An I-Team Investigation

When you've got a disease like diabetes, getting your prescription drugs on time can mean the difference between life and death. So imagine the agony an Anchorage woman went through when her Medicare drug program wouldn't pay what it was supposed to. That is, until the I-Team put her in touch with a woman who knows how to cut through the bureaucracy.

The woman called the I-Team saying her pharmacist was demanding 600 dollars for all her diabetes medications. Yet, because she's on a Medicare prescription drug plan, she was really only supposed to pay a small amount.

What caused the mix-up?

She was getting the run-around until the I-Team put her in touch with someone who fights these battles every day.

    "Now is she looking for like a specialist, or she just wants general practitioners?" said Jeanne Larson of the state Health Insurance Program, on the phone.

That was Larson at work, on the phone with an Alaskan needing help with Medicare. She's an expert at cutting through the bureaucracy.

"That's a big deal that our office does. We're actually here to help the beneficiaries ask better questions. Sometimes the biggest hurdle is not knowing what to ask or how to ask it," said Larson

So she'll do a three-way call between herself, the Medicare patient and whoever's holding them up from getting their benefits.

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Usually, one call is all it takes. Though it can be 72 hours before the problem is resolved.

In the case of the CBS 11 Viewer who wasn't getting her medication paid for, it turns out Medicare's computer wasn't giving her drug plan's computer the right information. Larson got it ironed out. She just wishes people would call her sooner.

"Usually we get it when they've tried every avenue. And unfortunately, I'd like them to come to us a lot sooner than that, because I don't want it

Jeanne Larson of the State Health Insurance Program
to get to the point where they're having to go without their medication. That should never be the fact," said Larson.

Alaska Medicare Hotline: (800) 478-6065

It's that passion that keeps Larson fighting for Medicare patients day after day. If you're having problems with Medicare, or your prescription drug plan, here's a number where you can reach Larson directly:

    (800) 478-6065.

The number works throughout Alaska, so if you don't live in Anchorage, Larson can put you in touch with a volunteer in another part of the state.

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If you have a story for the I-Team that you want me to look into, you can call the I-Team hotline number at 273-3111.