A PR person working for LifeScan alerted me to the fact that her wonderful client is giving away 10,000 free meters.
Her press release explains that having thoroughly researched the needs of the meter-using population, LifeScan had decided that what we've all been needing is a choice of color for our meters.
Well, wake up. What we need is more affordable test strips.
And the other thing we need is for someone, like, say me, to point out what a cynical piece of self-serving crap this giveaway is, since every recipient of a "free" LifeScan meter will have to spend $100 on LifeScan's strips to be able to use it. LifeScan no longer includes even the ten pathetic free strips they used to include with their new meters.
Strips cost a lot more now than they did when I was diagnosed 9 years ago. This in an age where every other technological item decreases in cost with every passing month. I paid $1,900 for a computer in 1998. I paid $66 for 100 strips. Far more powerful computers are available now for $400, but strips are up to $100.
Last I looked, there wasn't anything special going on inside of the strips or the meter, no platinum, diamonds or gold. The cost goes up because we folks who use them are a captive audience and all the major companies who make strips that insurance will reimburse seem to have agreed to charge the same price, giving us no real choice.
But now you can get ripped off in the color of your choice!
Copyright Janet Ruhl 2007. If you are NOT reading this on http://diabetesupdate.blogspot.com the content has been STOLEN.
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