Guaranteed Healthcare

In July, August and September of 2005 I had three procedures associated with internal carotid aneurysms. In July, an angiogram was performed to fully diagnose and plan treatment of the aneurysms. In August, I had surgery to clip three of the aneurysm lobes, then in September I had the coil procedure done to embolize the remaining aneurysm lobes.

I came to San Francisco General Hospital to receive some penicillin for strep throat a while ago. I waited all day in numerous lines and places before I received the simple bottle of pills. Then I got the bill for almost $500. This is the most basic medicine in the world and I don’t see how it can be justified that I have to pay so much money for it.

My horror story features more monsters than just our healthcare industry. My injury turns out to be poorly understood by the orthopedic profession as a whole, though they have made rapid strides in the last decade or so. I live in a poor and isolated area, somewhat cut off from the booming, competitive goods and services of California civilization. I have an unusual aversion to travel.

Watched Bill Moyer's Journal's story about and interviews with CNA leadership. I applaud CNA and your national network of nurses' organizations efforts to advocate on behalf of all Americans for a truly universal healthcare system. You are making a huge difference on all the patient issues you represent.

I am almost 29 years old and have had type one Diabetes for 16 years. Up until I was 25, I was able to get health insurance under my mother's work policy. Since I turned 25 I have tried a couple different HMO's, and the search is always long and hard because of the pre-existing condition.

I have two minor pre-existing conditions that are controlled with inexpensive generic drugs (cost for year's supply of these drugs from Costco is about $250). Blue Cross wanted a 75% premium override to insure me and a $5000 deductible. The insurer I went with (I must buy an individual policy or go without) charges me a 40% excess premium.

We have at least 80% of all deliveries are born out of wedlock because of lack of healthcare. Our state provide free health care for uninsured mothers to improve the outcome of the babies. Now, it is rare for me to actually assist with the delivery of an insured, married patient. So we are all paying for this care and the families prosper out of wedlock.

An ultrasound found a growth on my kidney. A CT scan clearly showed the growth but was inconclusive as far as cancer. All the doctors recommended a biopsy. The insurance company (lived in Florida at the time) said they wouldn't pay for the biopsy unless I was in pain. I of course lied. The biopsy revealed kidney cancer before it had spread and I only lost a kidney.

I graduated in 1983 as a RN and have pampered, spoiled, loved and lovingly cared for all my patients. I was their advocate. I haven't been able to work for a year and a half due to Fibromyalgia and Polymyalgia Rheumatica. My back is "gone" from standing up all those years and doing all that lifting.

I have some friends who make less than $55000 per year.. He was diagnosed with hepatitis 3 years ago and she was diagnosed with skin cancer last year. On March 1st of this year Anthem Blue Cross of Pa. raised their monthly premium to almost $2300 per month.. He can't work all the time and she is a hairdresser.. Almost 75% of their take home pay goes to pay their healthcare insurance..

My father was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in Nov 07 after whipple surgery didn't work. Two stories about his care were very disturbing.

I am uninsured; I do have Medicare. I get my medical care through the VA System. The VA Healthcare isn't what it used to be. Have had cancer of the bladder, high blood pressure, and nerve damage in the Lumbar region of my spine. And I have noticed a laxed will from VA on not following up with timely appointments on my problems.

I was downsized from my company and unable to make the Cobra payments to continue healthcare coverage. I did not realize that my inherited diabetes resulting in artery disease would prevent me from buying health insurance. While searching for a job I had to have quadurple by-pass surgery. The result was filing bankrupcy to wipe out the medical debt.

My neighbor, a 37 year old father of a 2 year old and baby twins, got brain cancer. United Health Care denied him any care as any care he needed would be "experimental". Luckily he was insured by his employer, who advocated for him, and got him care at Sloan Kettering, where now his life expectancy has gone from 6 months to 15 years.

In August 2007 my finance, Karla, was injured when a ceiling fell on her at a local restaurant. She was taken to a local hospital emergency room by ambulance where she was seen ultimately by a physician and a CAT scan was completed and she was released. After a couple days and she was feeling worse she saw her physician and she set up an appointment with a neurosurgeon.

