Kent J. Thiry, chairman of the board and CEO of Davita. WOW must be nice!

[NDXUFan]

Just yesterday, and Nurse was telling me what AWFUL insurance that DaVita has.  How expense it is, and what little coverage they have.  They get charge extra for things like if they "are a smoker" or "overweight" or have certain illness's. 

This is uncommon? It's the same at my work, also. You pay more if you are a smoker, obese, or diabetic (etc.) because it's a bigger risk for the insurance company.

Any claims to obesity being a bigger risk to the insurance company is scientific bull and has never been proven. 

[Paul]

Any claims to obesity being a bigger risk to the insurance company is scientific bull and has never been proven.

Actually that is not true - it has been proven. And the NHS (the organisation who provide free healthcare in Britain) regularly publish how much extra "fat people" cost them. And that is after figuring in the "discount" overweight people provide them with by dying younger.

Take me for example. I am overweight (but not obese) and over the last 30 years I've cost them a fortune!

[Charlie B53]

Here in the USA for those of us that are on Social Security Medicare there is a HUGE difference in co-pays for diabetic supplies and insulin among the different insurance companies that offer the Part D Prescription plans.

A box of 4 or 5 insulin 'pens' are billed around $700 to the insurance Companies while our co-pay on our plan is only $35

You can bet it doesn't cost the drug company that much to make the insulin.  That high price results in immense profits much  like the big stink last year when the drug Co raised the price on the single dose injection pen for allergic reaction.  I hate it when I forget words like the name of that pen.

[Xplantdad]

Charlie, that be the EPIPEN

Here in the USA for those of us that are on Social Security Medicare there is a HUGE difference in co-pays for diabetic supplies and insulin among the different insurance companies that offer the Part D Prescription plans.

A box of 4 or 5 insulin 'pens' are billed around $700 to the insurance Companies while our co-pay on our plan is only $35

You can bet it doesn't cost the drug company that much to make the insulin.  That high price results in immense profits much  like the big stink last year when the drug Co raised the price on the single dose injection pen for allergic reaction.  I hate it when I forget words like the name of that pen.

[KevinWilson]

So here in Canada, every visit, every test, every doctor test, every surgery is covered. Thats our medical care. The only thing I had to pay is for parking, but wait, that's free now too. Just bring food. You have to thank Dump Trump for giving you USA people the right to pay your own way.

[jd2004]

Now this is a refreshing thread.  Completely unlike the sanitized crap on the Davita site.

Yes, I'm one of their patients.  I think "grrrrrr" is a great first response.

Anyone seen a spare kidney lying around?   

Yeah, I think dear old Kent has at least one available.... After all, he does dress as a "Mouseketeer" at his annual meetings. It would be fitting if he actually followed "the all for one and one for all" motto - along with every board member and non-medical personnel as a job requirement.  By the way, I am also a Davita hemodialysis patient. I adore the team I work with! 

However, the little rumor that my doctor earns about $500 a head for every patient on shift at the clinic I'm at leaves me a bit conflicted.  I understand that he needs to get paid, but so do the nurses and the technicians especially with the hours they work! And it would not hurt if the patients got "kickbacks" from their time spent on the machine... 12 to 16 hours a week at least the price of stock would really help with the associated expenses. 

[Simon Dog]

However, the little rumor that my doctor earns about $500 a head for every patient on shift at the clinic I'm at leaves me a bit conflicted.

The Medicare reimbursement rate for an MD taking care of a clinic or home care patient is a bit under $500 a month.

There was an interesting article in Nephrology News the subject of which was "how to clear $500,000 per year in your practice".

Just look at the numbers in this job ad: https://www.themedicusfirm.com/job/159530937356927/physician/nephrology/georgia/

[Rerun]

It is US and THEM.  All for one and one for all is them....  not us.

[plugger]

Fairly recently, Mr. Thiry wrote about how everything is sunshine and rainbows in davitaland - being me, I had to beg to differ.  I added a comment at the end of his article.  I did mention in the comment how I called off the truce in Colorado Governor Polis's office with davita and fresenius, guess I was a little upset seeing thiry hanging around our statehouse.

https://www.statnews.com/2019/05/29/dialysis-care-offers-lessons-for-achieving-health-equity-in-the-u-s/

**Update August 25, 2019 - Don't have time to read the above article and comment?  You can now shortcut-to-what-was-handed-to-Governor-Polis

[plugger]

Thiry and ballot issues:

https://chicago.suntimes.com/politics/2020/12/15/22175080/kent-thiry-ballot-initiatives-davita-colorado-california

Kent Thiry, upstanding citizen?  Why do I still have trust issues?  Oh, yeah:

John Oliver video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yw_nqzVfxFQ&list=ULBgyqAD5Z6_A&index=203

Colorado's 5280 magazine article:
https://www.dialysisethics2.org/index.php/90-the-strangest-show-on-earth

[MooseMom]

That John Oliver episode was epic.

