These stories come from the real people who live with a broken health care system. Some have health insurance and some do not. Many of these stories suggest potential solutions* that lead to quality, affordable health care we can count on. One thing we all agree on is that the we cannot trust the insurance industry to fix themselves. To learn more about what Health Care for America Now stands for read our Statement of Common Purpose.
We wanted to give you a chance to speak for yourself, in your own voice, about the need for Health Care for America Now. Do you have something to say? Tell us your story.
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Kasio
Las Vegas, NV
My daughter was diagnosed with Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis at age 2 after sustaining a fracture in her leg and a desperate search for a diagnosis. Once she was diagnosed the treatment didn't work fast enough. She stopped walking and never learned to talk until she went into remission at 4.
We were insured at the time of her diagnosis. However, the insurance covered only about 30% of the medical bills we ran up. After several years and fights with the insurance company I decided to cancel the insurance and use the $400/month premium to go towards her medical bills. We survived it, painfully.
About a year after her remission the symptoms reappeared. She started missing school and waking up crying in the morning. Even when she was put back on her medication the swelling in her legs wouldn't go down. The doctor recommended a more aggressive treatment and cautioned that doing nothing would force her to have a total knee replacement operation by age 12.. and she could become completely crippled and unable to walk in the meantime. Furthermore, unchecked the disease may cause other joints to be affected and could even attack her eyes, leaving her blind.
The medicine recommended was called Enbrel. It costs $2300 per month. This is completely out of reach for even a middle class family. But it amounts to about 75% of our total income. We are faced with treating our daughters medical condition or paying our mortgage. We filed for bankruptcy last November.
My daughter is now 7 years old and has dealt with unimaginable pain for her entire life. She deserves to have the very best medical treatment available to save her joints and eyesight. I am from a military family and was raised to be a patriot. I regret that I have to raise my daughter in a country that doesn't care about her and she will never experience America as the wonderful home of the "American Dream" that I did. It is shameful that in the richest country in the world we cannot provide for the basic medical needs of our children. It's depressing that no matter how hard I work, I will never be able to provide her with the $30,000 per year medical treatment that she needs to prevent the loss of her knees or vision. I regret even more that I probably will spend her college savings on a knee replacement surgery.
*Health Care for America Now is not responsible for the content of these stories. These stories are submitted by individuals in the online audience and have been edited in some cases. Health Care For America Now does not endorse any of the solutions or policy positions suggested in the content of these stories. Health Care for America Now is a coalition of organizations that agree to the Statement of Common Purpose.
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Read the Statement of Common Purpose.