My sister in law, Candice Minute has suffered from asthma since childhood. Severely abused as a child she was hospitalized multiple times throughout her life. (She is now in her late 20's.) When her husband filled out the paperwork for hospitalization through his job as a truck driver, he included the info about her asthma and noted all the medications she was on due to her asthma.

Shortly after graduating college, I found myself in a debt-collection agency. I worked for 25 hours / week to make less than double minimum wage, which insurance premiums were taken out of. While I made barely enough to pay rent and my student loans, it was all I needed, really. I spent my days calling people that were in credit card debt, often due to high medical bills or student loans...

My husband (a pharmaceutical chemist) and I moved to NJ back in October '07 after he had been laid off by Bayer Healthcare when they decided to close doors on its headquarters and send all research to Berlin. His new employer provided us with Blue Cross Blue Shield of NJ, Direct Access plan at a cost of $200 a month. A bargain?

My name is Scott P. and I live in southern New England. My wife is employed by a big box retailer in the home repair industry as a sales associate. She makes $30,680.00 per year gross. She is the “bread winner” in the family as I am disabled with extreme Osteoarthritis, causing severe back and leg pain and limiting my ability to work.

Our daughter was born with congenital heart defects and had the best of care when we lived in the Bay Area, however, we could only afford an HMO and learned we would have to fight to gain access to the top specialists for our daughter's care.

Having just watched the Sicko film as UK citizens living in Australia we are both shocked and disgusted at what can only amount to mass homicide. I am sure there are many thousands of humane people living outside the US who want to help support the desperate need for an urgent health reform.

I was in 7th grade when my father was away receiving advanced job training for his life long work on heavy equipment. He fell to the ground with a grand-maul seizure and with-in three days had brain surgery on his newly discovered tumor. Brain cancer was a hard diagnosis for a man who had barely suffered the common cold or flu.

If you have a Mail Handlers health insurance benefit plan, then don't have a stroke. Mail Handlers, which insures some 4 million federal employees, federal retirees, and family members, may not cover the cost of your stroke rehabilitation.

I was admitted to a hospital after being diagnosed with walking pneumonia at a walk-in clinic. I was kept at the hospital for seven days.

I am a 32 year-old female. I have been to the emergency room more times than I can count in the last three years. At one point I stopped going to the doctor out of fear. I lost my vision and various other symptoms for a short period in 04/05. I immediately got an MRI-which showed a cavernous angioma but no one informed me of this until I had another MRI this December.

I watched three loved ones die without access to healthcare, and ever since then have prayed that I won't be next. My Aunt Janet was my age, 43, when she succumbed to cancer. Without insurance or money, she waited until the pain was disabling to go in and seek care. She had bone cancer, and went quickly.

I went to the emergency room really late one night. There wasn't another patient to be seen. I was admitted immediately. I didn't see a doctor for nearly three hours. I sat in a bed with my hand in ice cold water. I was in pain. I wasn't given anything for pain the whole time I was there. I was given a tetanus shot.

You can basically read my story if you Google my name. The Wall Street Journal did a story about my fight with my husband's former employer and their "self insured" plan.

I am 23, born naturally skinny with a few genetic health problems that escalated because of lack of health insurance. According to Blue Cross of California, I am high risk because of a hospital visit in 2005 with "unexplained abdominal pains" and actually implied that I'm anorexic because I'm 1 under the normal BMI.

It began about 15 years ago. I began to feel sick a lot. Then I got mono - oh no! I was 19, began having seasonal allergies, migraine headaches and pain, everywhere. I didn't know what to do. My PCP at the time treated the symptoms and left me to my own devices.

In the early 90's my kids were school-age and I was a single mother struggling to make ends meet with a job that paid only a few dollars an hour over minimum wage. My son had a hernia since he was a child, but since he was born I never could afford the surgery and it was routinely ignored by doctors as "nothing to worry about".

