Our story is one of tragedy involving the loss of our 16 year old daughter, which as difficult as it is to recount, illustrates why the battle to reform health insurance is vital to our country. We would like to share our story with you to prevent what happened to us from happening to another family.

On August 5th 2009, our 16 year old daughter Codi Nicole Alexander, was hit by a car while riding her bicycle, in a crosswalk as she was returning from her summer job as a lifeguard and swim teacher in Gaithersburg Maryland. Codi was wearing a bicycle helmet when she was hit however she sustained massive brain injuries and spent five days in intensive care in the hospital. She underwent two brain surgeries, as well as numerous other procedures to an effort to save her life. Despite a dedicated effort by the attending physicians and medical staff, Codi succumbed from her injuries on August 10th 2009. On August 14th 2009, we said good-bye to Codi as she was laid to rest.

Little did we realize that the pain and grief associated with Codi’s death would not end with her funeral. The man who hit Codi had a $20,000 car insurance policy which is the minimum amount of personal injury insurance coverage permitted under the law in Maryland.

However as you can imagine, the costs of her health care far exceeded his coverage.
Our health insurance is with Blue Cross/Blue Shield. We are self employed and have been paying high deductible premiums for well over five years under this particular plan. Because the driver of the car was underinsured, Blue Cross/Blue Shield will not be able to recover their total costs from the driver’s car insurance policy. Instead, Blue Cross/Blue Shield will subrogate against our car insurance policy as well as collect from the driver’s insurance policy. They are permitted to collect against our car insurance policy despite the fact that Codi was not in our car when she hit. She was riding a bicycle.

In essence, we are paying for the total costs of her health care despite the fact that we pay health insurance premiums. In addition, we will not be able to recover the costs of her funeral, burial plot and other associated expenses because Blue Cross/Blue Shield collects first. Furthermore we are required to pay the total amount of our family deductible and our out of pocket expenses before Blue Cross/Blue Shield coverage will apply.

Let us share with you one more situation which highlights why health care reform is urgently needed. When Codi received her driver’s permit (one month before her death) she indicated that she wanted to be an organ donor. We honored her request. As a result of Codi’s wish to give life, two people have had their eyesight restored from her corneas, her right kidney and pancreas was donated to a man in the metropolitan Washington DC area who is married with one grandchild and her left kidney was donated to a 46 year old man from Germantown Maryland, who is married and has one child. However on the day we received the news that her kidneys and pancreas were successfully transplanted, we received a letter from Suburban General Hospital in Bethesda Maryland (where Codi was treated) that stated unless we provide them our car insurance information within ten days, we would be responsible for the entire cost of Codi’s treatment.

Behind the politics are people. No family should have to lose a child and have to bear both the emotional burdens and financial costs because the health insurance system is broken.

Sincerely,

Bruce Alexander and Lisa Polak
Gaithersburg Maryland

References:
http://www.gazette.net/stories/09162009/montsch223845_32525.shtml
http://www.gazette.net/stories/08192009/burtnew210050_32540.shtml
http://www.gazette.net/stories/08122009/germnew174515_32534.shtml
http://www.cathstan.org/main.asp?SectionID=2&SubSectionID=24&ArticleID=3063&TM=44692.89
FACEBOOK: In Loving Memory of Codi Nicole