April 21, 2022
Under the Coverage Episode Covers the Complexities of Managing a New Health Diagnosis
Managing a new health diagnosis involves a steep learning curve, as anyone who has been through this knows. In our latest episode, “Navigating the Perfect Storm,” we’ll discuss this topic and offer guidance for those managing a new health issue or chronic condition.
Jamie Farrell, Nova’s vice president of population health management and product management, joins “Under the Coverage” this week to share her lessons learned from being diagnosed with a chronic condition while pregnant and at the start of a new health plan year. When Farrell experienced an emergency health event early in her pregnancy, she had to quickly learn how to handle the financial aspects of a surgery and hospital stay with a high deductible plan, as well as how to advocate for complex care needs.
“Even knowing the business, it was it was very overwhelming, and not feeling well, and the only thing I could do each day was see the mail come in and the bills come in, but I knew I had to allow some time for the claims to be submitted to my medical plan in order to see which one satisfied the deductible,” she recalls. “This process is not easy. It takes time, it takes a lot of follow up.”
Her first recommendation is to not react too quickly, but to open lines of communication with your health plan and providers and lean on their support through the process of understanding medical bills.
Though Farrell was diagnosed with a lifelong condition, she initially had to manage it with alternative treatments due to her pregnancy. But as her illness continued, her doctors began to take a more integrated approach to coordinating her care. Looking back, she realizes she should have advocated for more specialized care sooner.
“Some advice that I would give is just really don't leave any stone unturned when it when it comes to your own health and your care,” she said.
To hear more about Farrell’s insights from navigating the complexities of a serious health condition, tune into this week’s episode.
How to Listen
New episodes are added weekly and are available on SoundCloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music and TuneIn. NEW: You can now also listen via digital assistants like Alexa, Google and Cortana. Just ask Alexa to, “play the Under the Coverage podcast on Apple Podcasts” (or wherever you get your podcasts).
Under the Coverage features people who spend their working days focused on health benefits and health care, sharing their insider tips on information they wish every health care consumer knew. Have an idea for a future episode or a question you’d like answered? Find Under the Coverage on Twitter @UndrTheCoverage or email podcast@novahealthcare.com.