What can I do? I need help. I have lots of things wrong with me. I have a foot pain all the time and back pain, I have dental issues. I have Turners syndrome which a need to see doctor for. I have very bad eczema . All of this holds me back

I live in Bowling Green,KY AND I don't have any insurance. I cant afford $470 a month as that's about half of our monthly income.

My best friend just found out that she has three tumors on her uterus, and she can't have surgery until she pay for the surgery first. I'm scared for her as she is scared too. I'm afraid the longer she waits to come up with the money for surgery that the tumors will turn cancerous. Is there a program that she can turn to, to have the surgery done now?

I cannot get the tx I need (tpi of Lidocaine) at an office visit w/o prior approval from ????(whomever it is that gives the approval I am not quite sure-BS/BS or the office manger) when I am in pain. I then have to wait for the approval which is never obtaned at that visit and is asked to be obtained for next visit.

Hi, I am seven months pregnant and have been enduring a five-month-long battle with United Healthcare relating to maternity benefits and coverage. It is my desire to give birth either at home or at a Birthing Center. I do not wish to give birth in a hospital setting unless there are complications that arise.

In the fall of 2006, I received treatment at my college campus for minor depression. I mostly went through the free school counselor but also started taking antidepressants at the advice of the school psychiatrist. I stopped taking the antidepressants in February because I turned 22 and was kicked off my parents insurance. In the fall of 2007 I was back at school for my final semester.

A letter of appeal to United Health Care: 

This is to inform you that I was rushed to the Yuma Regional Hospital on 10/24/06 and diagnosed with kidney stones. The doctors advised immediate surgery. I was taken into surgery on 11/02/06 and the only urologist in town did the surgery. This urologist seems to be out of network according to United Health.

There was this commercial that ran on the TV networks for a while. Basically, it was (or seemed to be) a PSA encouraging the public to be up front with your doctor about your health condition. If your doctor asks you where it hurts, don't lie, don't cover it up; tell your doctor the truth.

In 1992, while employed by Arizona state government, I tested positive for Epstein Barr. I was told that it was treatable and was put on a regiment of meds. By early 1996, I was experiencing severe body 'aches', while also having contracted a parasite and fracturing my tail bone.

My son and I were rear-ended on the interstate by a 4000 lb. pickup truck going approximately 75-80 mph. on the interstate. Their insured was liable for the car accident. When we went to get medical care for the injuries, Safeco refused liability in order to not pay for the medical care that was needed, even though their insured was at fault.

For the United States to be one of the richest countries in the world, it is one of the poorest countries when it comes to affordable, quality health care. It is sad and a down right shame for folks who work all of their life to be denied health care coverage when they are in desperate need for it.

Our first child bankrupted us. We had an 80/20 health insurance policy through our employment, but it wasn't enough for a normal healthy birth. Giving billions to insurance companies won't help. We're already giving them billions. The problem is that they spend all that money making sure that they don't have to pay any of it to our healthcare providers.

Anyone who talks about the availability of the American medical system has no idea what delays and limitations are present for most of us. We chose an "affordable" HMO via my husband's employer. The ACL ligament in my knee tore and it took 1 year, 7 docs and providers, 1 fancy knee brace, and 2 insurers before I was able to get the necessary surgical repair.

We are uninsured and my husband has Graves disease. He recently had an appointment with a new endocrinologist. When my husband went for his appointment he was careful to explain to everyone from the receptionist to the MD that we are on a limited income. He just needed to have a relationship with an endocrinologist to manage his disease. His visit lasted less than 15 minutes.

I don't have anything major wrong with me, but I had a kidney stone and bronchitis caught from a baby.

I truly think the only way to get this (health reform) passed is for doctors and nurses to refuse to take care of politicians and malpractice attorneys. When one of their own dies from lack of available care they will know how millions of others feel.

This is Nick’s older brother, Ricky, and I want to ask all of you for a huge favor. Our insurance company, PacifiCare, denied Nick to go to Kansas City for a special treatment of radiation for his cancer (this could save his life). Nick has suffered with cancer for 4 years of his life and he has exhausted every avenue to get better, but nothing worked.

