefits are very high, higher than the private sector, retirement plan in particular. What does that mean? Higher overhead. The higher the overhead, the higher your prices must be. You want to try and compete by having lower pricing than the private sector with higher overhead? Boom you got it. The only reason it hasn't gone out of business is the government picking up the difference. Everyone should think about that every time I hear the minimum wage argument come up. The same ones wanting the minimum wage increase will be the first ones screaming when your favorite Wal Mart items become more expensive.

**buttslinger** · 11-06-2014, 11:29 AM

If the Postal Service was allowed to own it's own planes, they could blow UPS and Fed-Ex off the map, their retirement plans are great because you can only get one after working there 30 years. When Reagan fired all the Air Traffic Controllers, the Postal Union"s power to negotiate was pretty much over. This is like when Military families could get groceries at the PX for half the price of the Safeways and Giants. Those days are over, and because of email, the post office is becoming antiquated. It is not practical like it used to be. Adjust or Rust.

Which brings us to Health Insurance. IMO, your HMO is like a Vegas Slot Machine. They can fix it to pay off at 90% or 95%...whatever, in competition with the competition. If they can change the odds just one or two percent, that translates to billions of dollars. In my second personal uneducated opinion, Health Insurance shouldn't pay for HGH, test, massages, hookers, or trips to the Health Spa. I think some countries in Europe still give their elderly two free weeks at a health spa every year. In the USA we open our doors to the craftiest sneakiest Wall Street wheeler dealers, bring that cash over here.

I get my car and house insurance through AMICA, they are a COMMUNIST Insurance Company owned by it's members. As long as there isn't a massive hurricane through Florida or ice storm through New England, I get back 20 or 25 percent rebate at the end of the year. And they don't skimp when it comes to fixing my car or replacing my kitchen floor.
My Health Insurance is Blue Cross, I've had it forever. I don't think there is any insurance company that wants to pay for a weight lifter's steroids , no matter how healthy or fit you are, if some truck load of illegal immigrants hit's your car on the way home from the gym, the Hospital is going to charge you $10,000 a day just to survive, I don't even want to try and wrap my head around the game the Doctors, Pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies got going. I had a year long fight with the Hospital over a bill once, they even admitted me I was in the right, but they ended up ruining my credit for seven years. Which is probably why I'm so long winded on this.
Open Season is here, maybe guys coming up can compare notes on the best Insurance plans for Individuals invested in Health and Fitness. One thing everybody will agree on, the costs are ridiculous.

**Beethoven** · 11-06-2014, 08:27 PM

If it wasn't for its overhead maybe they could. The fact is without government subsidies it would be out of business. Why shouldn't the insurance companies cover TRT? Isn't it a legitimate medical condition? Not everyone is cycling off TRT. For me it is enough to cover BW. Don't make TRT out to be something it isn't. TRT isn't supplying "lifters steroids ". We seem not to have insurance and even government providing everything from female contraceptives to pregnancy terminations and that's ok, but not TRT? We're ready to legalize marijuana and probably cover that in certain therapeutic situations. Again, why not TRT? Now me personally, my test has never yet been covered by insurance so what is the point?

**Chicagotarsier** · 11-06-2014, 08:55 PM

Oh the wonders of first world countries....lol

Own your health. Buy a degassing/filter setup, buy your powders, buy your solvents, use the information posted here, don't sell stuff to friends, don't run your mouth to people IRL. Be what you want to be.

The shameful part of all of this is they PUNISH you if you do not buy insurance. Meanwhile 40M illegal Mexicans use the system for free. Good luck!

I personally feel the problem is depending on government to cure your ills. As many know I had a stroke due to low test and complications end of last year. I was so worried on the cost here not due to money...I have plenty...but due to it just HAD to be 500x more expensive than the USA. Reality is 3 weeks in hospital and treatment by 8 doctors with meds at the top hospital here (it is on par or better than any USA hospital I have been to minus 1) cost me <6000 USD. I laughed my behind off. Co pay would have been more than that for me in the USA. SCAM SCAM is the insurance companies all day long on my brothers in the USA...Off Soap Box.

But yeah....just buy your stuff and be discrete. I invested a little over 2500 USD and ..well...overkill lol. I will not need powder ever again for all my life unless something new pops up. If you went bare bones and took the time to do the effort via syringe filters 1000 USD would be more test/AntiE/PCT goods than your whole family could ever use in 3 lifetimes...stuff is darn cheap. Own your health. Be the ball.

**Chicagotarsier** · 11-06-2014, 08:57 PM

Originally Posted by Beethoven

If it wasn't for its overhead maybe they could. The fact is without government subsidies it would be out of business. Why shouldn't the insurance companies cover TRT? Isn't it a legitimate medical condition? Not everyone is cycling off TRT. For me it is enough to cover BW. Don't make TRT out to be something it isn't. TRT isn't supplying "lifters steroids". We seem not to have insurance and even government providing everything from female contraceptives to pregnancy terminations and that's ok, but not TRT? We're ready to legalize marijuana and probably cover that in certain therapeutic situations. Again, why not TRT? Now me personally, my test has never yet been covered by insurance so what is the point?

If it wasn't for the 100-400M illegals in the USA using the system for free via the emergency room. Americans need to grow some testicales (funny for a primary gonadal guy to say that) and get the gov to kick the illegals out. Premiums would drop by 50% overnight

**Beethoven** · 11-06-2014, 09:02 PM

Here's a story for you Chicago, I personally know someone who went and got an Obamacare policy for $90 a month. He needed surgery, and got it. He is supposed to pay a hefty part of the bill but guess what, he has no intention. Guess who will pay that balance? The rest of us will. Meanwhile I pay well over $700 a month. Yeah.

**Chicagotarsier** · 11-07-2014, 04:40 AM

Originally Posted by Beethoven

Here's a story for you Chicago, I personally know someone who went and got an Obamacare policy for $90 a month. He needed surgery, and got it. He is supposed to pay a hefty part of the bill but guess what, he has no intention. Guess who will pay that balance? The rest of us will. Meanwhile I pay well over $700 a month. Yeah.

I agree with you. I live in a Communist country and am free as a bird...meanwhile in the USA....

Patriots need to unite and solve this crap. The price of freedom is high. I am sure there are enough people willing to pay the price to remove the heatherns in power. Until they do I will keep the 21 yr old hotties at University of Peking busy.....just so we got that much covered lol.

**Beethoven** · 11-07-2014, 06:53 AM

F

Originally Posted by Chicagotarsier

I agree with you. I live in a Communist country and am free as a bird...meanwhile in the USA....

Patriots need to unite and solve this crap. The price of freedom is high. I am sure there are enough people willing to pay the price to remove the heatherns in power. Until they do I will keep the 21 yr old hotties at University of Peking busy.....just so we got that much covered lol.

Lol.