TLDR: My youngest daughter is about to lose her car, and maybe her job, because her health insurance won’t pay for the ambulance that drove her to emergency surgery.
Karalyn has always been one of the hardest working individuals I know, a tough nut to crack.
Though a high school counselor told her, in public, that she wasn’t college material, she earned a degree from the University of Nebraska’s prestigious Johnny Carson School of Theatre & Film.
A lower leg amputation didn’t dissuade her from moving to Seattle to pursue her career. She worked part-time jobs in retail and restaurants for years there until freelance work for a PBS affiliate finally earned her a full-time position. For them she’s done advertisements, documentaries, even training videos for NASA.
This only scratches the surface of her history of work and sacrifice, but it gives you some idea.
And now she’s about to lose it all because of for-profit health insurance. She’s a private gal. I’ve only now managed to pry these details from her of unpaid debt:
- $3,292.20 ambulance bill.
- $1,721.15 for ICU stay.
- $5,354.17 prosthetic bill that has been garnisheeing her wages at $516.11 per paycheck. (She’ll have that paid off at the end of February.)
- $2,084.69 overdue for 3 months of $635.25 a month car payments. (Living in Seattle as an amputee, she needs a car more than many of us.)
- $5,958.14 of related debt that she’s been paying down with the help of a financial advisor.
To add insult to injury …
- Her medical insurance is itself threatening to garnishee her wages for $997.14.
- And by the way, much of this medical debt is because the ambulance took her to the nearest ER, which is out-of-network for that insurance company.
I’ve been careful throughout this post to avoid expressing the depth of my feelings about American healthcare. But I will say there’s a reason that, while I don’t condone Luigi Mangione’s actions, I do hope that the case’s conclusion is every bit as long and drawn out as any politician’s.
There’s a GoFundMe account set up for Karalyn, if you can help. Or contact me if you’d rather contribute directly.
Thanks for reading this.
Yours,
Les
Thank you for the donation, Mike. Especially in light of your own child’s need. It’s crazy that our fellow Americans would rather bet on their own health than pay a few hundred dollars in taxes to ensure that they and everyone else were covered. Here’s hoping for a saner future.
I’m so sorry, Lester (and Karalyn). I gave a little, but one of my kids just needed a medical service that’s going to cost me $9,200. My insurance will cover the rest. I’m lucky enough to sort of be able to afford it – who needs retirement, anyway? – and I know most people couldn’t.
The man Mangione killed had chosen to let thousands die for the sake of profit. He was a mass murderer, and the only thing that makes me sad is that his passing didn’t change anything. The meeting he was coming to attend proceeded as planned, and he was replaced within a day by the next person whose job is to put profits over people’s lives.