After losing my job (which of course carried health insurance) of 10 years as a legal assistant, I went through the COBRA plan and for almost one year paid $1200 per month for health insurance. After going bankrupt because of medical bills, my husband and I had to cancel the COBRA insurance before it ran out.

I'm at my wits end. I've been dealing with Degenerative Disk Disease and Cervical stenosis for almost 10 years now. The past 2 years have been the worst. I've been through all the non-surgical treatments possible to try to get this under control. I have seen many Dr.s, all suggesting a cervical disc replacement.

I have endometriosis, I had surgery two years ago when I had insurance. The Dr. didn't want to give me a hysterectomy after I had asked for one. He stated that the endo. wasn't bad enough, and it can be managed. I am so mad at myself still to this day for not getting a 2nd opinion. I had my three boys. My husband and I didn't want anymore children.

My handsome boy Ethan was born on March 26, 2002. He was perfect from the day he was born then I realized he was not meeting his physical milestones by age of 9 months. Since he is my first born, I thought he was just a slow bloomer. His pediatrician at that time also said not to worry.

I am one of the 45 million Americans who are uninsured and who has no means to pay for their own health care. My home is in Colorado, and I am a full time student working on my bachelor of science in healthcare administration. You would think I was someone who would not have a problem with getting health care. Yet I have had a problem.

The following is my most recent guest column about universal health care in our local newspaper, the Newberg Graphic. It is really a rebuttal of a letter the previous week which had derided my earlier call for universal health care for this nation:

I am a young, generally healthy 34 year old woman who achieved my dream of living overseas here in the Czech Republic. I was ready to move back home and be with my friends and family and get back to my world until I had a health scare. I started to experience vertigo for 2 months every time I laid my head down.

My husband is self-employed and in the car business, and we faithfully pay a $400 premium every month for major medical coverage. We have three children. This coverage doesn't cover much. Each of us has a $5000 deductible, which we never meet. Our policy also has no preventative healthcare. In the past five years, I had to have a breast biopsy.

March 9, 2008 ALOHA ma'ams & sirs!

I hope that ALL of you and your families are doing well. I am a 43 year old American citizen born here, ONCE VERY ACTIVE, INDEPENDENT & HARD WORKING lady. I hurt my spine and now I am in disabling, physical pain every day of my life - with no end in sight. I live on $904 PER MONTH TOTAL, in Social Security Disability.

This is an all time low in the health care industry!

My friend - a loved, talented, hilarious musician - died last month from a hyperthyroid condition. Had he been insured he could have had this treatable condition managed. Instead, in America in the 21st century, he died. That is inconceivable and intolerable.

I recently started a job for which our insurance is individual. My employer pays a set amount towards the insurance of my choice. I have heard that Mercy Health was a good one, so I applied. On my application, I had stated that I was seeing a doctor for stress relief, due to the fact that my husband has lung cancer. I have been declined coverage because of stress related illness.

Even with medical insurance at work, the costs of medical care is way out of my budget. It seems our insurance costs keep rising and our deductible along with it. For example say our deductible is $500 then we pay "sometimes" 20% depending on procedure and if it is covered. You have to be a lawyer to figure out the wording.

I'll start this by telling you that I now have health insurance through my job and I'd be lost without it.  Previous to being able to get health care I went to a hospital emergency room because of severe stomach pain. I spent the day not wanting to go because I did not want to get saddled with another $3000 hospital bill that I knew I couldn't pay.

I've been a Type 1 diabetic for 40 years. Fortunately, my profession, civil engineering, has allowed me to always have good insurance - that is as good as it can get with for-profit health insurance. I've used Blue Cross Blue Shield almost exclusively for 35 years.

When I signed up for MediCare Part D insurance under Blue Cross I thought I would benefit. However, when I tried to have the prescription filled the drug was not covered and only a very small portion was paid. My monthly cost for Part D was more than the benefit. A generic drug was not right for me since I had an allergic reaction to it.

