Miss Kat applied for her first job today!
She did great in the interview. The manager liked her a lot and that she had a great personality and was just what they were looking for! She remarked how outgoing and friendly Miss Kat is as well.
I'm so proud of the lovely lady she is turning out to be. She is an independent, gutsy, and all-around AWESOME young woman who just happens to be deaf.
There have been very few occasions where I have felt let down or disappointed in AB and this last month has been the worst! We are married to AB because Miss Kat has bilateral 90K internal devices. While her outside processors have changed, her internals are here to stay! She has had each of them for more than 10 years (which means they are out of warranty but they are working beautifully) and we hope they will be with us for many, many more!
So, this brings us to the latest fiasco. Miss Kat's Q70s are obsolete. We had warning and knew this was going to happen, so we have been preparing for the purchase of the next generation. The new processors looked great and were to be released at the end of last year (right when we could no longer get service for her Q70s). Hubby and I prepared by maxing out of FSA to cover our portion and tried to talk with AB about what we could do. Well, due to forces beyond AB's control, the Marvel was delayed. It sucked but Miss Kat's current processors were working ok, so we dealt with it.
Just before Christmas AB called and asked if we wanted to get the process started so that Miss Kat's Marvel's could get ordered. We said absolutely and went over the insurance information and why she needed the upgrade. Fast forward a month...then two months...and we have heard nothing. Finally, I start calling at least once a week. They connect me to "our specialist" who continues to say we are waiting on insurance. Well, then I receive paperwork from our insurance saying we are approved! Miss Kat is (ok, I am!) so excited. I call back "our specialist" and leave a message- no one calls back. I call two days later and ask for "our specialist" again. They say she isn't in but will call us back in the morning. No call back. I call the next Monday and she isn't there AGAIN! I ask if I can just fax over our insurance approval so we can get started, they say fine and that "our specialist" will receive it and call us back in the morning.
NOPE
Several days pass and now I'm pretty mad. At this point, we are more than halfway through the insurance approval period and if we don't get these processors ordered, it can be canceled. Finally, I call AB and refuse to let them send me to "our specialists" voicemail. I say that I want to order today. They allow it. We order and they say that they need to check what our remaining out-of-pocket portion will be. They SWEAR they will call back the next day and have the bill.
NOPE AGAIN
Several more days pass and I call AB. We pay our $7500 portion and are told that "they aren't shipping out purple yet" but that Miss Kat is right at the top of the list. I ask how long until it ships...they have no idea. I ask for a receipt so we can be reimbursed through our FSA for the out-of-pocket. Yeah, they can't do that until it ships....
So, we are waiting with no clue how long until her processor ships out. We can't make an audiology appointment (even though it takes at least a month to get in) because we have no idea when we might get her processors. In the meantime, I have seen and talked with many recipients who have chosen purple Marvels and they are absolutely shipping.
Customer service is important. I don't like the way that AB changes its attitude towards recipients once they are locked in. Before Miss Kat was implanted they were amazing. They answered all our questions, spent so much time explaining. Heck, even when her internal device was recalled and we were facing reimplantation as a possibility, they were AWESOME (she never needed reimplanted despite being on the recall list). They wanted our business when it was a fight against the other two companies! Now that we are stuck, they don't seem to feel the need to support and treat their customers the same way. And I have read and talked to many recipients who are feeling the same way.
Shame on you Advanced Bionics!
