Last week we were expecting to finally have something resembling an answer from the bank. Alas, as in so many other areas of life, expectations in this process are a set-up for disappointments....
Instead of a yes, no, or even a maybe, we were told that instead of evaluating us for a short-sale they are now "required" to evaluate us for a loan modification. The same loan modification that we have been told previously that would not work in our situation. The same loan modification that the bank themselves told us they wouldn't consider us for previously.
It will take them another 30 or so days to work through that process. Once they determine that a modification will not work - and if they can do math at all they will see that it can't - then the file will go back to the decisioning process for the short-sale.
One step back.
Technically, our contract with the buyers expired this week. If they walked, as the previous buyers did, that could have been a giant step back. However, they and their agent requested to extend the closing date to on or before July 23rd! So obviously they are still hanging on. It's not a guarantee that they won't change their minds at some point, of course, but it is a positive move for now.
Two steps forward. Hopefully.
As for the rest of life in general, we're settling in to the rental fairly well. It's pretty cramped, but since it's very similar in square footage and lay-out to the first house Mr. Four Walls and I purchased - the home to which we brought newborns Jellybean and Miss Florida - it's not been too much of a challenge to cram in all five of us. There have been a few trips to Ikea, the storage Mecca, since in small spaces the only way to go is up! Wall shelving, bins, and some do-it-yourself honey-do items for Mr. Four Walls should get us out of the last few remaining boxes soon. We scored on some Ikea shelving in the as-is section for the corner of our bedroom - now referred to as The Office - and Mr. Four Walls is going to build in a customized desk top. Once it's all done I need to post some photos.
The other BIG item on the horizon is that we're coming up on the end of our arrangement with our current sitter. Childcare issues....again. The bane of my existence lately, especially since my heart isn't in it. I don't want to find childcare. I want to be home. Peanut is 18 months old today, if you can believe it. The time has gone so fast, and as I look back on the past year and a half, I remember so little of her teeny days. I can remember so much of Jellybean's and Miss Florida's, almost like it they were yesterday, but the fact of the matter is that I wasn't with Peanut much to make those kind of memories, and that breaks my heart. We're doing some serious soul-searching, budget-crunching, and God-seeking as we try to move towards a decision: find new care for the kids, or quit my job?????
If I do leave my great job - and it is a great job - I will still need to bring in an income. One big option on the table is for me to open a small in-home daycare, and I'm thoroughly researching this option. I can also flip burgers or wait tables every evening and weekend, basically putting me and Mr. Four Walls on opposite schedules. There are pros to cons to both options, so more decisions.
Big Decisions. That seems to be all that our lives are about lately, and as we make them we pray that they're the two-steps forward kind, not the one (or two, or five) step back sort.
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
Completely Unrelated, But Oh So Important!
As most of you know, I am the mom to a preemie. A beautiful, strong, and very blessed preemie that now, as she nears her seventh birthday, shows no signs of the chaos and anxiety that surrounded her unexpected early birth.
You also probably know that I went on to have a full-term, perfect little girl in late 2009. What you might not know is that to do so, I received weekly hormone injections to help my body regulate and defen...d against the preterm labor that afflicted me with my second daughter (and likely with my first, although we were lucky with her and hindsight is 20-20). I certainly still dealt with the preterm labor, but thanks to these injections, my body was able to sustain the pregnancy all the way to my due date.
Now, this injection - through unneeded government regulation and corporate greed - will become unavailable to a vast majority of women who truly need it. While I know I will not need this drug again (done with babies!) my heart aches for all the other women out there with histories like mine that now have to choose between taking a gamble, paying $30,000 for a course of the drug that currently costs most women $200, or not grow their families at all.
Below are excerpts from a letter written by the doctor of a dear friend of mine on this issue. Please read it and take action on behalf of all of the preemies you know, here on earth or in heaven. If this current course is not altered, the positive outcome I and so many other moms of preemies were able to experience with our subsequent births will become all the more rare.
Thanks for all of your prayers and support through the journey that has brought Mike and me into this "club" of preemie-parents. I hope we can count on your continued support now.
Sincerely,
Nancy
"As many of you have become aware, KV Pharmaceuticals has received FDA approval
to be the exclusive distributor for P17. They are planning to charge $1500 per
injection for a total cost, per pregnancy, of $30,000!!!!
The current cost is $10 per injection, or $200 per pregnancy.
There are several points that I would like to emphasize.
