child dies after workers refuse to fix his medicaid record

[koshergrl]

And I've no doubt that if the child was in the pharmacy, dying, that the pharmacist would have handed the stuff over. Or if the mother had given an indication that the child was in urgent need at that moment.

Even pharmacists can't read minds. And the clerks certainly can't, and aren't medically trained anyway. Their job is to facilitate the payment of the meds.

 

[Sunshine]

She should not, and is not entitled to compensation. If anything, she should be charged with neglect and endangerment. A pharmacy is powerless ware medicare is concerned. The woman could have been at a free clinic at anytime before her child died, she could have requested samples from the prescribing doctors office, she had a prescription, she could have requested assistance directly from the drug company. There are a million things she could have done, yet she waited ? She neglected her child to death and should be prosecuted for it.

I don't know that Advair comes in free samples. I think it's an inhaler, isn't it?

It is and it does. It's a dry inhaler, a powder form of a steriod. Advair is not a rescue medication, it takes weeks to work. Albuterol would likely have saved the day. $10 at Costco. It is a rescue inhaler and something that should have been used immediately.

Yes, this is correct. It is not a rescue inhaler.

And I've no doubt that if the child was in the pharmacy, dying, that the pharmacist would have handed the stuff over. Or if the mother had given an indication that the child was in urgent need at that moment.

Even pharmacists can't read minds. And the clerks certainly can't, and aren't medically trained anyway. Their job is to facilitate the payment of the meds.

As above. If he handed the stuff over, it wouldn't have worked on a dying patient. But I don't think he would have. Anyone with half a brain would have called an ambulance for a dying person.

 

[Sunshine]

I don't know that Advair comes in free samples. I think it's an inhaler, isn't it?

Drug reps keep the MD offices supplied with samples of it. In fact, drug reps leave many samples. One company left my clinic over $50,000 worth of samples one month for indigent patients.

but they are not obliged to hand them out...I think there's probably more to this story. I doubt if the kid was with her having an asthma attack in the pharmacy.

The long and short...if she couldn't get his meds, she should have taken him to the ER. Hopefully it wouldn't be an ER that was set up by Michelle Obama...

That is correct. There is no obligation.

However, I know several self employed very high income individuals who have HSA's or insurance plans with very high deductibles, and the MDs give them samples every time they darken the door.

 

[koshergrl]

Sure, but that doesn't mean they are responsible when a child dies because his mom is too stupid to relay to anybody any sense of urgency.

 

[Sunshine]

Sure, but that doesn't mean they are responsible when a child dies because his mom is too stupid to relay to anybody any sense of urgency.

They? Who is they?

 

[koshergrl]

The pharmacy workers, her case worker.

 

[Sunshine]

The pharmacy workers, her case worker.

She is not suing the pharmacy.

However, the caseworker may be liable. According to the article in post # 1:

Zuton Lucero-Mills said she called Denver County Human Services several times a week in the spring and summer of 2009 after she tried to get 9-year-old son Zumante's asthma medications at Walgreens and was told he wasn't eligible for Medicaid.

No one resolved the computer glitch. Most of Lucero-Mills' calls weren't returned.


Read more: Mom sues Denver, three workers over child's death - The Denver Post Mom sues Denver, three workers over child's death - The Denver Post
Read The Denver Post's Terms of Use of its content: Terms of Use - The Denver Post

 

[C_Clayton_Jones]

Sure, but that doesn't mean they are responsible when a child dies because his mom is too stupid to relay to anybody any sense of urgency.

Good luck with that in court.

The state was clearly negligent in its process, and it was incumbent upon the state to find a solution to the problem as the eligibility determining authority, or have an alternative plan in place.

When I had Medicaid clients in Florida they would be able to secure a hard-copy document from the state establishing eligibility when there was a problem with the eligibility database. The document would ‘override’ what the pharmacy was seeing in the computer, allowing the prescription to be filled. That Colorado doesn’t have a similar provision is strange, as computer systems are notoriously unreliable. We’re obviously not getting the entire story.

