I'm 70 years old. (Updated 2/1/2019)

[Stonepounder]

I posted earlier about trying to figure out why I have been getting short of breath. X-Rays and MRI showed scarring of the lungs, but none of the blood tests gave a definitive answer, so I had to go in for a lung biopsy. (Not a whole lot of fun. Four days in the hospital.)

Turns out that there is only one place in the US that actually looks at the lung tissue and figures out what's going on. Takes a couple of weeks to get the results back. So, finally, I went in to see my pulmonologist on Wednesday. Conclusion: IPF - Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. So, what you ask is IPF. I means that you are developing scaring on your lungs and they don't have a freaking idea why. (Idiopathic is a big word that means "We don't know".) But the average life expectancy for me is 3-5 years. Maybe.

Up until the last couple of years there was nothing that could be done. The scarring is irreversible and there were no medications. However, things are looking a little (and I emphasize the word little). There is a new drug on the market (new as in only a couple of years old) that seems to have the ability to slow down the scaring process. Goody.

Minor problem. IPF is one of those 'orphan diseases' so, lots of research for meds, not many folks buying. Result: medicine is EXPENSIVE. Like, would you believe $95,000/yr? WTF! Who the hell can afford $95,000 a year??

But, I love my doctor! 1. When I saw him on Wednesday he had already talked to my insurance company and had gotten them to approve the med. So, my co-pay would only be $3,000 a month. 2. He had also called the vendor (this is not something you pick up at your local pharmacy) and they called today. They have a program that helps with the co-pay. So, first they check the easy discount. I qualified. Dropped the co-pay to only $2,000 a month. Still completely impossible for me to pay. So they checked the second tier plan. I qualified for that as well.

Now here's the part that totally blew me away. The second tier plan picks up where the first tier ends. Believe it or not, tier 2 pays for EVERYTHING! No co-pay at all. (Note: I'll believe it when I get the meds and no bill.) But, we will certainly give it a try! Note, there is no cure and I will never get any better, but the meds are supposed to significantly slow down the scaring, so hopefully I won't get worse, or at least the progression of scaring will slow down.

We will see what happens, but I am feeling a little more optimistic.