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Sunday, May 13, 2018

Mother's Day 2018


I've been having a sad Mother's day. Beyond my own grief, there's this in the news.
Her only chance at life is a new liver, but her insurer said no. Then she wrote a powerful plea to the CEO
I tweeted


The latest compensation data I can find for the CEO of United Health Care is in the neighborhood of $20 million per year.

@UHC tweeted today as well.


No comment.
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I'm still kinda speechless. Working on a video for Danielle's Memorial. Haltingly.

UPDATE

A GoFundMe campaign has been launched:

Help Erika Zak Get a New Liver 
Erika, our dear friend and sister, urgently needs a liver transplant to save her life. Now we can help Erika and her family, Scott and Loie, get to the Cleveland Clinic and pay for travel and accommodations, related medical expenses and recovery.

In 2014, Erika was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer that had spread to her liver. Her daughter, Loie, was just 3 months old. She underwent more than 70 rounds of chemotherapy and several surgeries. Then came a major blow, followed by a miracle. One of the procedures left her liver severely injured, and it began to fail. But Erika also began taking an immunotherapy drug that her doctors say has killed most, if not all, of her remaining cancer. She was officially listed on the transplant waiting list last week, and will be heading to Cleveland very soon to wait for a liver. For the first time, Erika has a real opportunity to see her sweet daughter grow up. And we can help.

We have seen our friend and sister fighting so hard for this. We have seen such strong support from her family and friends, and what a happy home she has made for Loie. It's been a heartbreaking and awe-inspiring struggle, and they are so grateful for all of your support.
I will certainly contribute.

Also, concerning my late daughter:

In Loving Memory - Announcing the Danielle L. Gladd Scholarship Fund

Stepping Stones Project has created a scholarship fund dedicated to providing Tuition Assistance to honor the memory of our beloved Executive Director, Danielle Gladd. Danielle was part of the Stepping Stones family from 2014 until 2017, when she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. She passed away on April 27, 2018. Danielle will be remembered as a strong spirit who was deeply committed to creating experiences for youth that would have long term impacts and affect lives in a positive way. She was our community “center pole” and “mama bear”. We miss her strong presence.

The Danielle L. Gladd Scholarship Fund provides donors the opportunity to provide Tuition Assistance for our program. Tuition Assistance allows youth and families to participate who might not otherwise be able. Danielle exemplified a culture of giving, even personally contributing to make tuition affordable for some families. This fund will provide for a more diverse and inclusive community and help SSP to continue to offer quality Coming of Age programs to more youth and families throughout the San Francisco Bay area.
 We will certainly contribute to that as well.
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More to come...

1 comment:

  1. On Mother’s Day a friend texted me a link to an article on CNN about a woman denied a life saving transplant. I was shocked. I am currently fighting a different insurance for the approval for a double lung transplant. Thank you for adding your voice to bring this game played by Healthcare Insurance.

    ReplyDelete