Check the Pulse in Illinois!
Laurie Kelley
April 13, 2015
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| L to R: Zoraida, Michelle, Laurie, Kelly, Elizabeth |
Chicago, Illinois was the location of
our first Pulse on the Road in 2015. The
Bleeding Disorders Alliance Illinois was our gracious host for this
day-long event, attended by 70 families.
our first Pulse on the Road in 2015. The
Bleeding Disorders Alliance Illinois was our gracious host for this
day-long event, attended by 70 families.
 |
| Laurie with Audrey Taylor, 2002 |
It was a joyous day to be alive and together
after two tragedies had just struck: Illinois suffered about 14 tornadoes the
day before, which leveled the town of Fairdale, causing two deaths. The
community also lost the beloved Audrey Taylor, a sassy and compassionate nurse
at Rush University Hospital, one of the main hemophilia treatment centers.
Audrey was a great colleague who I always loved seeing and her death at age 51
is just devastating for all.
after two tragedies had just struck: Illinois suffered about 14 tornadoes the
day before, which leveled the town of Fairdale, causing two deaths. The
community also lost the beloved Audrey Taylor, a sassy and compassionate nurse
at Rush University Hospital, one of the main hemophilia treatment centers.
Audrey was a great colleague who I always loved seeing and her death at age 51
is just devastating for all.
Our guest speakers included: thefabulous Michelle Rice, vice president, Public Policy and Stakeholder
Relations, National Hemophilia Foundation; Kelly
Gonzalez, a Nevada woman with von Willebrand disease, teacher, and now
advocate; Elizabeth Stoltz, senior manager, Market Access, Baxter Healthcare; and Laurie Kelley, yours truly!
 |
| Mona and Bob of BDAI, with Laurie Kelley |
Executive director Bob Robinson welcome
everyone and introduced POTR, and me. I presented “Where We Were, Where We Are
and How We Got Here” to explain why the Affordable Care Act (ACA) come into
being, and how hemophilia fits in. With a few stats, I showed that skyrocketing
medical costs, particularly in specialty drugs (which factor is), was straining
state budgets; it was only a matter of time before private insurers caught on.
Looking to cut costs, insurers turned to increasing prior authorizations,
formularies, decreasing choice of factor provider, and more. As payers scramble
to cut costs and states try to cut their bloated budgets, the bleeding
disorders community is facing more and more restriction to access to medical
care and factor.
everyone and introduced POTR, and me. I presented “Where We Were, Where We Are
and How We Got Here” to explain why the Affordable Care Act (ACA) come into
being, and how hemophilia fits in. With a few stats, I showed that skyrocketing
medical costs, particularly in specialty drugs (which factor is), was straining
state budgets; it was only a matter of time before private insurers caught on.
Looking to cut costs, insurers turned to increasing prior authorizations,
formularies, decreasing choice of factor provider, and more. As payers scramble
to cut costs and states try to cut their bloated budgets, the bleeding
disorders community is facing more and more restriction to access to medical
care and factor.
 |
| Michelle Rice, VP at NHF |
 |
| Laurie and Zoraida with the DePaz Family |
Enter Michelle, who explained in much greater depth howthis was happening, and gave great examples of where this was happening in our
country. After lunch, Kelly gave a lively and impassioned chronology how she became an advocate, to get access to medical care and the right factor brand for her
daughter Jacey, who accompanied her to this meeting. It was an incredible story that took 30
minutes, and left the audience in tears! But Kelly triumphed, and became a role
model for other parents fighting for access to care for their families.
 |
| Genny Moore earned $20 with our Q&A! |
We tried
something new! Role playing! With Michelle acting as an insurance rep, we had
two volunteers come to the stage and act as patients, calling their insurer to
find out about 1) whether factor was covered, and 2) if their HTC was covered
under the plan. Theresa and Chrystal did a great job asking questions and not
accepting Michelle’s runaround answers. The audience got to weigh in an offer
what they thought the ladies did well and what they might have done
differently.
something new! Role playing! With Michelle acting as an insurance rep, we had
two volunteers come to the stage and act as patients, calling their insurer to
find out about 1) whether factor was covered, and 2) if their HTC was covered
under the plan. Theresa and Chrystal did a great job asking questions and not
accepting Michelle’s runaround answers. The audience got to weigh in an offer
what they thought the ladies did well and what they might have done
differently.
Finally, Community Forum, where our panel of experts field questions from the audience
on any subject, from their personal healthcare situation to state issues to
national affairs in insurance. We had some great questions and responses.
on any subject, from their personal healthcare situation to state issues to
national affairs in insurance. We had some great questions and responses.
 |
| Amigas! |
Thanks Zoraida Rosado, who planned our
trip so well, set up displays, tables and handouts, and dissembled everything;
to Michelle and Kelly for sharing their expertise and their weekend; and to Bob
and his BDAI team, to the Spanish translators, and to Baxter Healthcare, for providing the funding for all
the Pulse on the Roads, now in our 7th year!
trip so well, set up displays, tables and handouts, and dissembled everything;
to Michelle and Kelly for sharing their expertise and their weekend; and to Bob
and his BDAI team, to the Spanish translators, and to Baxter Healthcare, for providing the funding for all
the Pulse on the Roads, now in our 7th year!
Please
check www.kelleycom.com by December to see where we will be in 2015!
check www.kelleycom.com by December to see where we will be in 2015!
Good
Book I Just Read
Book I Just Read
Metallica:
Justice for All [Kindle]
Justice for All [Kindle]
Joel
McIver
McIver
Metallicais one of the best selling bands in history, and is often said to have defined “thrash”
metal. This is a look at their origins, spectacular rise, wayward path, and an in-depth look
at every song and every album. Probably a book for fans only, and not the best
book on rock I’ve ever read. The book gets terribly bogged down in detail, as
though it’s a ledger, schedule or chronology. Is it essential to know every city the band visited on every single tour? (It’s exhausting to
read! How did they travel so much and so often?) Much of the information is
gleaned from interviews appearing in magazines, and then pulled together to
weave some kind of story. There are layers of information missing, such as the
drug and alcohol binges throughout the band’s career, which McIver seems to
gloss over. Incredible detail on every song, how it compares to others in each album, with
McIver voicing his opinion on each song. Some of this is interesting, but you
lose the focus of the book and get sidetracked. I’m a huge fan of Metallica,
but found this book a bit tough to get through. Choppy writing, too much detail
here, not enough there. Three/five stars.