I have traveled with California Nurses Association to Sacramento, to rally for Health Care issues.. I am writing you this letter, because this story is so classically horrible, it must be shared.

My friend Colleen was diagnosed with a baseball sized tumor on her ovary. She is only 20 and now has to undergo chemo. This may mean she'll never have kids but that's not her biggest problem. That would be the tremendous bills and the fact that because she now has a pre-existing condition, it's unlikely she will ever find health care or be able to afford it if she did.

Paul Hannum, my brother, died in August 2006 as a direct result of our inefficient, profit-driven health care system. If he’d been a citizen of Canada, France, Great Britain or even South Africa he would still be alive -- because he would not have hesitated to go for care when he needed it.

I thought I could retire in 1999. Then I was shocked to discover how difficult it was to find private health insurance as a healthy woman in her 50’s with no serious issues. I applied with 5 or 6 companies. Many turned me down (I know) simply because of my age. They found the tiniest excuses.

I'm 57, single, out of work, and I anticipate that my next health care visit will be in an emergency room. I don't know when that will be and whether it will be because of a chronic illness or an accident.

My husband paid for health insurance for 39 years through his union. When he found out that he had lung cancer, he was told that he could not go to University Hospital Ireland Cancer Center because he would only be covered at 50%. He ended up going to the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, which is not rated one of the best for cancer. Both are in the city of Cleveland.

I am a 60 year old self employed house painter who has worked many years. Raised a family and have never had health care. I have a little bit of life insurance so I am worth something dead. I am still working so I have worth to my family as I can pay my own way. But I am one of the working poor who just barely makes ends meet.

Having all the insurance in the world will not get you health care when the doctors that you need to go to don't accept insurance, private or otherwise. The massive health care premiums will not justify the lack of health care when you can't get it.

My adopted asthmatic daughter has severe eczema and has been home-schooled.

I'm just out of college and currently unemployed. I moved back in with my family for a while, and was saving up money from my seasonal job so that I could get on my feet and get started with my life. A couple weeks before Christmas, I woke up with a sore throat.

I am a 75 year old married retired member of over 25 year of military service. Throughout my military career I was told that if I served honorably and retired from that service, I, and eligible members of my family, would be given lifetime medical care. This was a recruiting and reenlistment enticement tool.

Hi, For over 8 years I worked for a small business in Saginaw Michigan. I don't make a huge pay check, but was thankful to have very good health coverage. When I divorced, and my ex lost his job, our son went on the state MiChild health plan. My coverage was only $17 a week but to add my son to my coverage it would have jumped to $147 a week, almost half of my paycheck.

I'm sure this is typical of most of the elderly patients care! I've seen it happen with everyone I know over 70 who can't really fend for themselves. But I ask you this simple question, why? Why does the medical field care so little?

I was working as plumber’s helper for a company in my home town and had no health insurance. I was in the process of moving into a mobile home owned by one of my friends. There was an accident that occurred with the air condition Freon line and I was burned. Before I proceed with my story there wasn't any negligence involved and no one was at fault.

I FEEL THAT THE HMO INSURANCE SHOULD NOT BE ABLE TO DETERMINE IF SOMEONE SHOULD OR SHOULD NOT HAVE SURGERY. APPROXIMATELY SIX MONTHS AGO I FELL DOWN AND INJURIED MY SHOULDER. IT TOOK ME ALMOST TWO MONTHS AFTER VISTING MY PCP TO SEE A SPECIALIST. I FEEL THAT THESE REFERRALS ARE NOT NESCESSARY WHEN A PERSON IS IN PAIN.

I don't have to have a personal horror story with the insurance system to know that it's just a disaster waiting to happen. The writing is on the wall. Americans' health and well-being are in the hands of the health insurance industry which determines who receives coverage and at what cost and whose SOLE objective is to make a profit and pad the pockets of their CEOs.

In April 2004 I suffered a broken back. I had to have major spinal surgery and was unable to return to my job as a special ed instruction aid. For a period of time I remained on the school insurance policy. Eventually I had to go on Cobra...expensive, but all the same coverage. When that ran out, I was put on Cal-Cobra, more expensive, significantly less coverage. Now that is running out.

