the cleveland nurses said use them as long as you want, but at columbia the nurse said absolutely not and to replace every month. they do get a bit wonky and my valve is happier with the monthly rotation.
as for prices. thanks bill for the walmart tip. they deliver for no charge so it's the best deal around. to clarify the medicare prices: edge park charges medicare 114.81$ for a catheter and 17.70$ for a tube of lube! my supplementary picks up what medicare doesn't cover so in theory i wouldn't have to pay anything for my 5 tubes per month. this was an eye opener for me about medicare costs. i see doctor's billings and hospital admittance prices, but have nothing to compare it to. my liberal inclinations prevents me from needlessly driving up medicare prices--albeit a drop in the bucket--when i can afford to buy my own lube. the added benefit is that i don't have to pursue edge park people to send the extra lube. spent woefully too much time on that so happy to drop it. janet