Bawwww, we'll have to pay for poor people like this!

[xerox78]

In the Great Recession, Even Death Is Too Expensive for the Poor

Editor's Note: This story was written for New America Media as the first in a series of columns by Dr. Sanjay Basu called A Doctor's Word, exploring the impact of the recession on health care for poor people. It appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle's Insight and on SFGate.com.

Comments

[hashishinahooka]

Despite the fact that Rita had “pulmonary arterial hypertension”--severely increased pressure in her lungs--he wrote that Rita suffered from run-of-the-mill high blood pressure. Rita was denied.

I wonder how many people have lost assistance because someone couldn't be bothered to do a little research on an illness before writing it off.

[sephirajo]

Quite a few. I'm having a hard time even getting on it at the moment because my extremely severe lupus and fibro don't "impede my ability to work [name] could work as a cashier as she described and does not need federal aid."

It also doesn't help when the experts the government has look you over are often doctors of an entirely different field. She should've seen a pulmonologist. They likely had her speak to a work injury doctor. And if it was like the three appointments I've had to do the entirety of it was "walk to a door/walk ten feet."

As tragic as it is, this keeps happening especially if the claimant is under the age of fifty.

This article actually had me in literal tears. This is a woman who not only deserves disability more than most, she should never have had it taken away. The entirety of the social security system now is tailor designed to outlast you either your life, your will or both. And it's doubly so in this case. T___T

[dncingmalkavian]

For what it's worth, that's terrible, and I'm sorry.

I keep hearing stories like this, and it just pisses me right off. My partner, who is on SSD, was denied four times before he was hospitalized for the umpteenth time (he suffers from severe depression and anxiety), and it still took him forever to get a payment. He was luckier than Rita - he went to live with his brother in the interim - but what if he hadn't been?

Just ugh at this whole thing.

[hashishinahooka]

I can't even imagine someone dismissing lupus like that. I'm sorry you're going through this.

[makemerun]

I have a neurological disorder that affects my vision. It's diagnosed. I've been denied disability over and over because "there's nothing wrong with my eyes". Well no fucking shit.

EDITED TO ADD: Oh, and I guess I don't have depression because I "Smiled too much."

[hashishinahooka]

What bullshit. I don't understand why they can't hire someone who at least understands medical language. Though, I don't understand how difficult of a concept "neurological" is to comprehend.

I don't think I'd ever bother to file for my ADHD/GAD/Depression because I was diagnosed so late in life, and my ability function is on-and-off, so I can tell it'll get dismissed real quick.

tl;dr sorry

[makemerun]

They're supposed to require medical officials at appeals hearings, but mine was a psychiatrist, who not only misrepresented my mental health history, but again, obviously knew nothing about the neurological disorder that I have and misrepresented that too

[fynoda]

This happened to me, only it was my unemployment. I lost my job due to being late because I had an undiagnosed sleep disorder. I got it diagnosed and sent in all the right paperwork, only be denied. They put "misconduct" as the reason I was terminated on my paperwork. This was after four months of fucking up my initial unemployment submission. It took me two more months to reverse this, and I only won due to a loophole on their website. The judge who took my case didn't understand the disorder even though I explained it twice... I had no income for six months. It was terrible.

[sephirajo]

Ugh. :/ When my work fired me for having lupus (and did so two weeks before I could renew my FMLA) they cited laziness. I got lucky and the first hearing I got for unemployment - back when I thought I'd still be able to work - the judge realized they were spouting BS and shot it down.

I hope you got it straightened out eventually. Fighting the system like that can sap so much energy. :/