The View From Your Sickbed

A reader writes:

I just learned yesterday of the death of a friend’s 33 year-old daughter. She was married with two young daughters. The cause of death was listed as a Tylenol overdose, but she had lupus and that was considered to be a contributing factor since her liver was very compromised. After ingesting an unknown (to me at least) quantity of Tylenol, she slipped into a coma. She was rushed to the hospital, and while the doctors and nurses worked on her, her stepfather tried several times to give the staff her insurance card. Rightfully so, the staff was less interested in getting the insurance information than they were in saving this young woman, so he proceeded to simply wait.

After several hours, the doctor came out and told the family that she was in dire need of a liver transplant, but unfortunately he told them, her insurance did not cover liver transplants. 

Turns out during the treatment one of the staff did look up her name in the hospital files and got what they thought was her current insurance information. Unfortunately, the information was old. It was from a few years earlier, and since then, the woman’s family had changed insurance when she changed jobs. Not realizing the information being accessed was old, the family asked how long she would last without the transplant and were told….2 days at most.

They frantically tried to find alternatives, but to no avail. She died 3 hours later. No one thought to double check the information being used, and it wasn’t until after her death it was discovered that her current insurance did in fact fully cover liver transplants. Yes, in this case it was a matter of several critical mistakes being made. By the staff, and the frantic family who didn’t realize the insurance information was old. The hospital could have checked to make sure the information was current. The family could have insisted they use the card for reference. The hospital or the family could have confirmed with the old insurance company whether or not the woman was still enrolled in the same plan.

But, if there was a universal healthcare plan in place, all of that would have been unnecessary. This woman’s condition and treatment wouldn’t have been contingent on just what was and was not covered by her particular plan, and the simple fact she had recently changed jobs would not have confused what options were available, and a bureaucracy would not have come between her and her doctor.

She would have simply been treated by whatever means were necessary to save her life.