A Couple Of Partial Block Sets Are Now Complete Block Sets

I think I mentioned that I've been going through orphan blogs and baggies of miscellaneous things I've received from others.  I kind of fell behind on scrap processing this year because of hubby John's health issues but now that the is getting healthier and stronger I am in the mood to empty some boxes and bags. 

I came across this baggie someone gave me of 6 inch (finished) blocks. There were 42 of them. I decided 63 blocks would make for a nice kiddo quilt set 7 x 9/ 42 x 54 inches. 

There were a variety of different blocks in mostly pinks and blues.  There was only one in the bunch that had a lot of white in it. 

I made some H (or I) blocks...

...and I made some Plus Sign blocks...

...and I made some Rail Fence blocks...

...and I made some Nine Patch blocks.  And now I have a complete set of 63 blocks. They are going to rest for awhile in the SAR (Some Assembly Required) box. 

And this is another baggie someone gave me of 6 inch (finished) blocks.   It had 22 finished blocks and pieces for a  few more. Again, I thought 63 blocks would make a nice kiddo quilt. 

All of the blocks were framed squares (what I call Happy Blocks). There were mostly pink and yellow blocks and a few aqua blocks and one black floral block. 

The baggie had some cut pieces so I was able to make 10 blocks to add to the mix.  Then there were 2.5 inch squares left in the baggie that I used as the centers for the rest of the blocks. 

Since there was only one block in the finished blocks with a black frame I found some scraps to make a few Happy Blocks with black frames to add to the mix. 

And since there were only a few aqua blocks in the finished blocks I made a few mre blocks with aqua frames. And then...

...I made the rest of the blocks I needed with yellow, pink and orange frames. 

And now another block set is going into the SAR box. 

And sew on...

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CELEBRATE! (my word of the year)

Dec. 17 - This is a long one but basically we are celebrating only paying hundreds of dollars instead of thousands of dollars for dental services to treat complications of radiation treatment for cancer.  They were not covered until this year. 

Federal Register Medicare and Medicaid Programs CY (Coverage Year) 2024 Payment Policies Under the Physician Fee Schedule...

..."Final Action Statement

As described in the sections above, we are revising § 411.15(i)(3)(i) to add to the list of clinical scenarios under which Medicare Part A and B payment is permitted for dental or oral examinations performed as part of a comprehensive workup prior to, and medically necessary diagnostic and treatment services to eliminate an oral or dental infection prior to, or contemporaneously with, the following Medicare-covered services: chemotherapy, chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy, and the administration of high-dose bone-modifying agents (antiresorptive therapy) when used in the treatment of cancer. We are also adding a new § 411.15(i)(3)(i)(E) to permit Part A and B payment for dental or oral examination performed as part of a comprehensive workup prior to, medically necessary diagnostic and treatment services to eliminate an oral or dental infection prior to, or contemporaneously with, and medically necessary diagnostic and treatment services to address dental or oral complications after, radiation, chemotherapy, and/or surgery when used in the treatment of head and neck cancer. The policies we are finalizing take into account commenters' feedback and information provided in clinical literature, such as peer reviewed publications or clinical guidelines supported by clinical evidence, supporting the inextricable link between dental services and certain covered medical services. We anticipate making conforming changes to the Medicare Benefit Policy Manual (IOM Pub. 100–02) to reflect the final changes."...

My husband had radiation and chemo for Stage IV for oropharyngeal cancer 20 years ago. Since then he has had many oral problems related to the radiation treatment.  He has had a fibula free flap restoration (jaw replaced with fibula) because his jaw bone became brittle and cracked. He has lost many teeth, had many gum infections and root canals and osteoradionecrosis (bone necrosis) in other jaw. A lot of his dental problems have not been covered by health or dental insurance.   For the past year he has had an infection tthat would not heal as well as the necrosis in his jaw and due to the necrosis the jaw could no longer hold his teeth and one tooth was so brittle it broke off. He was referred to the college of dentistry at the University of Iowa for consultation and biopsy.  They decided he needed three teeth pulled in addition to the biopsy.   We had to sign an ABN (Medicare Advanced  Beneficiary Notice ) for over $5,000 because they didn't think services would be covered.   I came home and researched "osteoradionecrosis" and landed at the Federal Register. ( FYI - I've actually read a lot of articles in the Federal Register over the years. As an I.T. Officer for a group of medical labs and a pathology group I had to make sure our computer systems were in compliance with lots of rules and regulations - most notably the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)).  Well, imagine my surprise when I read that in 2024 dental services for complications related to radiation for head and neck cancers would be covered!  So instead of paying thousands of dollars we ended up paying only hundreds of dollars.   The reason I researched it is so I could be educated in case I needed to file an appeal for a claim denial. 

Dec. 18 - Homemade vegetable soup made with home grown veggies.