WTOC, Savannah, Georgia, news, weather and sports | Cost of Transplant Surgery Only Part of the Problem
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Imagine you're on the fast track for surgery that could change, and maybe save, your life: an organ transplant. But what if the only thing standing in your way was not the cost of the surgery, but the cost of the medications to keep you alive afterward?
That's one woman's dilemma, and it could cost her life. Jeannie Wilson of Richmond Hill needs an organ transplant, but her biggest worry isn't the operation itself. It's the cost of her medications which may keep her from the surgery she so desperately needs.
Taking many medications is a normal way of life for Wilson. She's been living with type 1 diabetes for over 20 years of her life.
"Taking six or seven shots a day is no fun, but I'm used to it," she said.
Three years ago, Wilson's health started rapidly declining and doctors gave her devastating news. End stage renal disease. Her only solution was a double organ transplant.
"If I get a pancreas, and a kidney, I'll have a shot at a whole new life," she said.
Wilson is now on disability while waiting on for her new organs. But the same procedure that will save her life will cost her too. And it's not just for the operation itself.
Medicare will pick up 80 percent of the cost of the surgery, leaving Wilson to still pick up at least 20 percent of the hospital bills. And still, the entire cost of the medication she will have to take for the rest of her life--almost $2,000 a month. It's money Wilson doesn't have, since she can't work and she can't work unless she has the life-saving operation.
"It's up to the individual to raise money or have a second insurance to pay for the medications," she said. "And since I've never had a job, I've never had a way to get more insurance."
What's worse is that Wilson can't have the operation, unless she raises at least part of the money needed to pay for her life-saving medications.
"I have to take those drugs as long as I have those organs," she explained. "I need the anti-rejection drugs so my body doesn't win the fight against them."
Wilson's up for the fight. She's not letting a lack of money stop her from a second chance at life. "Fight tooth and nail to get that money, and I'm going to do it. No matter what it takes, I'm going to get those organs."
Wilson and her mother have already had one fundraising event and are planning more. They are also writing some of the drug companies, hoping they will help offset some of the costs of these life-saving drugs.
Reported by: Melanie Ruberti, mruberti@wtoc.com