 

[Cecilie1200]

she is disadvantaged ....most likely a lower iq and poor social skills.....i am always amazed at how critical the haves are of the have nots.....having is not limited to material things

The kid had asthma for a while, had a prescription, and had had the medicine before, all of which means he was being treated by a doctor for it. Exactly how smart and social does one have to be to understand when the doctor says, "This is life-threatening", which he certainly would have done, since it is? Should anyone too stupid to understand that sentence be allowed to run around loose and unsupervised?

I've seen stupid, low-class people get more aggressive in the supermarket when they ran out of the brand of eggs on their WIC checks than this woman got over her son's life.

 

[Sunshine]

Sure, but that doesn't mean they are responsible when a child dies because his mom is too stupid to relay to anybody any sense of urgency.

Good luck with that in court.

The state was clearly negligent in its process, and it was incumbent upon the state to find a solution to the problem as the eligibility determining authority, or have an alternative plan in place.

When I had Medicaid clients in Florida they would be able to secure a hard-copy document from the state establishing eligibility when there was a problem with the eligibility database. The document would ‘override’ what the pharmacy was seeing in the computer, allowing the prescription to be filled. That Colorado doesn’t have a similar provision is strange, as computer systems are notoriously unreliable. We’re obviously not getting the entire story.

From the article in post # 1:

The county automatically generated paperwork after her continual calls and sent it to the family's home. It verified Zumante qualified for Medicaid — yet pharmacists said he wasn't in the system.



Read more: Mom sues Denver, three workers over child's death - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/politics/ci_18657538#ixzz1X5qRumnk
Read The Denver Post's Terms of Use of its content: http://www.denverpost.com/termsofuse

I have noticed over the years that when there is a death, particularly of a child, unreturned calls by social services is what sinks them. And calls are easy to prove.

 

[Greenbeard]

You do realize she's suing the COUNTY right? It was a GOVERNMENT WORKER who screwed the poor kids records up and caused his tragic death. These are the same people you Obamacare people want us to have to deal with. If Obamacare is fully iplemented this will be a drop in the bucket as the flood of untimely deaths begin.

"ObamaCare" is giving states the money and technical guidance they need to upgrade their existing shitty eligibility systems, some of which are decades old. Colorado is among the states currently preparing to bring their eligibility systems into the 21st century.

The story in the OP is tragic but seems to lack the ideological component that some are trying to find in it.

 

[Cecilie1200]

She should not, and is not entitled to compensation. If anything, she should be charged with neglect and endangerment. A pharmacy is powerless ware medicare is concerned. The woman could have been at a free clinic at anytime before her child died, she could have requested samples from the prescribing doctors office, she had a prescription, she could have requested assistance directly from the drug company. There are a million things she could have done, yet she waited ? She neglected her child to death and should be prosecuted for it.

I don't know that Advair comes in free samples. I think it's an inhaler, isn't it?

Drug reps keep the MD offices supplied with samples of it. In fact, drug reps leave many samples. One company left my clinic over $50,000 worth of samples one month for indigent patients.

Interesting. I knew doctors' offices had a lot of samples in liquid and pill form, but I didn't realize they had samples of inhalers, as well. Of course, no one in my family has ever had asthma, so . . .

 

[Sunshine]

I don't know that Advair comes in free samples. I think it's an inhaler, isn't it?

Drug reps keep the MD offices supplied with samples of it. In fact, drug reps leave many samples. One company left my clinic over $50,000 worth of samples one month for indigent patients.

Interesting. I knew doctors' offices had a lot of samples in liquid and pill form, but I didn't realize they had samples of inhalers, as well. Of course, no one in my family has ever had asthma, so . . .

Yes, they do also have Advair. A lot of their samples are the newer name brand drugs that have no generic yet.

When I was put on Advair the MD gave me a sample so I wouldn't have to throw away an expensive purchased one if the dose was too low. The dose of the first one was actually too low, but I hadn't paid a hundred bucks for it.

 

[Cecilie1200]

she is disadvantaged ....most likely a lower iq and poor social skills.....i am always amazed at how critical the haves are of the have nots.....having is not limited to material things

I agree she undoubtedly has issues.

But that doesn't mean it's somebody ELSE'S fault when her stupidity gets her kid killed.

Anyone who thinks "stupid and poor" equals "timid and non-aggressive" has clearly not visited the ghetto lately.

