So what now?

A last hope for medical bill help fell through.  Hillsborough county medically needy (share of cost) program.  First denied for it, said my assets were too high....(laugh), second time they approved it....(HAPPY!!!), submitted the 31,000 dollar bill, they came back and said they made a mistake and I should not have been approved, bill payment denied.  I receive a letter in the mail saying again that I was ineligible for the program, and that "my share of costs benefits were valid until November 30th".  So what now?  Do I have the benefit until that time, really, really, I mean really?  Well guess what, submitted the bill again, not accepted....piece of sh*t system.  Thanks for nothing Tampa, thanks for the runaround for months, thanks for giving me 10 phone numbers to call that led nowhere.  Was it the amount of the bill?  Or is it just a greatly efficient failing system?  

Funny story:

I go to the Department of Children and Families, I ask around for who to talk to to apply for the program, they tell me to look on the wall of applications for the right form.  It is not the correct form, so I go back and ask again, these idiots know nothing at all, they hadn't even heard of the program before (none of them knew, they even asked each other) they told me to call a number, so I called it outside of the office.  The woman answers and says a little bit about the program, and I told her I knew all about the program, but where to apply.......guess the next words out of her mouth "Go to the Department of Children and Families"........I laughed at that woman and told her I was standing outside that place and they were the ones who gave me her number.  Just an example of the great system/people I have on my side.  

As usual the medical bill collectors are tracking me down, running my cell battery out of charge, oh well, what can I do? 

So what now?

Update ***Important***

I have been searching for some estimates for transplants.  It was shocking to find they can run in the hundreds of thousands from start to finish.  Here are a few websites I found regarding transplant costs. 

This one estimates 300k + would be spent in the first year (including transplant + medications + aftercare)

http://www.cpmc.org/advanced/liver/patients/topics/finance.html#Transplantation Costs

This one has a chart for most typical transplant costs, liver and others. (find liver in the chart)

http://www.transplantliving.org/beforethetransplant/finance/costs.aspx

There are many more.  If I were to need this procedure done tomorrow, it obviously would not be able to be done.  This why I need some serious help, more help than I have ever needed or asked for at any point in my life.  If you want to know more about donating towards my cause you can reach me at jahinearnold@yahoo.com, or simply hit the DONATE button at the top right of the page, and follow the simple instructions.  That is all for now, I will keep things updated frequently.  Thanks for reading!

Jahine

Latest "Red Tape"

The rollercoaster of healthcare in Florida. My latest bill came last week, the dreaded hospital costs. Not including the 5 doctors bills from people I don't even remember seeing, not including the ansthesia tech., and nevermind the "we can't do anything for you at this time" speech from the financial assisitance office. Single bill from hospital.....31,000+ dollars. All of this for 3 days, and them having me leave the hospital without enoughantibiotics to clear the infection I developed back in late July. I still have it until this day, luckily I was able to get some antibiotics for a seven day course (not from the hospital!). So the recent summary of events amounts to just over 35,000 dollars for 4 days worth of healthcare. July 22,23,24 equal 31,000, and September 17 equals 3,700 dollars. My issue is very disappointing, being turned down for Medicaid, told I shouldn't even bother applying for the county healthcare plan, and having 10 different "opinions" of why I should be able to get insurance.....nothing turns up, denied, denied, and denied again.

It has been tough trying to figure out which thing to try next. I am really out of medical options here, and they already scheduled me for the next procedure 2 months away from now. They say this procedure will be an ongoing thing. So, it is going to be very difficult to pay 3,700 dollars every 2 months, buy my medication for 550 dollars a month, and buy the foods necessary for my liver diet. I am reaching out to anyone that can help, it's that simple. If you know someone, who knows someone, that may know someone else that might be able to help, or if you can donate using my PayPal donation button, it will be much appreciated for sure. More updates to come soon. Thanks for reading.

Give to Live

Hello everyone and thank you for making it to my blog page.

For those people who do not know, I am living with a rare liver disease and have been for some time now. I was diagnosed with PSC , (Link 2) August of 2007, spent 4 days in the hospital and had 6 procedures / tests to determine what I had. In early July I developed a full body itch, it kept me awake almost every hour of the day. I was now sleeping maybe only 1-2 hours per day, this only after my body finally gave out and could not stay awake any longer. I didn't know what was happening, skin poisoning, sun poisoning, hepatitis? I was lost. For a short time it got a little better, sometime in the middle of July. I never thought to go to the doctor until the itch intensified. The whites of my eyes were now yellow, skin itching uncontrollably, not sleeping but 1 hour per night now, and losing weight fast. I had to do something, so I go to a walk-in clinic and get some blood tests. I have a liver function panel done, and a full spectrum of hepatitis tests. It turned out my liver was inflamed, enzymes elevated 5 times the normal level, and I had an extreme case of Jaundice. Going as far as a walk-in clinic could go, I turned away without any solution to my problem. The Zyrtek prescription did absolutely nothing since the itch was coming from the inside out, and was not a skin surface problem. The itch was due to bile acids backing up into the liver then forcing themselves into the bloodstream. My common bile duct is narrowed and not draining into my gut properly. Being diagnosed with PSC allowed me to at least start to deal with the problem. Before I knew I did always feel so tired, fatigued, and totally exhausted for no reason at all mostly all day. And the weight loss was also a mystery, 12 pounds in one month can make you wonder what is wrong with you. So far I have been in the hospital a total of 8 days, all uninsured days, mostly all unpaid. (details below) What does someone do in that case? Too expensive to buy health insurance that will cover people with a pre-existing condition, and being on disability I do not qualify for Florida low income health programs. This is why I am reaching out to everyone, anyone.

Walter Payton also suffered from this disease in 1999, he was diagnosed in February 1999 and died from this in November 1999.


The main reason for this site is to inform everyone about me and my disease, the second reason is to possibly raise enough money to cover the cost of a future transplant which can range from 300,000 - 500,000 $, and the ongoing health costs that I incur along the way. I do not have health insurance now, and I cannot buy it either due to "pre existing" conditions. My first hospital stay in August of 2007 accumulated 29,000+ dollars in a bill. My most recent hospital bill is unknown, I was just released as of July 24, 2008. I spent 3 full days trying to get my symptoms under control, losing 10 pounds in one week.

Below is a PayPal Donation button, your help is needed. Every little bit means a lot. I have considered how many people I have known through the years, and how many of those people were very charitable towards people they didn't know personally. So I am wondering who I can find to help and support my cause. Thank you in advance for taking the time to read my page, take care, I will be doing the same.

Jahine Arnold