David Harmon's Cancer Story

April 2020, during a routine cardiac oblation the doctors found 2 tumors in David's throat and neck. Turned out to be cancer caused by the human paploma virus, HPV. 

Agressive Radiation, Chemotherapy, and immunotherapy were prescribed. The radiation would be done at The Mayo Clinic and the Chemo at the Phoenix Indian Medical Center (as David is part Sioux Indian). The Chemo would be supervised by doctors from Mayo.

From April until December of 2020 David battled cancer. We constantly worried we were going to lose him. He fought hard to the point of barley being able to walk or eat. He breathed through a tracheostomy in his neck and ate through a feeding tube in his stomach.

David was lucky. As of March 24, 2021 David is cancer free. However, he's not out of the woods yet. In 2020 the only insurance for David was Medicare and consequently hefty medical bills remain..

Now, he will be seen at Mayo every 3 months for the next 5 years (as long as the bills are paid). The cost to be born by insurance, which now is Cigna and Medicare, and then the family is responsible for whatever insurance doesn't pay.

 In 2021 the Harmons purchased additional insurance from Cigna for David.

So the Harmon's are now insurance rich but at a high cost to them. Yet, this coverage, now, limits their annual out of pocket expense to $6,000 per year (which they don't have money now to pay anyway) and stops the run away effect and the certain impoverishment of having to rely on Medicare alone.

The Harmon's biggest fear is not being able to pay these medical bills and the Mayo Clinic refusing him care. It's not only the Mayo bills but the out of pocket deductible as well.

Having to rely on Medicare alone is the reason the Harmons find themselves in this current huge financial predicament.

They look to your generosity in the hopes to avoid bankruptcy and maintain access to health care.

Thank you.