Which pump? Did insurance cover it?

crazyanimals · March 2012

Just trying to prepare for the possibility of preemie #2... Confused

I didn't know that insurance will cover a pump if medically deemed neces....Wish I would have known that the first time. Anyway.

If I have to exclusively pump again, should I rent a symphony? If I rent one, how long does insurance usually cover it?

If insurance covers the cost of a pump, which one should I buy? I have a PISA but had a horrible time with it and BPing in generally so I was looking at maybe the freestyle (which looks much more convenient to tote everywhere) or maybe an Avent ISIS IQ duo?

Pumping with LO #1 only lasted about 2.5months, low supply, so sore I would cry when I pumped, etc....

Thanks!

snoangel79 · March 2012

Insurance is covering the Symphony for me as long as they are in the NICU and a month after they get home. After that I can rent for $75 a month and if it's over 3 I can buy it for the price of 3 months rental. I have Harvard Pilgrim in MA.

DoingItRight · March 2012

My insurance would not cover the pump even with the prescription. I did rent the Symphony and then have the PNS. The symphony is amazing compared to the other pump. When I first used the PNS it was awful. The symphony was sooooo much better. My rental is up at the end of this month. I wish that the symphony wasn't so expensive so that I could keep it.

DrRx · March 2012

My insurance won't cover it despite my baby being in the NICU. I'm renting the Symphony 2.0 from the hospital for $60 a month. I'll probably rent it for about 3 or 4 months. I'm very fortunate to have an amazing BM supply and will probably have enough frozen to last for several months at the rate I'm going.

gysberger04 · March 2012

My insurance also did not cover a breast pump (DD was in NICU for 37 days) - they had a "no exclusions" clause. We have fought it, but still haven't gotten any money back for our breast pump. We purchased the Hygeia EnJoye pump in the hospital's lactation boutique for a discounted rate and it is wonderful! I pumped continuously while LO was in the NICU and still pump 1-2 times a day and it works wonderfully!

iristony · March 2012

My isnurance did not cover the pump. Iwish I had tried to fight for some money from them. I rented an Ameda Elite pump for 9 months. Once I went back to work, I kept the Ameda at home for pumping there and bought a PISA to bring to work. I was an exclusive pumper for 9 months so having both pumps was good. The hospital grade worked better than the Medela PISA, but I was not about to lug that to work.

miesl · March 2012

Looks like I was lucky - my insurance covered my PISA.

shanlubey · March 2012

My insurance covered the rental of the Ameda Elite while S was in the NICU. They did not cover the Ameda Purely Yours I bought, but I was able to submit it to our FSA. I loved the Amedas I used. I also used a Symphony at the Level 2 nursery and was not the biggest fan. I was too used to the simpler Ameda. Less parts!

HEmery · March 2012

I have the Freestyle. Love it. While nothing is better in my mind, than the hospital grade Symphony, my pump is mine and well worth the money. I use the Symphony in the milk bank. Insurance did NOT cover the Freestyle.

flutepharm87 · March 2012

I had the option to either rent the Symphony or use the insurance benefit to purchase a breast pump. I could choose whichever one I wanted as long as it was through a supplier they worked with. The best one I could find that was offered through a contracted supplier was an Ameda and it was awesome! I actually got better results with that one than I did with the Symphony (the NICU allowed moms to use Symphony's in their pumping room even after mom was discharged, so I did to save the motor on my home pump). My insurance would pay for either 80% of a 90-day rental for the Symphony or 80% of the cost of the pump of my choice. I picked the home pump because I intended to be using it for a while and it would save me the most $$ in the long run. I made it about 6 weeks, but BFing/pumping just didn't work because my body couldn't keep up with the amount of milk the boys needed. But hey, I still have the pump so I can try again next time!

caitdana · March 2012

miesl:
Looks like I was lucky - my insurance covered my PISA.

This

TwinnyMommy · March 2012

Our insurance covered the symphony pump while the boys were in the NICU and for the first year of life. If I decide to stop bf or pumping before I just need to call and drop it off.

Pips09 · March 2012

I rented a Symphony from the hospital. It worked pretty well, but I have no other pump experience to compare it to. Insurance was supposed to cover it while she was in the NICU. They denied it first because they couldn't read the coding on the form, and then a second time because I didn't get it pre-authorized. I did check to see if it was covered, and was not told at the time that pre-authoriztion was required, so I was mad about it. We ended up paying the $75 per month rental fee.

May524 · March 2012

My insurance wouldn't cover my pump during our 101 day NICU stay. It sucked. I rented the Symphony for 2 months and it was awesome. I am still now using my PISA.

lwmooney87 · March 2012

My insurance would cover the pump BUT the hospital made this entirely too difficult. They didn't know how the process worked apparently. I rented the Symphony for 3 months, then once my supply was established I bought the Medela Freestyle. I LOVED it. I got just as much milk as I did with the Symphony. Unfortunately, DD was diagnosed with a milk protein allergy and I had to stop pumping and she had to have special formula. So, it was kind of a waste to buy that expensive pump for just 2 months of use. Oh well, maybe there will be a #2 and I can use it then.

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