 

[Cecilie1200]

Pretty sure there's whole shitloads we're not being told about this story.

 

[NGSamson]

These huge corporations can all die a slow and painful death as far as I'm concerned. Let's bring small businesses back in communities (like small pharmacies) who have time to care about their customers.

It's ridiculous. I hope she gets paid bigtime.

She should not, and is not entitled to compensation. If anything, she should be charged with neglect and endangerment. A pharmacy is powerless ware medicare is concerned. The woman could have been at a free clinic at anytime before her child died, she could have requested samples from the prescribing doctors office, she had a prescription, she could have requested assistance directly from the drug company. There are a million things she could have done, yet she waited ? She neglected her child to death and should be prosecuted for it.

I don't know that Advair comes in free samples. I think it's an inhaler, isn't it?

If its the round one colored purple that you have to cock before you inhale then yes they do, just not as many shots. When my folks bugged out for IKE the pharmacy was closed so her Dr. filled her bag and sent her on her way.

 

[koshergrl]

Mom sues Denver, three workers over child's death - The Denver Post

but as we know, america has the best health care system in the world!

If only this 9 year old had worked hard in school, got a real job, etc then he wouldnt have been in this position!

These huge corporations can all die a slow and painful death as far as I'm concerned. Let's bring small businesses back in communities (like small pharmacies) who have time to care about their customers.

It's ridiculous. I hope she gets paid bigtime.

Which "huge corporation" are you railing against, twat? She's suing THE GOVERNMENT, because it was THE GOVERNMENT who owned the computer glitch. Walgreens didn't do anything wrong, and they didn't do anything a small pharmacy wouldn't have done exactly the same. What the fuck is running through your muddled mind that Walgreens was supposed to do?

Now let's give her a little credit...maybe the huge corporation she has issues with is ACORN!

 

[NGSamson]

Sure, but that doesn't mean they are responsible when a child dies because his mom is too stupid to relay to anybody any sense of urgency.

Good luck with that in court.

The state was clearly negligent in its process, and it was incumbent upon the state to find a solution to the problem as the eligibility determining authority, or have an alternative plan in place.

When I had Medicaid clients in Florida they would be able to secure a hard-copy document from the state establishing eligibility when there was a problem with the eligibility database. The document would ‘override’ what the pharmacy was seeing in the computer, allowing the prescription to be filled. That Colorado doesn’t have a similar provision is strange, as computer systems are notoriously unreliable. We’re obviously not getting the entire story.

The Mother is guilty of abuse and neglect.

Any case in which a child is a child in need of services because of the child’s parents, legal guardian,
or custodian fails to take the same actions to provide adequate food, clothing, shelter, medical care,
or supervision that a prudent parent would take. The requirements of this subparagraph (III) shall
be subject to the provisions of section 19-3-103.

http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/ps/cctf/canmanual/app1.pdf

The child died due to the Mothers inaction. She needs to be investigated for not seeking a remedy to the situation.

 

[koshergrl]

Exactly.

And while there may be extenuating circumstances, while she may not have known, or it just happened so fast there was no preventing it (well aside from making sure your child has the medication he needs...and even with medication, asthmatics often die suddenly) that DOESN'T make it the fault of the people who sell the drugs, or the people who determine eligibility for medicaid!

 

[bill5]

The mother should have been indicted for child abuse since stupidity isn't a crime.

Which you should be grateful for

I guess you missed the part where she was calling human services several times a week. What was she supposed to do, hold them at gun point? Yes I would have gotten much more in people's face about this too, but hindsight is 20/20 and many people are very intimidated by authority/authority figures and feel powerless. She also may not have realized that his life was in danger. Again I agree she should have known, and could have done more, but it's easy to get self-righteous about this and rubbing salt in her wound is asinine in a wide variety of ways.

That aside, I hope with great passion that the SPECIFIC PEOPLE who blew her off end up in jail, and that point should be emphasized. But it won't. Incompetent employees hide behind their company and get off scott free while the best one can usually hope for is the company or state or whatever just throws some money at this and goes "oops our bad." That itself should be a crime. PEOPLE should be held accountable for shit like this.