“My husband and I are uninsured and are lucky to have been
patients at a local clinic for the past several years. We’re
both still working but have jobs that do not offer insurance. One
week ago the clinic abruptly closed. So now, along with the
huge stress of uncertain income in recent years, we now suddenly
lost the one form of healthcare we’d had! I stumbled upon your
website, and eventually made my way to the MyHealthResource page.
Thank God! We will be patients in five weeks at a clinic listed
on your site, and will visit a free clinic tomorrow morning, so
that we can get help for the cold/flu we’ve been fighting for
days. Thank God I found your site and your excellent,
comprehensive list! I had been doing independent searches for
days and had found nothing to help us! All of you – and your
terrific site – are miracle workers! In addition to the “free or low-cost
providers” info, you have current info on other health topics
that I have also been searching for! You are the BEST!”
We find a dramatic difference in coverage between insurance
companies. Some clients at our treatment center get the services
they need to get better, while others have no benefits and cannot
afford care. It is a tragedy. We see profound damage to the
individual and their loved ones. We hope that organizations like
yours can make a difference, thank you!
“Hi. I am one of the very many people trying to live on a small
amount of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI), due to my
disability. I am fortunate to have Medicare and (Medi-Cal), which
have helped me to keep my health as good as my insurance allows.
I, too, was devasted when they cut so many services from
Medi-Cal, especially vision, dental and mental health care. So I
am no longer able to take care of those aspects of my health.
“I am extremely grateful to find people who care enough about all
of us enough to help. People like you are our saving grace.
“Your (Californians for
Patient Care) website is easy to navigate and very
informative. I got the information I needed very quickly. There
seems to (be) assistance for most physical needs and more. Thank
you for coordinating these services and thank you for listening.”
“I’m very grateful for the Affordable Care Act. It has helped
millions of people already and will help many others starting in
2014. It just makes sense for America, in many ways! Although I
don’t fall into the categories of people being helped by the
ACA now, I’m looking forward to being able to afford healthcare
and not be discriminated against for any pre-existing condition.
“I am unemployed now, can’t afford COBRA, but made sure I got my
doctors’ visits in before I lost my job recently. I have gone to
free/low cost clinics in the past too. It is uncomfortable to be
without health insurance no matter what. In a country this rich
with resources, how can we allow 40+ million people to be
uninsured? Affordable health insurance shouldn’t depend on a now
completely transient employment market — not at all. Health
isn’t a disposable item; it is a valuable resource that takes an
effort to maintain (and is often not recovered) and should be
treated as such by the institutions and people of this country.
“I discovered your site from a recent mailer. I’m really glad to
have all the new healthcare information, education and updates
for California. Thank you.”
“I found this (Californians for Patient Care) website
(www.calpatientcare.org) while
looking for information on shingles. My father is 96 and was
diagnosed with shingles … he has had shingles for two weeks
now. He is in excruciating pain and the most pain that he has
ever experienced in his life.
“The shingles are on the left side front and back and under his
left armpit. His ongoing stabbing causes him to jump and cry out.
“Never once was he told about getting a shingles shot, since
researching the web the CDC recommends it for older people.
“I have an email into his primary physician since yesterday
waiting for help on what to do about the armpit pain and it still
not crusting.
“The prescribed (medicine) is of no help at all.
“Concerned daughter watching her father suffer because he was not
told about the benefits of the shingles shot that could have
prevented some of his suffering.”
“I am charged with connecting over 1,000 women who received
Pap smears during our 2012 clinics in Oakland and Sacramento
with a follow-up health clinic as an effort to reach under
insured and noninsured California women citizens. Your nonprofit
is a tie-in for the needed follow up for abnormal smears. Thank
you for partnering with Remote Area Medical. Together we can
reach beyond the political stalling and get help out to our
citizens in need, now!”
“My husband is a disabled veteran who was injured in Iraq. We
lost everything. I have not been to a dentist because of the cost
in years and now my teeth are falling out. I am sure my
infectious mouth is causing other health issues. I have kids and
I get sad thinking about not watching them grow up because I
could not afford the $3,000 to fix my mouth … It’s strange
waiting for my child at her dentist appointment and thinking: “If
I had money I could have teeth.” If there is any dental help out
there I would appreciate the information. Thank You.”
“I’m self employed. Business is not good due to the economy … I
do not have any insurance. I have dental issues that simple
extractions will not solve. I was informed five years ago that I
have degenerative bone support and that I will lose all my teeth.
I would welcome dentures … All the best.”