[plugger]

John Oliver's hilarious coverage of thiry just might have might have been the silver bullet that kept us from choking on the words "governor thiry" here in Colorado back when he was thinking about running for our state's office: https://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=33881.0

[plugger]

Kent Thiry could be facing 10 years in prison:

Denver channel 9 news

"He and DaVita are scheduled to appear in court on July 20. If convicted, DaVita faces a maximum penalty of a $100 million fine per count. Thiry faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $1 million fine per count."

[Michael Murphy]

The question I ask is why do all the horror stories I have read in the last 8 years always happen a Davila clinic.

[plugger]

Back in the day when my daughter was in a clinic, I didn't consider Fresenius much better.  I wonder if davita seems to catch it more because they are headquartered in the U.S.?  I was ticked at first when davita ruined the neighborhood here in Denver when they moved here.  But at least I can be made aware of what they are up to when they pop up on the local news.

[Simon Dog]

$70,000 a year? Where do you get dialyzed? My center (FMC) bills Medicare a minimum of $30,000 a MONTH.

You answered you own question - "bills Medicare".  It is common to bill Medicare at the rack ratee that no insured patient pays.  In return, they are paid the Medicare "Take it or drop out of being a Medicare provider rate".   

Look at your Medicare explaintion of benefits statement - it will show the amount billed; amount allowed, Meidicare payment and amount owed by patient (if any).

[plugger]

Not guilty: Jury acquits DaVita, Kent Thiry of corporate conspiracy charges


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

'Tell-your-boss' mandate at center of witness testimony in DaVita trial


I guess davita can continue to collect workers like birds in gilded cages.   

[kristina]

Sorry about this discouraging outcome, plugger, but there again ... on the other hand ... was there really a chance for a more "integrated" and more encouraging result ?      Very sad ...

[plugger]

I'm getting over it quickly, if this was baseball I would rate it a triple.

[plugger]

I just thought I would collect some articles about the recent trial and put them up on the dialysisethics2.org site I like to keep up as a history of this dialysis field of medicine:

https://www.dialysisethics2.org/index.php/kent-thiry-former-ceo-of-davita-meets-the-judge

Adding some links to some of the prior davita lawsuit articles seemed appropriate, so you will see that too.

[plugger]

I was also inspired to upgrade, update, and add other things to the dialysisethics2.org site.  Besides the page I mentioned above, I've added this featured article:

https://www.dialysisethics2.org/index.php/articles/30-solutions-and-concerns/31-concerns/111-davita-and-former-ceo-kent-thiry

To get out of a grumpy mood I also updated my main information page that is about finding a living donor, home dialysis, reuse, etc...  You can find links to the page at the top and bottom of the page above.

As one of the punk songs my brother used to listen to said: "Anger is an energy".  I'm trying to channel it into something positive.

[UkrainianTracksuit]

As one of the punk songs my brother used to listen to said: "Anger is an energy".  I'm trying to channel it into something positive.

Thank you for putting PiL "Rise" into my brain again! It is a good mantra!

[plugger]

Johnny Rotten!  (I looked it up, my little brother is the punker.  I'm more the old rocker)  That little snippet from the song stuck with me but thanks for letting me know where it came from!  I see the song is actually post-punk?  I tell my brother that is what his punker friends played after they learned to play their instruments.  I did take a look at the video, Mr. Rotten looks like what you get after a lobotomy and electric shock therapy (sorry, got to have a little fun).  Actually from what my brother tells me he would probably consider it a compliment.

Anyway, back to seeing what I can add to the DE2 site and waiting for thiry to answer my questions.

[Treasure]

Epoman is no longer with us, PaganD, but he started this site because of his frustration with Davita editing out every negative comment.  He, like so many of us who have found a home here, thought we should be informed about all of D, the good, the bad, and the ugly.  Pollyanna pictures of happy people hooked to their machines do not help you survive!

I fondly remember Epoman!

I get around being censored by posting to Davita's Twitter feed and giving lengthy interviews to a widely-read state newspaper. 

Eta: I keep a little bit of DaVita stock in my portfolio and it's been losing money lately. I'd much rather a direct deposit from the CEO than stock! Lol. Or a kidney donation (for me or someone else) !

[plugger]

I remember Epoman too!  He was a Human Dynamo!

Anyway, I thought I would mention it looks like we've got some ugly coming up.  I posted about it already in the General Discussion, but this looks like a good place for it too since I believe it will involve our favorite mouseketeer.  And I did do an update on the webpage on DE2 I keep up concerning  little kenny and davita.

And just as an aside.  I was listening to some classic Rock this morning and the song 'Mayor of Simpleton' came on.  Few people know the story behind the song.  It is said the band came upon little kenny singing to his money.  (I crack me up)

I think there are many good people working for dialysis companies, too bad they are forced to dumb down (hence the village of Simpleton).  The first people I think of are the techs who aren't even required to have phlebotomist training.  I got that idea from a source I trust - and a state regulator who interviewed us back in the day when we got a Colorado 2007 bill through the the statehouse for the certification of hemodialysis techs.

But really, really I'm hoping for a path to redemption for little kenny - through jail!