[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 97 (Friday, July 22, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: July 22, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
                    FACES OF THE HEALTH CARE CRISIS

 Mr. RIEGLE. Mr. President, I rise once again in my effort to 
put a face on the health care crisis in our country. Today, I would 
like to share the story of Carol Chapman of Rogers City, MI. Carol 
testified at a Senate Special Committee on Aging hearing that I held in 
Lansing, MI, last May.
  Carol is 63 years old and has Grave's disease, a life-threatening 
disorder in which the body's immune system attacks the thyroid. She is 
facing this rapidly advancing illness without medical insurance 
coverage.
  In January 1993, Carol was not feeling well, and went to see her 
family doctor. Although her physician found that Carol had arthritis 
and some problems with her thyroid, she did not suggest any treatment.
  Four months later, Carol was experiencing chronic diarrhea, nausea, 
rapid heart rate, and felt weak and shaky. She had lost 30 pounds and 
was beginning to lose muscle strength in her arms and legs. She could 
no longer work at her job as an in-home care provider for an elderly 
woman. Carol returned to her physician, who ran tests and found that 
she had a hyper-thyroid goiter problem. An operation for the condition 
was ruled out by a surgeon, who referred her then to a specialist in 
thyroid problems. He diagnosed Carol as having Grave's disease. He 
prescribed a course of treatment that included taking seven types of 
medications daily. Her condition also requires regular office visits 
for medical monitoring.
  In September 1993, the Grave's disease began to affect Carol's 
eyesight. She experienced double vision, light sensitivity, and 
constant irritation in her eyes. The following January, Carol began to 
experience extreme pain in her right eye. Specialists found that she 
had excessive pressure on the optic nerve which required expensive 
surgery. Because of Carol's low income level, the $4,300 cost for the 
procedure was paid by the State of Michigan. Although her field of 
vision has improved somewhat, Carol's sight is so deteriorated that she 
can no longer drive her car.
  Carol desperately wants to be independent once again. She wants to be 
able to drive, and to work in order to support herself. But at this 
point Carol needs a talking clock, a large-numbered phone, and a large 
faced watch, all of which her family and friends have provided. She 
relies totally on them for transportation, shopping and doctors visits.
  Understandably, Carol's biggest fears are that she will need to go 
back into the hospital and that she will lose her sight completely. Her 
physicians are monitoring her thyroid and are now considering surgery.
  Because she does not have health insurance, Carol's disease has 
placed her in an extremely poor financial situation. She lives on the 
$589 a month she has received from Social Security since her former 
husband died, and also receives $30 per month in food stamps. But Carol 
must pay $138, or one quarter of her small income, for prescription 
drugs and payments on her medical debts, which now total over $3,100. 
She has an equal amount of credit card debt built up from the cost of 
transportation and lodging during her visits to physicians in Ann Arbor 
and Alpena. Every doctor's visit adds another $100 to $200 to her 
overall medical debt, plus expenses for the trip.
  Carol has not always been without health insurance. While married, 
she was covered by her husband's policy, but she lost that coverage 
when they divorced. After that Carol moved to Florida to be near her 
ill mother, and her father. There, she worked as a bookkeeper and her 
employer provided her with comprehensive health care coverage.
  But when Carol returned to Michigan in 1990, after her parents died, 
she was unable to find work in her field. So she took what part-time 
jobs she could find as a caregiver to the elderly, most of which paid 
minimum wage and none of which provided health benefits. Her last job, 
as a private home health aide, paid $140 a week and she held his job 
until April of last year, when she became too ill to continue.
  While working as a caregiver, Carol looked into buying private health 
insurance coverage. But her various pre-existing conditions meant that 
the premiums were not affordable. The best rate she was offered was set 
at $272 a month, nearly three-quarters of her monthly wages at the 
time.
  At age 63, Carol is not old enough to be covered by Medicare, and she 
has been denied Medicaid because she is not yet totally disabled.
  Mr. President, no one should face financial ruin because they suffer 
from a disabling disease. Carol Chapman has raised three children, 
cared for her parents, and supported herself throughout her adult life. 
Yet she is now burdened with growing medical debts as well as the fear 
of how she will take care of herself should her condition worsen. 
Americans like Carol should have access to affordable health insurance 
coverage. Mr. President, I will work with my colleagues in the Senate 
to pass health care reform legislation that guarantees all Americans 
affordable, comprehensive insurance coverage.

                          ____________________