“I recently became unemployed and lost my healthcare coverage
that was covered 100 percent by my former employer. I could not
afford the outrageous cost of $750 for continued medical benefits
through COBRA. Because I am a single parent, my son was covered
through the medical program. However, since my son receives
medical benefits it automatically links me as well with a $1,200
monthly co-payment. This is a ridicously high amount which I
cannot afford. I currently receive … unemployment benefits and
(my rent accounts for 92 percent of my unemployment benefits) …
I do not have enough to survive and pay all of my bare
necessities. Also, I am not able to meet all of my financial
obligations, and I am seriously struggling. I’ve worked and paid
taxes since I was 16 years old, and I now need help which I’m not
getting from the state or federal programs and I feel this is
unfair and unjust!”
“I was one of the millions of Americans that lost both my job,
and because of no income, my insurance. Private healthcare for
somone my age (63), with my existing conditions, is $400 to $600
per month. Up to this point, I have had coverage through the Yolo
County health program, but each time you ‘renew’ your
eligibility, the rules change, there are more and more
“conditions” and less and less things are covered. At one point,
it took me nine months to get a follow-up appointment to
check my bladder after having tumors removed, because of the
county’s “contracts” with providers. I am not quite able to get
Medicare/Medi-Cal, so am … between a rock and a hard
place.”
“My previous employer closed their doors in November 2011. I was
fortunate enough to find a new job, but the healthcare I was
paying will more then double at my new company. I no longer can
afford to put my wife and kids on medical. My 16-year-old
daughter hurt – maybe broke – her finger, and my wife has had a
sore throat for over a month. I am hoping to find something
positive on this website that could help us!”
“I am one of the many unemployed people with medical
problems in California, with no health insurance. I need medical
procedures and surgeries but I cannot afford it, so I was
scheduled for a GI, urgent one, but was told by the medical
center to pay $1,400 up front. Where do I find that kind of
payment? So medical care is only there for the wealthy … I
filed for disability, but have been turned down twice, so no
medical coverage there either. It is sad. Once I had a job and
insurance, but now because I am sick, I don’t.”
“I started to freelance last year, thinking I’d be able to afford
my own insurance. Due to a pre-existing condition diagnosed right
before I lost my COBRA coverage, I can’t find remotely affordable
insurance. Yet that condition must be managed, and it’s been a
struggle finding affordable care or even providers willing to
take me on. I found this (Californians for Patient Care) website
… I’m hoping this will be my resource for urgent clinics
and low-cost providers to help me manage my condition and avoid
emergency situations.”
” … Now I can have access to health insurance it’s a
relief, having been unemployed is enough worries. I have high
blood pressure, but now I can get my medicine every month
- this is the first time ever … Thank God for those
changes in California lately. THANKS CALIFORNIANS.”
“I currently have insurance that I pay for through my husband’s
work for myself and my two daughters. My husband’s coverage
is fully paid for. I am currently paying $1,400 a month for our
coverage. With this coverage I still have a $60 co-pay for
doctors, and a $500 per day co-pay for a hospital stay. Because I
currently have such a high rate for insurance I can’t afford to
go to the doctor, so I end up going when there is an urgent
situation. I have tried to find a less expensive insurance
plan, but because I have a pre-existing condition … I have
been declined. I can’t go with out insurance, but how much help
is the insurance if I can’t afford to see a doctor?”
” … We are continually searching for healthcare and dental
providers for our participants between the ages of 55-64. People
who cannot attend job training sessions because of infected and
decaying teeth, chronic pain issues, or mental health needs. It
is heartbreaking to witness the unresolved pain and suffering.”
“I broke my leg last year … it was crushed, the tibia still has
a break and the fibula is free floating. I require therapy but
have no money for it. (My employer) does not provide insurance
… I applied for County Medical Services Program (CMSP) but
I was told I make $200 more than the requirement. California
believes you can live on $600 a month … So I have two
choices: I can quit my job and get CMSP; or I can
suffer trying to walk on my own with broken bones …”
“I … wish to get help finding a dentist, and also more
information regarding benefits for a diabetic person. My mom
is 55 years old and having difficult getting care for her
problem. She is also having osteoarthritis, a very painful health
problem. I lost my job due to this bad economy and am not able to
find one. Wish I can help myself and my mom but it is very hard
… to live in a state that has such … high … prices.”
“My 25-year-old son is on SSI and desperately needs dental work.
I am looking for affordable dental work for him – without having
to take him to Mexico. That’s what I had to do earlier this year.
I have dental insurance, but I would have had to pay almost
$7,000 here, and only had to pay $600 in Mexico. They did a great
job. But we shouldn’t have to go elsewhere for dental work.”
Like