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Does Bronchiectasis warrant a COPD diagnosis

Posted by rosalynclifton @rosalynclifton, Feb 21 11:49am

I have MAC and Bronchiectasis but my medical file includes a COPD diagnosis. COPD has disqualified me from changing my Medicare supplement policy which goes up every year. Is it possible to remove COPD from my records? Will it make a difference to the insurance companies?

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Mentor
Sue, Volunteer Mentor | @sueinmn | Feb 24 3:29pm
In reply to @rosalynclifton "Thanks for the input. I’ll see my pulmonologist soon for results of my CT scan. The..." + (show)
@rosalynclifton

Thanks for the input. I’ll see my pulmonologist soon for results of my CT scan. The CT should show if I have COPD in addition to the others. By the way, the Medicare supplements initially have to take you with preexisting conditions, but if you later want to change to a lower cost policy, they can deny. The Part D drug plans are the only ones restricted to the enrollment period so the Part B supplements can be changed anytime if you qualify. I will find out if Bronchiectasis is viewed in the same way as COPD by the insurance companies.

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It might be helpful to find out who entered the diagnosis of COPD. For example, when I was seen by a specialist for a totally unrelated (orthopedic) matter, their system did not have a place for the diagnosis "Bronchiectasis" or "Lungs-Other" so the rooming Medical Assistant, without my knowledge, entered "COPD".

I was lucky that my insurer sent a message "You have been diagnosed with a new Medical Condition." As soon as I saw what it was, I immediately had it corrected - I have enough diagnoses already for an army - no need to add an incorrect one.

I always read the clinician's "After Visit Summary" for the same reason - in one they listed "daily opioid use" even though I was given 20 oxycodone after surgery and only used a few of them. That can bite you down the road.

I hope you can get the record corrected.

REPLY
bsi15 | @bsi15 | Feb 25 12:24am

I have no BE-doctor yet, maybe in summer at the main German BE-center,
they have 6 months waiting time.
My Breathlessness and presumably FEV1 went down suddenly with pneumonia.
Until recently low FEV1 did not necessarily mean COPD but with the new definition
it looks that it does.
I have no COPD in my chart, I just commented to another post and the new GOLD-definition.

REPLY
bsi15 | @bsi15 | Feb 25 12:34am
In reply to @bayarea58 "@bsi15 I see your logic but having widened, scarred, dysfunctional airways is not anti-obstructive. BE falls..." + (show)
@bayarea58

@bsi15 I see your logic but having widened, scarred, dysfunctional airways is not anti-obstructive. BE falls under the umbrella of obstructive lung disease as it can (depending on severity) impact our ability to fully exhale, leading to air trapping. A quick google search will confirm what I am explaining and I am sure your pulmonologist can further explain it to you better than I.

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I may also have mistranslated "obstructive".
German wikipedia gives it as
"dauerhaft atemwegsverengende Lungenerkrankung (2022)"
which means chronic airway narrowing.

They give as cause : bronchiolitis and then emphysema.

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