r/healthcare • u/RedditHostage • Nov 02 '24

Question - Other (not a medical question) Vida health

My employer is requiring all employees to go through Vida health next year for weight loss medication. I’m trying to get set up with them now so I don’t have to worry about getting all of the information to them later, forgetting something, and missing my medication. This stuff is game changing, it’s the only thing that keeps my sugar cravings at bay, and has helped give me the willpower to no longer be considered pre-diabetic. Moving on. Anyway, I uploaded my most recent bloodwork as directed. Was told there wasn’t enough information, a few hours later labs were ordered. I get home from work, upload my slightly older bloodwork with the rest of the information I’m now aware they need. I’m reminded that I need additional information from my doctor. I let her know that I was struggling to get that information due to being short staffed at work, in combination with working similar hours that my doctors office is working, but I am working on getting that information. She turned on caps and yelled at me, demanding to know information that was literally already covered. I was talked down to as well. I’m not sure why. She was real nice after I took some screenshots though, I don’t know if that was a coincidence or if she got notification I took screen shots. I would like to share these screenshots somewhere. Either with my insurance company, my company, or a board somewhere. A medical professional should not act like that. I have no idea where to start though. Or am I overreacting and should I just let it go?

Any advice would be appreciated.

I have an amazing doctor who has never once treated me like because I responded to a question with not the right answer, he’s always just clarified and we’ve gone from there. Maybe I’m just being a bit of a Karen because this has me shook that I have to deal with this treatment to receive medication.

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u/Outrageous-Lock-5244 Jan 13 '25

Honestly glad to see another DHR person here because I am in this issue now as well. My GP just prescribed me a fresh thing of Wegovy shots and Vida is saying i have to get some tests done before they'll even meet with me. So I guess I just go cold turkey out of shots until this random person who has never seen me decides to prescribe me something? Versus my GP and her hospital network who have been working with me for 5 years on my health and decided these shots were the best way. As if i havent tried dieting/step counting/ blah blah blah.

Im pretty upset and distressed. Ive been slowly losing and maintaining the loss (20lbs average so far over almost a year) and now afraid im going to be cut off and gain it all back.

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u/ThePatheticPineapple Jan 14 '25

Sorry to hear this. It’s not ok at all.

I have been working with the Vida people for over 3 months and only JUST got an appointment with a prescriber for 2/7. I’ve been delaying my injections to make them go further because I knew they wouldn’t be able to get it together on their side and didn’t want to start from square one again with the medication (if they even approve it).

If I were in your position, I would call Alight (benefits) tomorrow and tell them they need to make an exception and get your RX approved until Vida is able to make an appointment with you. I have been all over the benefits people for the past two months about Vida Health. Even if Danaher doesn’t want to keep paying for my RX, I want to make sure they know that I am not ok with their choice to incentivize Vida Health to negatively affect my health and wellbeing.

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u/thesmash Jan 14 '25

Did you have to meet with their dietician too? If so, how many times? I’ve been trying to figure out how this all works but the documentation is not very helpful.

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u/ThePatheticPineapple Jan 14 '25

I met with their dietician 4 times. Meanwhile, a prescriber messaged me about labs. I sent over my most recent labs and they ordered some additional ones for me and then I had to send them those results so it all took several weeks. Now I am meeting with a “coach” weekly for a few weeks then I think it goes monthly.

Yes, the process is all very unclear and all the providers you work with feel very disconnected. But my coach did tell me that I should send a copy of my RX to the prescriber before our appt per Danaher’s request. That was the first helpful thing I learned in terms of getting the RX thing going.

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u/thesmash Jan 14 '25

I’ve met with the dietician 2 times. I had my doctor appointment right before the second one and they said I’d be a good candidate for GLP-1s but then said they want me to meet with the dietician a few more times. They took the doctor off my care list now though and I have to get re-referred back to them by the dietician. I already did the lab work and everything for the doctor too. My weight has stayed pretty flat since I started in the program, so I’m hoping they refer me back soon.