Tag Archives: Health

Wanda’s Story: Part 3/3

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In 1991, when my Mom was 46 years old, my Dad (who was self employed) paid $50,000 to Rush Hospital in Chicago in order to get my Mom admitted for a procedure in the hospital. Doctors told my mother that a bone marrow transplant would give her a fighting chance against metastatic breast cancer. Although we had insurance coverage, our insurance company considered a bone marrow transplant “experimental.” Experimental meant that the insurance company wasn’t going to pay for it.

Prior to this, my Mom had a mastectomy and chemotherapy treatment. After the bone marrow transplant, three tumors would develop on her brain in which she would then endure radiation treatments. The total bill for all of my Mom’s treatments and stay was well over $300,000. With tears in her eyes, she told my Dad, “Bill, if I live and we have to live in a box on the street, what good is that?”

After 2 year battle with metastatic breast cancer my Mom died at 47 years old; I was 17 years old. Immediately after, our health insurance company raised my Dad’s premium to $600.00 a month. He had no choice but to drop our coverage. I saw bills continue to roll in from my Mom’s treatment along with late notices to pay the mortgage. My Dad managed to hold on to the house. We ate a lot of frozen waffles.

Not having health insurance wouldn’t only have an effect on my health then, but in the future. I remember being sick but not wanting to worry my Dad. I knew we simply didn’t have money to spend at the doctor because we were no longer insured. “A partial repeal of the Affordable Care Act could cost up to 13 million children to lose their health coverage.” When doctors and dentists tell me now that I have a very high threshold for pain, I know where that developed from.

Despite having access to healthcare from insurance now, I drove myself to the emergency room when I needed my appendix out (I didn’t want to wake my kids and thought I just had the flu). I was in labor with my first child for 2 1/2 days refusing any drugs because it wasn’t “that bad yet.” I’m also the one who finally went in to the doctor after my whole cheek swelled up from a tooth that needed a root canal. The dentist said the tooth was actually loose because the inflammation was pushing the tooth out. I’m not sure I was born with a high threshold for pain, but rather, it was a learned behavior.

According to the Congressional Budget Office report, enacting the American Health Care Act means that, “In 2026, an estimated 52 million people would be uninsured, compared with 28 million who would lack insurance that year under current law.” No one should ever be in jeopardy of losing their house over medical bills. No one should have to think they are a financial burden on their spouse or partner because they get sick. No child should be worried to tell their parent they are sick. No parent should have to worry about their child getting sick because they can’t afford to get them the care need. No one should have to think because they have had an illness in the past or in their family history that an insurance company can refuse to cover them.

Where is our line in the sand that We the People no longer allow politicians to cross? Prior to this election, I use to think that covering pre-existing conditions, access to health for all and caring for vulnerable populations was something we held together strong on. We’ve made a few gains in the 25 years that my Mom died. By the House passing the American Health Care Act (AHCA), which repeals major parts of ObamaCare, the estimate premium surcharge for a 40 year old diagnosed with the cancer my Mom died from tops the list: $142,650 more for patients with metastatic cancer. That’s a hard pill to swallow.

Wanda’s Story: Part 1/3

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For Mother’s Day, after my children were born, I use to write a letter in honor of my Mom which included showing appreciation for all of the mother’s of inspiration I knew. These were other Mom’s that either mothered me in some way or Mom’s that displayed some character toward me or my children that left my heart feeling full. This year, I’m going to do something different. I’m going to share my Mom’s story.

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My Dad joked that he was going to be a priest before he met my Mom. She grew up in Kentucky on a tobacco field. One of 6 children, they looked forward going to church where they would get a treat; a fresh apple or orange. She only went to school to the 3rd grade because she had to stay home and look after her younger siblings. She would later go back to school to get a GED in her early 30’s. She wanted her kids to value education and felt like if she didn’t have her diploma, she would be a hypocrite.

My Mom left Kentucky at 16 years old and headed to Chicago alone because her step father was “bothering her.” She worked as a waitress, was married and gave birth to my sister at 18 years old. She was walking home from work on day when she saw her husband’s car outside of a local watering hole. She confronted him with a woman on his lap. He told her, “You better stop or I’ll go get my gun in the car.” She replied, “You may need it.” Needless to say, they divorced and my sister was 2 1/2 years old when my Dad met my Mom.

When my Dad proposed, she didn’t say yes right away because she was scared. She told my Dad that her first husband said he loved her too but was abusive. My Dad wore the engagement ring around his neck until she said yes. My Dad loved her so much, he had her first marriage annulled- direct from the Vatican, written in Latin. My Dad not only proudly took on the role of father for my sister, but they had another child who is 10 years older than me.

People commented to her about how “old” she was when she was pregnant with me. I suppose, compared to carrying her first two children, she was “older.” If you consider 30 to be old…or too old to have children. (I had my first child a week shy of 30.) My parents use to tell me I was their “Love Child” because they were so in love when they had me. Imagine their faces when I grew older and questioned them about the lyrics to the song “Love Child” by Diana Ross.

I recall my Mom briefly working in a photography studio. I’d run in and smell the processing chemicals, see the proofs at her desk and works in progress where she was touching photos up by hand. She always had her camera in hand taking photos of not only me, but my friends.

She was a baker that couldn’t be compared with. She was a gardener who delighted in roses and tulips. She had an open door policy for my friends and was often the one hosting the cast parties after shows. She would go to dance competition after competition and then come home and run lines with me and never complain.

She told me a lot of stories about things she did in hopes that I would learn from her mistakes instead of making my own. She never hit me or yelled at me. We never reached the stage of “teenage drama” that you’d see on the Lifetime Channel. Maybe it’s because she was sick when I was 15 and she died when I was 17? Did we just skip that stage or did we have bigger things to focus on like- breast cancer, treatment, dying?