KATRINA: Medical Records and Proof of Insurance Coverage

[Coastie for Truth]

Lots of Katrina and Rita refugees are in a "high tech medical quandry." They may have chronic conditions and adequate health care coverage.

BUT, HOW DO YOU PROVE COVERAGE AND ACCESS YOUR RECORDS IN THAT FIRST FEW DAYS AFTER A NATIONAL CATASTROPHE??

I had "assumed" that my health records were "safe" -- my provider has a good, patient friendly, computer system () but I am now hearing "rumors" that the server is in a server farm on an earthquake fault in the Sacramento Delta.

Cant win for trying'.

:scared:

[whatever4]

1. Pack a grab-and-go portfolio with all the important docs

I was thinking about this, this weekend, and made a point of going through our papers in the fire safe, to make sure the most important things, the stuff we'd need, was collected into one portfolio I can grab and go in two minutes, if need be. Something I can carry easily, if lugging the whole fire safe isn't an option, I won't have to waste time picking through it for the essentials. They might not care who we are, but I'll be able to prove who we are and what we own, if necessary.

I know this won't help if computer systems you depend on for health care are down. I hadn't even thought of that.

[Coastie for Truth]

2. I have two grab and go kits

1. Documents - I telecommute with my own business, most stuff is on either my server hard drive or my laptop hard drive.

a. I back up the "My Documents" directories of both computers, weekly, onto DVD's.
b. All health records, copies of insurance policies, car titles, bank records, TurboTax, Intuit output, etc. are saved into appropriate folders as Adobe Acrobat files.
c. Send the previous week's DVD's to my son or my sister-in-law.
d. All hard copies that are not on both of the hard drives are both (1) in a folder in the "Go Kit" and (2) on a Flash Memory stick in the Go Kit.
e. Meds will go into Zip Loc baggies in the Go Kit.

2. Cat Carrier - with cat.

3. Earthquake Kit - We do keep pieces of the Earthquake kit segregated and "rotated" in the guest closet and the pantry.

[whatever4]

3. ah, the cat carrier. I forgot to dig that out, thanx :) nm

[Sgent]

4. If your provider uses an EMR

they can usually print a "transfer sheet" that is often given when a patient is transfered to another facility. It will have current diagnosises, drugs, and labs on it. Most physicians who use paper charts have a "drug" sheet which has much the same info.

That is usually enough for any other physician to provide at least initial care.

If you suffer from hypertension or heart issues, a copy of one of your EKG's (not the interpretation, the actual strip), could also be useful in the case of an emergency.