The title says it all. I was in "wait and see" status after several opinions, but after an emergency room visit after my first spell of vertigo ever, it seems that the ER doctor's recommendation to get the tumors surgically removed is not good enough mandate to even see an ENT. I've been told I had to get a referral by the ENT's office from my "regular provider" that has waiting lists weeks long. Sure, I guess I could seek some mythical shorter waiting time doctor, but with my limited insurance (only Medicare and Medi-Cal) and pre-existing anxiety and organizational incompetence issues, all this talk of "shopping around" and the like looks like a daunting mountain behind a mountain of the impossible.
I see that first step, the general practicioner, in a few days. In my experience it could be a few weeks to see the ENT, and for all I know I could get another "wait and see" recommendation even with the vertigo, or something more dreadful like "your coverage doesn't cover you, you're on your own". It's true I had these tumors diagnosed BEFORE I had disability/Medicare/Medi-Cal, so that's been creeping up in the back of my mind.
I feel helpless, frustrated, and very, very frightened. I don't know what to do except what I'm told to do, which is wait and see, fearful of another vomit-inducing fall-to-the-floor vertigo attack, or the relatively low-level dizzyness and instability I feel just about constantly all the while.
How do I "shop around" let alone navigate this tangled web of backside-covering medical policy practices?
