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tazzygirl -> RE: Republican Death Panels (12/5/2010 5:32:39 AM)
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quote:
Similarly, Randy Shepherd, who ran a plumbing business, told NPR that his heart muscle is weakening as a result of the rheumatic fever he had when he was much younger. AHCCCS was the only heath insurance he could get because of that pre-existing condition.
Hardly optional, but this is what they cut.
quote:
Without funding from the state, Felix needed to raise $200,000 to pay for the liver transplant. The liver was directly donated to Felix from a family friend who died suddenly Monday. But because Felix's family could not raise enough to cover the cost of the operation, the liver went to another patient.
Last i heard, medically, you cannot live without a liver.
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20023102-10391704.html
quote:
PHOENIX - A Phoenix man awaiting a bone-marrow transplant got good news Friday -- word of two donors who are possible matches.
But new budget cuts for Arizona's Medicaid program also take effect Friday, and they eliminate coverage for many types of transplants, including the lifesaving one Mark Price needs.
Sucks to be you, dude.
quote:
Besides bone-marrow transplants involving non-relatives, coverage for lung transplants and some heart and liver transplants has been eliminated.
Also eliminated is coverage for occupational and speech therapy, insulin pumps, hearing aids and emergency dental care. There's also no more funding for wellness exams, but mammograms, pap smears and colonoscopies remain covered.
Oh yeah, insulin pumps... bad medicine.
quote:
Arizona's cut of optional services will save about $5 million for the fiscal year that started in July, said Jennifer Carusetta, an AHCCCS spokeswoman. An additional $15 million of federal funding provided on a 3-to-1 matching basis will be lost.
The reductions in transplant coverage means deaths "could be a possible outcome if somebody is unable to obtain a transplant," she acknowledged. "You can't take away a benefit without somebody being affected."
Carusetta said the cutbacks could affect up to 100 people who may need transplants, but only about 15 percent of patients are likely to get a transplant in any event. Schriber estimated AHCCCS has funded five to 10 bone-marrow transplants a year. The procedure can cost $250,000 or more, he said.
"But if they're in the situation like Mr. Price, those are people who have no options," Schriber said. "They will die without this."
I could go on and on... and i probably should
As far as corneal transplants being "optional", i personally believe you are full of shit. The costs associated with training a sight-seeing person to deal with their blindness is staggering in itself. The notion that vision is an optional benefit to life.... lol. But, you go ahead and believe that. Also believe that this kind of transplants is one of the cheapest and one of the most successful types of transplants performed.
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