Sobering Info

[obsidianom]

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[frankswife]

With all due respect, Obsidianom, and with the hope of not sounding like an uncaring jerk, there are people here in the good ole US dying from lack of care. No insurance. Medicare problems. No money for copays. The joke that's obamacare in which people who are too poor to afford health insurance will now be fined because they are too poor to afford health insurance. I'm sorry, but I just can't bring myself to care about what's going on in Africa.

[wbdoug]

Sometimes we do not appreciate what we have until we take a look around us and see those that do not have.
I may not like being on dialysis, but I thank God every day that I have it.
Bill

[Alex C.]

BTW, keep in mind that electricity is 120v, 60hz AC here in the US, and is 230v, 50hz AC in most of the rest of the world. Simply taking a US machine and putting on an adapter plug still won't get it to work on non-conforming electrical systems.

[MooseMom]

frankswife, it is a shame that states that have the highest populations of poor people have chosen not to expand Medicare due to the Supreme Court's decision. I can't for the life of me understand why states refuse to help their own poor.  No wonder you have little sympathy for Africans when some of our own state legislators turn their collective backs on their own people!  Every state in the Deep South, with the exception of Arkansas, has rejected Medicaid expansion.  It's terrible!  But states CAN still change their minds, so we'll see.

Some good news, though.  Poor people who have been excluded from Medicaid expansion will NOT be subject to fines!  However, it all really does depend upon the state in which you live.  States' Rights and all that.

[UkrainianTracksuit]

I’m very grateful for all the care that my grandfather and I receive.  Stories like this remind me (not the same extent as Africa) of the waiting lists for dialysis/lack of facilities/funding in the post-Soviet states.  That’s the reason I am in the sinking boat I am now and why we relocated.  There are also horror stories of what passes as “dialysis equipment” in villages.  To be fair, new facilities are being built “here and there” but I don’t think they’ve caught up with the demand.  Just thinking about this all is a bummer...

[jeannea]

Occasionally a poster makes it here from places in Asia where it is hard to get good treatment without having a lot of money. We've never had anyone post from Africa that I know of. I'm sure that most of the people in rural Africa do die from ESRD. It's so hard to wrap your mind around. We seem to have no compassion left for people here in the US and it's exhausting to think of the number suffering in the world.

[noahvale]

With all due respect, Obsidianom, and with the hope of not sounding like an uncaring jerk, there are people here in the good ole US dying from lack of care. No insurance. Medicare problems. No money for copays. The joke that's obamacare in which people who are too poor to afford health insurance will now be fined because they are too poor to afford health insurance. I'm sorry, but I just can't bring myself to care about what's going on in Africa.

I can agree with you that there is a segment of the U.S. adult population that have problems receiving adequate preventative healthcare due to lack of insurance/financial issues.  However, please provide a reliable source showing statistics on the number of people who died from being denied access to dialysis treatment solely based on monetary issues.

[frankswife]

No, I'm not providing anything. Why, so we can drag out the debate on and on? My point is we need to look in our own backyards first. If you want to give your money away to the people of Africa, God bless you. I think it's akin to putting a bandaid on an amputation. Oh, and Jeannea, most Africans die from HIV.

[nursey66]

My niece and her husband, both Doctors ,spent 1 year working [volunteer] in Ethiopia,Africa, before they started up their practices here in the USA, just a few years ago. They had electricity only every other day, had lots of donated equipment and supplies that they could not use because critical parts were missing, or no continous power,or they would get boxes of stuff from well meaning people, but didn't have the equipment to use the supplies. Many times they had no gloves, and yes, almost everyone has HIV there. We would ship gloves to them & it would cost $35.00 a box[50 pr] just to get them there.  There would be a huge long line waiting every day at the clinic door. And many would walk for days just to get there. So sad.

[jeannea]

I can't say things like that frankswife. "Most" Africans die from HIV? Africa is a really big continent involving many countries, cultures, etc. I feel that's a bad thing to say. I have a problem with you saying things like that and then saying data to back it up would be irrelevant. I think we'll have to agree to disagree.

[frankswife]

Jeannea, why is that a "bad" thing to say? Are you going to call me a racist next because I am talking about Africa? From the WHO: 34 million people worldwide are infected with HIV. 28.6 million of those are in Africa. 91% of children in sub-Sahara Africa are HIV positive. These are FACTS that you can look up just as easily as I did. Because you don't like the facts or they make you uncomfortable, does not make them any less facts. It doesn't make me "bad" for stating them. So don't attack me. Africa has more problems than a couple dialysis machines or a few bucks from the US is going to fix. The money is better spent here. Do some research.

[obsidianom]

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[frankswife]

Obsidianom, you are right and I apologize. I had just gotten another huge monthly bill for copayments for Frank's dialysis which are not covered and which we cannot afford when I saw your post. We've racked up nearly $6000 in bills in the last year. Soemtimes I worry that they will cut him off if we dont pay. I earn just a tad too much to get help but not enough to really survive and pay for everything. Again, my apologies to all if I offended.

