Just another health care outrage.

[Pab Sungenis]

Friday I rushed to my local emergency room showing signs of a detached retina in my right eye. They rushed me up to Wills Eye Center in Philadelphia, which is the only facility anywhere near me that could deal with it.

At the time I got to their ER I had lost 50% of the field of vision in my right eye. I've now lost about 90%.

Being trapped in their ER until 1:30 in the morning I was given a tentative diagnosis. It's not a detached retina but optic neuropathy, where swelling is literally choking off blood flow to my right optic nerve. Basically, my right eye is having a stroke. They have no idea what is causing it, and without knowing the cause they can't treat it.

Now here's the catch. They took blood work and wanted me to make a follow-up appointment to see if they could identify the cause and try to bring the swelling down to see if I can recover my vision.

However (there's always a however) I can't pay for it.

I have no insurance. I have been informed that Wills Eye Center will not take charity care. They wouldn't even quote me a goddamn cash price for the visit, not that I could pay for it anyhow! No follow-up, no blood work, no firm diagnosis, no treatment period.

America, where the poor can just go blind.

[nadinbrzezinski]

1. I am sorry, and this IS FUCKED UP

first rule of medicine is DO NO DAMN HARM... they are.

Goes will with the story that if the ACA is overturned, my local trauma docs fear trauma centers will start closing left and right.

Who uses those? Many are indeed poor.

[DonCoquixote]

3. Of course they will

But, many on the "I hate Obama because I am a Liberal" side will still cheer when ACA is overturned, because they think they can just summon things into being without the steeping stones and building blocks. Never mind who gets hurt, after all, ya gotta break some eggs to make an omelet, right?

[onethatcares]

4. many of those using trauma centers

are just suffering from those pesky automobile accident victims.

It's not like they leave home thinking "Hey, I think I'll get hit by a red light runner today"

Our country is getting more f'd up each day.
.

[DonCoquixote]

2. This almost happened to me

I had cataracts, and we in tampa had a county plan meant for the poor. Of course, the GOP is trying to kill it, but it saved my sight, even though there was a kicker. They would pay for the op until I was legally blind, so I had to wait for the cataracts to get thick enough.

[ZombieHorde]

5. I am so sorry about your situation.

Fuck for-profit health care.