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Getting enough diabetes test supplies in the UK

J

JKames123

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I have a cousin who last month was diagnosed with diabetes.
I heard that its a struggle to get testing kits from the NHS (UK) Mainly because of rationing!

How do you guys cope with getting supplies?

Apparently people in the US get oversupplied testing kits because of insurance practices.
 
JKames123 said:
I have a cousin who last month was diagnosed with diabetes.
I heard that its a struggle to get testing kits from the NHS (UK) Mainly because of rationing!

How do you guys cope with getting supplies?

Apparently people in the US get oversupplied testing kits because of insurance practices.
Click to expand...

Testing kits are supplied by the NHS to any diabetic on insulin or certain other strong drugs that force the pancreas to produce extra insulin.

For the rest of us, we self fund. There is no other choice. Still, at least we don't have to buy private insurance for our health.
 
JKames123 said:
I have a cousin who last month was diagnosed with diabetes.
I heard that its a struggle to get testing kits from the NHS (UK) Mainly because of rationing!

How do you guys cope with getting supplies?

Apparently people in the US get oversupplied testing kits because of insurance practices.
Click to expand...
Basically self funding. I realized I would be lucky to get anything from the NHS and my appointment with the DN wasn't for a few weeks. I looked for the meter with the cheapest strips, these are the true running cost. I chose the SD CodeFree. @Rachox has some useful codes for discounts.

At the appointment with the DN, I went armed with my spreadsheets and food diary. She gave me a meter and a prescription for 100 strips a month. This is half of what I need, but it certainly helps. I am fairly sure that the prescription will be stopped once I have achieved stability.
 
Apparently people in the US get hammered by insurance costs.
 
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