The rationale for a commercial manufacturer is to ensure a standard
concentration. In theory, this can be a problem with compounding pharmacies
although the vast majority of the compounding pharmacies producing this product
that present have extremely exacting standard. The March of Dimes has,
unfortunately, bought into this rationale with absolutely no proof that a
variation in strength is of any clinical significance. By law, once a drug is
commercially available, compounding pharmacies must stop production of that
drug.
We have been using P17 for the past ten years from these compounding pharmacies
with obvious beneficial effect. So where is the rationale for this change?
March of Dimes receives several million dollars a year in support from KV
Pharmaceuticals - I wonder why! This suggests to me that March of Dimes can be
bought. I, personally, have informed the March of Dimes that I am ceasing all
support of their organization, financial and otherwise, until they divorce
themselves from KV Pharmaceuticals and support for Makena. They do not realize
that they are going to cause an increase in the preterm birth rate, not a
decrease. At best, there will be no change other that a massive over-expenditure
of health-care dollars.
You have seen the propaganda stating that no-one will be denied the medication
because of ability to pay. However, what they don't tell you is that they are
going to use very strict criteria. In essence, the only women who will qualify
is those who have had a prior preterm birth before 32 weeks secondary to preterm
labor. To illustrate this more fully, Aetna/US Health care (one of the largest
insurers in the country) covers this therapy when patients meet their strict
criteria. Currently, they are paying for P17 for only 1,000 women nationwide per
year! There are 4.2 million births in the US annually. 10 - 15%, or 420,000 to
610,000 are premature. And Aetna is only going to cover 1,000 of these women.
30% of all prenatal care is covered by Medicaid. An additional 10% is covered by
charity care. KV is going to insist that since this care is not coming out of
the patient's pocket, the cost should be borne by Medicaid and charity care.
Currently, we can provide good prenatal care for about $2,000 per pregnancy. So
for every patient placed on P17, we have to somehow find away to cover an
additional 15 pregnant patients. And who pays the medicaid and charity care bill?
We all do through higher taxes and higher healthcare premiums!
Studies show that approximately 30 women need to be treated with P17 to prevent
one preterm birth. At $200 per patient, this is very cost effective. That is an
expenditure of $6,000 to save the average of $51,000 per preterm delivery. With
current pricing, we will have to spend $9 million dollars in P17 therapy to save
$51,000. Does this make sense? And people want to know why health care costs so
much.
Most of you (greater than 90%) who will be on P17 now will be faced with doing
without or paying $1500 per injection out-of-pocket. If you are currently on
this medication, make sure that your doctors order enough for you right away to
cover the entire pregnancy. You could have as little as one week. If you are
early in pregnancy or planning a pregnancy soon, talk to your doctors about
getting this now to have on hand. Most suppliers warrant the drug to be
effective for one year.
So, what can you do?
Firstly, contact KV Pharmaceutical and voice your displeasure:
Second, notify your local media outlets about this issue.
Third, write or email your congressman and senator.
Fourth, contact the FDA and find out why they elected to give KV exclusivity for
this product. Competition will bring down the price dramatically.
Fifth, write to the president.
Sixth, contact your state Medicaid offices and your insurance carriers. Get them
involved.
Seventh, get as many of your friends, family members, co-workers, etc. as
possible to do the above.
Eighth, feel free to cut/paste/email the above to as many contacts as you can.
Let's make this issue go viral!
If we can get enough of a protest mounted, we stand a chance of averting this
"rape" of the healthcare system that is motivated almost entirely by a profit
motive. Even if KV decides to not manufacture the drug for fear of losing money,
we will be better off than with what they are currently planning.
Thank you."
You also probably know that I went on to have a full-term, perfect little girl in late 2009. What you might not know is that to do so, I received weekly hormone injections to help my body regulate and defen...d against the preterm labor that afflicted me with my second daughter (and likely with my first, although we were lucky with her and hindsight is 20-20). I certainly still dealt with the preterm labor, but thanks to these injections, my body was able to sustain the pregnancy all the way to my due date.
Now, this injection - through unneeded government regulation and corporate greed - will become unavailable to a vast majority of women who truly need it. While I know I will not need this drug again (done with babies!) my heart aches for all the other women out there with histories like mine that now have to choose between taking a gamble, paying $30,000 for a course of the drug that currently costs most women $200, or not grow their families at all.
Below are excerpts from a letter written by the doctor of a dear friend of mine on this issue. Please read it and take action on behalf of all of the preemies you know, here on earth or in heaven. If this current course is not altered, the positive outcome I and so many other moms of preemies were able to experience with our subsequent births will become all the more rare.
Thanks for all of your prayers and support through the journey that has brought Mike and me into this "club" of preemie-parents. I hope we can count on your continued support now.
