Is Kim W......'s health still failing?

Hi Psst,

Very good of you to raise awareness for Kim.

I can't remember where but it was in a long running thread that was updated recently and I'm hoping a Warrior more in the know helps me out here but I believe he went to hospital recently for an operation, possibly on his heart, which was necessary for the poor chap to be in a position to have/find a, replacement kidney.

As far as I'm aware and I'm an avid follower of his health, this is needed but sounds worse (forgive me for saying that) than it is and more a procedure they need to do for the body to cope with the stress of dialysis and replacing the organ.

I'll try and locate the thread now and my apologies to anyone close to Kim if I've butchered that, I'm doing it from memory, which on my own admission is not as good as it was and it never was that good either.

I'll try and find it now for you psst (sorry, I don't know your real name) EDIT. Clio, I just spotted it, apologies again.

His heart has been successfully fixed - but he still has a kidney to get. It may take awhile since they have to wait now for him to be strong enough to endure another surgery.

We are all still hoping for him - still raising cash - he has a very expensive life right now still being in the clutches of the medical system.

Thanks for any help. We need some unity to help him survive.

I don't post often as I have been extremely swamped but I am also sending out light towards his way. Glad to hear his heart operation was successful.

My thoughts and prayers go to Kim. Here's to hoping he'll make a speedy and successful recovery.

I'm not popular on Warriorforum, but there's a staying: "a drop of water fills a bucket".

Don't feel bad, nobody knows who I am, either.

Fiverr is, even at $5 a pop, a great way to raise money. Who was it before in charge of fundraising -- Warrior AllStars? Start a WarriorAllstars Fiverr account and have Warriors donate gigs. I have several I could donate.

fLufF
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The fact is that, despite any claims to the contrary, they really aren't close to an artificial or manufactured kidney. ALSO, costs vary based on THEIR costs, location, and timing, so it is possible, and even LIKELY, that any current estimates will be WAY off. They are only good for estimating CURRENT costs in a similar area.

And Kims health, as I understand it, based on what I have heard about dialisys, can only hit a certain level, and will likely keep degrading from that point until he gets a kidney transplant. LUCKILY that degradation is gradual, and he will probably improve after the transplant, but many just slowly degrade due to the dialysis, and die of complications, if they don't get a transplant. IRONICALLY, though the heart problems are bad, they gave him blood, and maybe full blood, and that may actually HELP short term.

Steve

I just have to wonder about those costs.

I had a kidney transplant 12.5 years ago. Was on dialysis for a year. Since I am in Canada I have no personal costs here.

So I wonder how people cope in the USA with these costs? Does insurance cover this, or some of it?

I do quite well in my business - but costs like that would bankrupt me in short order.

So what happens if you can't afford it? Is there a safety net?

Tim,

There is Medicare (government paid) insurance for situations where someone is disabled and unable to pay for their own care. (or if 65 and over)

There is Part A and Part B - everybody above gets Part A which is critical/hostpitalization - Then Part B covers other medical expenses to various degrees and you have to pay for this coverage (about $100 a month for 65 over/non-disabled - not sure about disabled).

Then you usually also need (private) supplemental insurance to cover the costs not covered by the government - deductibles, co-pays, etc., etc. (from $100-150 per month).

I am not sure what all coverage Kim has at this point but I know he has Medicare. For 65 and older the government requires you to also get Prescription drug coverage because it is not automatically included in either Medicare or private supplemental insurance. (its a wicked web).

(... and just as an aside I just had to pay $98 for 15 pain pills because I had no coverage for that). For someone like Kim or elderly people this can be a monthly expense that is triple that or more for chronic conditions.)

The problem is there are other associated costs that are not covered, because in the meantime life has a way of going on with it's expenses and emergencies at the same time.

Because Kim spends the vast majority of his time on dialysis for quite some time now, his ability to earn an income has been greatly if not totally diminished.

What he was originally wanting to save money for was for a kidney transplant donor, when he finds one. The insurances will not pay for their expenses/recovery time/loss of income, etc., and most of the time this would be expected from the recipient.

He keeps having setbacks where his general health will get him knocked off the donor list and then bureaucratic nightmares to get back on the list each time.

So it's no wonder the poor guy has heart trouble just with all the stress of illness and financial problems. I am feeling better about his chances of survival until he finds a donor knowing that his heart has been repaired.

In addition, just before the open heart surgery, the week before, his veins where they do the dialysis gave out and he had to have that repaired. Before that the family was in a car accident and seriously damaged their only car - only to be told their auto insurance didn't cover repair to their car.

So you can see he really needs help, both medical and financial.

... and most of all he needs some real Grace just to survive long enough to get a kidney.