Million Dollar Smile
Donation protected
My son has several medical conditions some are more serious than others. His medical conditions require him to receive treatment from a team of doctors some of whom work out of the National Institutes of Health. At one time we were not sure how much of a future he would have, he even received a “wish” from the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Along with unexplained symptoms, he has Crohn’s Disease, NEMO Immunodeficiency, Asthma, GERD, and Ectodermal Dysplasia. The last condition he inherited from me.
Ectodermal Dysplasia mainly causes problems in the skin, hair, skeleton, salivary glands, sweat glands, and teeth, among other things. My son only had 17 teeth grow. Missing teeth have caused medical, emotional, and practical issues. Eating and smiling are on the shortlist of these issues, but missing teeth can cause headaches and back problems. His jaw was also impacted by the condition as it was twisted and misaligned. The treatment plan was the reconstruction of his lower face. This treatment includes reconstructing both jaws and the inside of his mouth. He has gone through bone grafting, double-jaw surgery, post implanting and tooth extraction. He has needed several appliances including expanders, braces, retainers, implants, and bridges. The process has been extremely difficult for both of us. For example, after one of his surgeries, he could not speak or eat for six weeks. I had to feed him using syringes.
Through my job, as a teacher in the public school system, I have insurance. He, at eight, met the insurance companies' lifetime limit on care. That means that my insurance does not deem his treatment medically necessary and has not covered anything since then, his doctors disagree with the level of medical necessity. We have submitted claims to the insurance company over and over again and repeatedly received no assistance as they do not cover teeth that are missing rather than if they were broken or had fallen out.
The total cost has reached about 50,000 dollars, not too far from what I make annually. I still owe about half of that money. By the year's end, my son should have all of his teeth. As the treatment is coming to its end bills are coming faster and faster. I am at this time only asking for part of what I still owe, anything you can offer will be helpful and greatly appreciated.
I was able to get my teeth as a young adult, but, without help from my insurance, I am more than struggling to do the same for my son. This entire time I have been trying to provide for him myself. As a single mother, I believed this to be my duty. Unfortunately, I just can't afford his treatment. I will have to pay these bills in March and May. I only want to see my son have a confident, healthy, functional smile.
Ectodermal Dysplasia mainly causes problems in the skin, hair, skeleton, salivary glands, sweat glands, and teeth, among other things. My son only had 17 teeth grow. Missing teeth have caused medical, emotional, and practical issues. Eating and smiling are on the shortlist of these issues, but missing teeth can cause headaches and back problems. His jaw was also impacted by the condition as it was twisted and misaligned. The treatment plan was the reconstruction of his lower face. This treatment includes reconstructing both jaws and the inside of his mouth. He has gone through bone grafting, double-jaw surgery, post implanting and tooth extraction. He has needed several appliances including expanders, braces, retainers, implants, and bridges. The process has been extremely difficult for both of us. For example, after one of his surgeries, he could not speak or eat for six weeks. I had to feed him using syringes.
Through my job, as a teacher in the public school system, I have insurance. He, at eight, met the insurance companies' lifetime limit on care. That means that my insurance does not deem his treatment medically necessary and has not covered anything since then, his doctors disagree with the level of medical necessity. We have submitted claims to the insurance company over and over again and repeatedly received no assistance as they do not cover teeth that are missing rather than if they were broken or had fallen out.
The total cost has reached about 50,000 dollars, not too far from what I make annually. I still owe about half of that money. By the year's end, my son should have all of his teeth. As the treatment is coming to its end bills are coming faster and faster. I am at this time only asking for part of what I still owe, anything you can offer will be helpful and greatly appreciated.
I was able to get my teeth as a young adult, but, without help from my insurance, I am more than struggling to do the same for my son. This entire time I have been trying to provide for him myself. As a single mother, I believed this to be my duty. Unfortunately, I just can't afford his treatment. I will have to pay these bills in March and May. I only want to see my son have a confident, healthy, functional smile.
Organizer
Tracey Macdonald
Organizer
Miami, FL