Sincerely,
Nancy
"As many of you have become aware, KV Pharmaceuticals has received FDA approval
to be the exclusive distributor for P17. They are planning to charge $1500 per
injection for a total cost, per pregnancy, of $30,000!!!!
The current cost is $10 per injection, or $200 per pregnancy.
There are several points that I would like to emphasize.
The rationale for a commercial manufacturer is to ensure a standard
concentration. In theory, this can be a problem with compounding pharmacies
although the vast majority of the compounding pharmacies producing this product
that present have extremely exacting standard. The March of Dimes has,
unfortunately, bought into this rationale with absolutely no proof that a
variation in strength is of any clinical significance. By law, once a drug is
commercially available, compounding pharmacies must stop production of that
drug.
We have been using P17 for the past ten years from these compounding pharmacies
with obvious beneficial effect. So where is the rationale for this change?
March of Dimes receives several million dollars a year in support from KV
Pharmaceuticals - I wonder why! This suggests to me that March of Dimes can be
bought. I, personally, have informed the March of Dimes that I am ceasing all
support of their organization, financial and otherwise, until they divorce
themselves from KV Pharmaceuticals and support for Makena. They do not realize
that they are going to cause an increase in the preterm birth rate, not a
decrease. At best, there will be no change other that a massive over-expenditure
of health-care dollars.
You have seen the propaganda stating that no-one will be denied the medication
because of ability to pay. However, what they don't tell you is that they are
going to use very strict criteria. In essence, the only women who will qualify
is those who have had a prior preterm birth before 32 weeks secondary to preterm
labor. To illustrate this more fully, Aetna/US Health care (one of the largest
insurers in the country) covers this therapy when patients meet their strict
criteria. Currently, they are paying for P17 for only 1,000 women nationwide per
year! There are 4.2 million births in the US annually. 10 - 15%, or 420,000 to
610,000 are premature. And Aetna is only going to cover 1,000 of these women.
30% of all prenatal care is covered by Medicaid. An additional 10% is covered by
charity care. KV is going to insist that since this care is not coming out of
the patient's pocket, the cost should be borne by Medicaid and charity care.
Currently, we can provide good prenatal care for about $2,000 per pregnancy. So
for every patient placed on P17, we have to somehow find away to cover an
additional 15 pregnant patients. And who pays the medicaid and charity care bill?
We all do through higher taxes and higher healthcare premiums!
Studies show that approximately 30 women need to be treated with P17 to prevent
one preterm birth. At $200 per patient, this is very cost effective. That is an
expenditure of $6,000 to save the average of $51,000 per preterm delivery. With
current pricing, we will have to spend $9 million dollars in P17 therapy to save
$51,000. Does this make sense? And people want to know why health care costs so
much.
Most of you (greater than 90%) who will be on P17 now will be faced with doing
without or paying $1500 per injection out-of-pocket. If you are currently on
this medication, make sure that your doctors order enough for you right away to
cover the entire pregnancy. You could have as little as one week. If you are
early in pregnancy or planning a pregnancy soon, talk to your doctors about
getting this now to have on hand. Most suppliers warrant the drug to be
effective for one year.
So, what can you do?
Firstly, contact KV Pharmaceutical and voice your displeasure:
Second, notify your local media outlets about this issue.
Third, write or email your congressman and senator.
Fourth, contact the FDA and find out why they elected to give KV exclusivity for
this product. Competition will bring down the price dramatically.
Fifth, write to the president.
Sixth, contact your state Medicaid offices and your insurance carriers. Get them
involved.
Seventh, get as many of your friends, family members, co-workers, etc. as
possible to do the above.
Eighth, feel free to cut/paste/email the above to as many contacts as you can.
Let's make this issue go viral!
If we can get enough of a protest mounted, we stand a chance of averting this
"rape" of the healthcare system that is motivated almost entirely by a profit
motive. Even if KV decides to not manufacture the drug for fear of losing money,
we will be better off than with what they are currently planning.
Thank you."
Thursday, March 10, 2011
I'm the Decider.
It has been two weeks since my financial interview during which I was told we would know something in two to three weeks. Last week the file was passed on to the investor (Fannie Mae, in our case) for them to review as the bank is simply the loan servicer, and the update today is that it will be another week. It's being called The Decisioning Process and the file is reviewed by The Decisioner. This makes me giggle and envision someone wearing medieval executioner garb, sitting in a drab cubicle piled high with paperwork. At least they don't call him/her The Decider. Although, if GW is looking for a retirement gig, Fannie Mae might have an opening for him. They're certainly busy enough.
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