THE NEBRASKA HEALTH INSURANCE INFORMATION, COUNSELING,
AND ASSISTANCE (NICA) PROGRAM
DECEMBER 2002 NICA NEWS
GOLD RECORDS
Ray Becka
A 92 year old client first contacted the Omaha VIE office in January of 2002. At that time she was concerned that she was not receiving her reimbursements from her health insurance company for her prescriptions costs. NICA Volunteer Ray Becka worked diligently over the next few months contacting numerous people from her insurance company, all to no avail. Ray contacted his regional representative for some backup help when his calls were not getting him anywhere. Instead of giving in and resigning himself to the idea that maybe Ms. Novak was confused and she had received her reimbursements, Ray remained dedicated and put in extra effort to get to the right people. Ray took time out to travel to Walgreen's pharmacy on two occasions to collect printouts of the client's prescriptions that had been filled over the past two years and then worked to send them into the insurance company. This included writing the client's information on each of about twenty sheets of paper. After several weeks, never giving up and remaining positive, Mr. Becka was able to confirm that the client had received a check in the mail from her insurance company for close to $500. The client will be receiving two more checks for a grand total of nearly $1,500 thanks to Ray Becka's efforts.
Wayne Kempf
Wayne Kempf, NICA volunteer in Shickley, Nebraska, was a big help to a Medicare beneficiary in Columbus. Earlier this year, a beneficiary who receives Medicare due to his End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) contacted the NICA office because he was having difficulty getting his claims processed through Medicare and CHIP. Wayne volunteered to review the beneficiary's Medicare Summary Notices, Explanations of Benefits, and bills from his provider. Wayne spent over 5 hours reviewing paperwork, and on the phone with the beneficiary -- eventually identifying a coordination of benefits problem between Medicare, CHIP, and a third payer, the Nebraska Chronic Renal Disease Program. After Wayne determined the problem, the NICA staff was able to work with the beneficiary and the various business offices to resolve the issue.
