Medicaid Rip~Offs

**chip anderson** · 08-07-2001, 07:48 PM

Doesn't anyone care that on medicaid, and the new adult medicaid Rx's are written and filled by the ton that no one would write or fill if the patient payed thier own bill. No one gets suspicious when very high percentages of the Rx's are +.50 -.25 and the like.

This is a terrible rip~off of the taxpayrers (there is no federal, state or local money, just us taxpayers). And I'm one those opticians that profits and fills some of these Rx's (us peon opticians can't tell anyone we think the doctor is a thief, can we?
After all we ain't qualified to evaluate that po' person's visual needs!

Chip

**harry888** · 08-07-2001, 07:51 PM

Here in Massachusetts a central lab makes the medicaid glasses. Anything below a +/- 0.75 is rejected.

**NC-OD** · 08-07-2001, 08:03 PM

Here in North Carolina, our Medicaid carrier's lab (i.e. State Prison workers) will not/can not fill an RX of less than +/- 0.75D

**Caroline** · 08-08-2001, 07:09 AM

In Connecticut regular medicaid patients (not managed care) get one exam per year as well as one pair of glasses. Unfortunatly, alot of them have figured out that if they break them or lose them, the state will pay for a new pair!! Unlimitted pairs!!:o We have the same patients coming in every couple of months, "Oh, I lost my glasses again!" :angry: But my revenge is to tell them it will take a few weeks for the glasses to come in. It's small, but it helps me get through the day.

C

**Texas Ranger** · 08-08-2001, 08:04 AM

I don't know of any shop in my market that serves medicaid, and I understand that if you did, the state only has a budget to pay staff salaries, with no money left over to pay for services. Pretty sad, an untapped market?

**stephanie** · 08-08-2001, 09:06 PM

People rip off Medicaid??? That is so unheard of!!! (please note extreme sarcasm) Yea I have witnessed this sickening display of ignorance time and time again. It made me crazy....not that I was far from it to begin with(that is another story). It really p***** you off when you know you are helping to pay for these products. Why give people something they don't need?? And than there are those who desperately need them but can't afford them...that infuriates me!!!
Steph

**chip anderson** · 08-09-2001, 08:41 PM

Now that some of you have stated how your state protects it from such abuse, I would like to hear more from more of you.

The only thing protecting the state and taxpayers here is the idiots administering the programs who reject ligitimite claims ad nausium to the point were many decide to forget thier claims or stop fooling with the program. I recently had a friend in who said that he once served on an HMO board and the ony profit they had was ligitamite from claims that they had mangaged to avoid paying.

There is something wrong with a lot of this world and I hope I never join that part.

Chip