[obsidianom]

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[MooseMom]

I read jeannea's post to mean that most Africans who get ESRD die, not that most Africans die of ESRD.  Perhaps y'all are talking at cross purposes?

[cariad]

Jeannea, why is that a "bad" thing to say? Are you going to call me a racist next because I am talking about Africa? From the WHO: 34 million people worldwide are infected with HIV. 28.6 million of those are in Africa. 91% of children in sub-Sahara Africa are HIV positive. These are FACTS that you can look up just as easily as I did. Because you don't like the facts or they make you uncomfortable, does not make them any less facts. It doesn't make me "bad" for stating them. So don't attack me. Africa has more problems than a couple dialysis machines or a few bucks from the US is going to fix. The money is better spent here. Do some research.

Look, I know you apologised to Obsidianom, Frankswife, and I feel for you in your situation - I lived in the US and have had a lifetime of outrageous medical bills, with over $20,000 in premiums, co-pays, co-insurance and deductibles in 2010 alone, a year when my husband was self-employed and his client decided to stop paying my husband for work already completed when he went in to hospital to donate a kidney to me - but I take issue with these "facts". 91% of children in sub-saharan Africa are not HIV positive! If only 34 million people, adults and children worldwide, are HIV positive then obviously that is nowhere near enough for 91% of sub-saharan African children to have this virus. I do not wish to politicize this post, either, but I cannot stand to leave this sort of misinformation uncorrected. I went to the WHO site and don't have any idea where you would have got that last statistic, but it clearly does not agree with the data that comes before it. Facts do matter. 

And I read Jeannea's statement to mean that *of* those who go in to ESRD in Africa, most do die. We have indeed had members from Africa, Des being one of the most active, and I remember her stating that where she was in South Africa people were being sent home to die. There was a long, fascinating and deeply depressing article posted here about modern-day "life or death" committees operating in South Africa.

Obsidianom, I've been to Africa twice and it is one of my favourite places in the world, but oh the suffering that one sees there is difficult to bear. I love your drive to help people anywhere on earth when you see the opportunity to do so. The fact that you and your wife are battling your own extremely serious medical conditions makes it all the more remarkable. You will be one of the few who can honestly say that you left the world a better place than you found it.

[Rerun]

I agree with Frankswife!  All the bleeding hearts of America has drained us.  We MIGHT have a cure for failed kidneys or a protable wearable machine by now if not for bleeding hearts money going to other countries and then they could HAVE our flipping machines.

Medicare is almost broke people!  Then what.  No dialysis worker I know will show up to work without a paycheck. 

We need Medicare to stay afloat before we start giving things away.

[frankswife]

Rerun

[MooseMom]

Rerun, do you truly, in your heart of hearts, believe that "bleeding hearts" have "drained" America? 

Frankswife, I am really sorry that you and your husband are having such financial problems caused by his illness.  That should not happen in this country.  But I don't think that cutting out funds sent to other countries for medical supplies will be enough to solve the healthcare cost problems we have here.

Obsidianom, I'm sorry that your post became politicized with talk of "bleeding hearts draining America".  Your concern for ALL of God's people, no matter where they may reside, is a blessing.

[frankswife]

Moosemom, I think the point I was trying to make was that the funds sent to the other countries does little to nothing to help other than make the giver feel good. They are still dying at an astronomical rate. The base problem is that these areas of that continent have not evolved or progressed at all in 2000 years. Yes, they are all God's creations, but we truly have no practical way to help them.

[obsidianom]

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[MooseMom]

I can say that I understand the frustration you must be feeling right about now, but that would be merely a platitude.

Yours is a very sweeping statement, and while in many areas of that continent progress does seem to be very slow in coming, the truth is that great strides have been made in the fight against some major diseases.  Polio is extinct except for in a few pockets, and the battle against malaria has had more and more success.  Certain waterborne diseases carried by parasites have been eradicated.  A lot of the funding is for education so that people in Africa know how to protect themselves against disease, which is much more financially prudent than constantly sending medicine, because in many cases it is just a matter of basic knowledge that can save lives.

I really must disagree with your statement that funds sent to other countries does nothing but make us feel good.  I would imagine that the Catholic Church and the many other faith based organizations that work over there would be very disheartened if you really believed this.  We have many practical ways to help.  Just because we cannot help everyone doesn't mean we should stop all attempts.

Can you access any kind of financial advice?  Obsidianom's idea of making regular payments to show good faith is a good one.  Would that work for you?  It must be so worrying for you and Frank.  To have financial worries on top of health concerns is really soul-destroying, and it just is not fair.  But the two seem to go hand in hand all too often.  I really hope that you can find someone to help you set up some sort of payment plan.  All the best to you and Frank.   

[MooseMom]

Oops.  My post was directed to Frankswife; I forgot to use the quote function.  Sorry!

[MooseMom]

Good for you, Obsidianom, for being concerned about the wellbeing of other people in spite of your own difficulties.  You are a real asset to this site, and I am touched by your humanity.  It is such a harsh world, and it takes a special person to brave the harshness and extend a kind hand or whisper a soothing word to another suffering soul.  Thank you.