For approximately 2 months I have noticed blood on the toilet paper and thought that my ulcer was bleeding again. I saw my Dr. who determined it was not the ulcer but did not know the cause of the bleeding and referred me to a specialist. The specialist's office did not call within 2 weeks so I called them.

In the winter of 2007 I was injured at work resulting in damage to two discs in my neck. At fist I thought I was fortunate that my organization had a good workers comp program. Within days of the injury my whole outlook changed. As the months passed I was not given tests I needed, medications I was prescribed, and the care I thought I deserved as a client.

in January of 2004 I started experiencing pain in my forearms. After listening to a talk show on Wisconsin public radio, called ask the physical therapists, I concluded incorrectly that my condition was tennis elbow. I sought a referral from my doctor to physical therapists.

I became disabled in 1980; however, the Workman's comp case took 3 years to settle, and I only received a few thousand dollars. I was fired from my job because the accident happened two days before my probation period had ended. The large company I worked for got away with this, and I was considered not really disabled because I was young.

Fifteen years ago I acquired a strep throat condition when I was going to graduate school. The condition persisted and left me lifeless. I eventually had to leave grad school, and after many sets of antibiotics from roadside clinics my tonsils became swollen like golf balls.

First let me start with the fact that I am a RN in a major hospital in Houston, TX. My husband suffered a TIA and was seen and treated at the hospital where I work.

My wife and I are quite well off by some standards. We bought a house a year ago when we were both 24, and we're making it, just barely. Unfortuneately, she chipped a tooth. It was causing her pain, so she went to get it filled. A month later, we got a bill for over $100.

My Mom and Dad paid $17,000 last year in Health Insurance Premiums. That's just the premiums. They still have to meet a deductible and pay out for co-insurance. They are afraid to just drop it because they could lose everything they own if something bad happened. They are too young for Medicare.

I am a 75 year old woman. I fell off a ladder and broke my lower leg bone in two places. I went to a surgeon that was recommended to me by friends. After the surgery I was sent to a rehab facility. In addition to my phone always being out of order so no one could reach me, it was a very foreboding environment.

Dear Readers: Like many people struggling to survive in an ever increasing "high cost" world I had to make some tough choices, and while my choices might not have been the best ones I feel at the time they were the right ones for me to make.

I am currently enrolled as a graduate student and have excellent health care coverage through my university (but for me only, not for spouse or dependents). My husband is also a graduate student in the same program.

I am without health care. I get chronic migraines that often send me to ER. The ER is my ONLY access to health care.

I started graduate school this fall in Baltimore Maryland, and through school I was able to purchase health insurance for one year. I had not been insured all through my undergraduate career and decided that I should have a routine check-up since it had been five years since my last one.

I self insure at Kaiser. I had total knee replacement. A very painful, long recovery. I work for which is in cahoots with Kaiser (who provides group health insurance for the bank).

I'm a cheap date as far as health care goes: a young, healthy, not overweight, bike-commuting, nonsmoking, childless, mentally balanced person (who was unlucky enough to have to be hospitalized for a grand total of 4 hours last year thanks to a nasty virus).

Due to the high stress experienced as an RN in a critical care environment, and sometimes the requirement to work odd shifts, I have since developed Irritable Bowel Syndrome with abdominal pain and constipation. Resultant from my diagnosis, I am unable to secure health insurance coverage.

My husband was laid off last July. He was a construction superintendent for a major builder in Florida. Now we are paying $1,023 a month for hospitalization. His unemployment has just run out and he has not been able to find employment, despite 33 years of experience in construction. So we are paying for our insurance out of our savings, which is going very fast.

Im a 54 year old male born and raised in the United States in Denver, Colorado. I served my country in the US Navy and have never believed in a free ride. But I'm getting sick and tired of the way our insurance companies treat us. I'm a blue collar worker who does a job that a lot of people wouldn't think of doing. It's hard physical work.