Island woman wants province to help pay for varicose vein treatment

An Island woman is frustrated Health PEI refused to cover a private treatment she's seeking for painful varicose veins.

Macrena Howatt, 78, referred herself to a private clinic in Moncton, N.B. to get medicine injected into varicose veins to relieve the ongoing pain she says she has.

Howatt asked Health PEI for help paying for the $3,500 procedure, but said she was refused.

"I've got nerve pain from letting them go so long because we can't afford these procedures," she told CBC.

'Pain shoots up my legs'

"When I get up in the morning, until I walk on them for a bit, on that leg for a bit, it just feels like it's frozen. It's so tight, and the pain just shoots up my legs."

Howatt said she could have surgery, known as vein stripping, which would be covered. But she said that is much more invasive, and will take longer to recover from, and she would prefer the 30 minute out-patient private procedure.

"I guess you can have them stripped and they'll put you out, which is hard on an older person," she said.

"I'll be 79 next month and I'm still working and looking after my husband as well because he [has a health condition] so he's not too good on his feet, and I have to wait on him quite a bit so I really need my legs."

Proper approval process

Health PEI said for out-of-province procedures to be funded, the patient's doctor or nurse practitioner must request prior approval in writing from Medical Affairs, including the condition, the procedure and the medical necessity.

Health PEI said it would cover the administrative cost of the injection but not the medication itself. It encourages patients seeking laser or injection therapy for varicose veins to go through the proper approval process, because these treatments are emerging as the new standard of care, and will be considered for funding.

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