Rent or Chemo?

As we all know, the health insurance situation in this country is a depressing and disgraceful joke. I have a friend who is gearing up for his third round with brain cancer. He just turned 30 last summer. The tumor is inoperable and has been growing deeper into his brain. As you can imagine, he is really looking forward to the 43 days of chemo and radiation that he has in his near future. He knows how he does with chemo (not well), but the radiation is a mystery to him.

As if that's not enough to stress a guy out, he also has to figure out how to pay for everything. He is off work on disability. He does have Medicare, but that's not exactly a free ride: There are still deductibles and co-pays; claims can be turned down if Medicare feels they are not necessary; not everyone accepts Medicare, so you don't necessarily have your pick of doctors unless you want to pick up the bill yourself; and, of course, there are limits. Medicare is not an endless resource. As with other insurance, there is a dollar limit per illness.

Add to all of that his rent, electric, car payment, gas, and all the other normal expenses we all have all the time. As I said before, he's off on disability, so of course he isn't drawing his full pay.

So what is he supposed to do? If you think his case is unique, you are either naive or a fool. It isn't. This happens all the time. In the United States of America, where the majority of the richest people in the entire world live, people have to make decisions everyday about where to spend their money: the doctor or the rent; their prescriptions or food; Christmas for their kids or the hospital for the pesky cough that they just cannot shake.

My friend has opted to have a fundraiser. Yes, that's right. A fundraiser. To pay for his medical care. Only in America.

If you have anything at all that you can give, the link to his fundraiser is below. Even if you can't afford anything right now, please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

Steve's Counterpunch to Cancer