Medical Debt Leads to Loss of Vision

It is not often that I talk about really controversial issues, but I recently read a story that broke my heart. As many of you know, congress is deeply debating if and how we should change our health care system. Although I personally have never been without health care, or had medical debt, I still think there are fundamental problems with the system that must be changed.

The problem the article addresses is what's called "under insured" or "under covered". What it really amounts to though, is families swimming in medical debt, and people giving up treatment because they can't afford it. Monique Zimmerman-Stein knows all about this. She and her two daughters suffer from a rare disorder called Stickler's syndrome. This disease devolves joints and causes retinal detachment. Monique hasn't seen her daughters for two years, and now she's giving up treatment to restore the little vision she has left to save money for her daughters' treatment. Her family has insurance, but it isn't enough. The family has medical bills that continue to pile up, and unless something changes, they will likely become another family that has to file for bankruptcy due to medical debt.

Nothing about this situation is right. No family should have to stop treatment due to lack of funds. No family should have to worry about paying a medical bill or paying for rent. For me, this kind of scenario has to go away. If we're really going to provide Americans with real health care reform, then part of the plan must include a cap on how much people owe for medical bills. Monique and people like her didn't ask to be afflicted with their medical conditions, but they're being punished for having them. I have been really fortunate that my eye condition doesn't need medical attention, but this may not always be the case.

If you have vision loss, how might things change if you didn't have health care? If you don't have health care, what kind of medical care aren't you getting because you're not insured?