Edit: I've increased the gofundme goal because I'm being evaluated for a pain pump or a spinal cord stimulator and having a lot of specialist visits in the next month as well as a surgery

Hey, it's Cassie, and I could use help

Last summer, I had spinal surgery, which got infected in August. I've been on disability pay that is just 60% of my previous income since then. Now that it's 2025, it's a new year with new medical bills and new deductibles. Physical therapy, medications, doctor visits and medical transport adds up, and I also besides my spinal surgery complication also have chronic illness of crohn's disease, which itself is very expensive to treat, and I already owe some outstanding amounts to several providers. I've already been to the ER twice this year.

Now, in the state of Illinois, you can let medical bills just go to debt collectors and they can't force you to collect, and hospitals can't refuse you even if you owe them money. However, that'd screw up my treatment plan with my surgeon, with my physical and occupational therapists, and the other providers who are currently treating me; doctors can refuse to see you as a patient outside of emergency contexts if you owe them outstanding debt.

So, this would help with continuity of care.

I have a very strict and careful budget; I don't pay for any streaming services, and have no savings because things are very month-to-month, with almost all of my money going to housing and medical care. In fact, things are so tight that, there are several medications that I haven't been able to fill, because they are too expensive and I hadn't hit my out of pocket max for COBRA insurance yet. I am very close to hitting my out of pocket max ($2,500, which took my remaining savings), even though it's only 4 months into the year, so this GoFundMe is to help me not get dropped as a patient in the meantime. However, that's also why I anticipate this GoFundMe helping me for rest of year, not just now, because once I hit Out of Pocket Max, unless insurance denies claims, all future costs will be covered.

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