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I actually sent them a contact email earlier today to schedule the testing and am waiting to hear back.

I will let you guys know how long it is to get in...

Also, I was wondering if they offered the doppler only. It would certainly be much cheaper but I guess if you wanted a definitive answer, you would need both tests...

I am looking at it like this:

Travel somewhere to get tested and/or treated = $10,000+

Bring a report from BNAC to your local vascular or IR = $4500 and insurance pays for the procedure?

Is there a flaw in this reasoning?

I'm going to quote you and change it just a bit:

Living with MS with current treatments - $$$$$$$$$$$$$

Travel somewhere to get tested and/or treated = $10,000+

Bring a report from BNAC to your local vascular or IR = $4500 and insurance pays for the procedure - PRICELESS! (Well, OK there was the $4500, but you get the idea!)

All kidding aside, I think that sounds right... With positive test results in hand, I suspect you'll get the attention of vascular docs, and I also suspect that insurance would be more likely to cover it... but I'm not speaking from experience.

Here is prof8's story, with positive test results from Stanford:
http://www.thisisms.com/ftopict-9541.html

I know Buffalo was going to work with insurance companies to eventually cover the testing...was the idea there that the testing might be covered retroactively (so that people getting tested now might get reimbursed)?

Well . . . maybe it's the way they submitted it, but I've got pretty bad insurance, and they covered my MRV in December, and they would have covered all but about $150 of Dr. Dake's work. Based on that I sought out the local interventional radiologist, who turns out to be a friend of Dr. Dake, and all I can say is that this course of action seems really excellent.

Best advice? Form a "Friends of Dake" society and take it from there! The man has a lot of friends. He is truly special.

We were informed by the folks at Jacobs Neurological Institute in Buffalo that the start of the testing has been delayed to the first of March, due to an issue with insurance. Although they wanted to do the testing strictly on a self-pay for service basis, there was a concern that New York law might require them to submit the charges through the patient's insurance. The delay is to allow their attorneys to review the legal requirements.

Thanks for the update Wichita!