Hi my name is Mandy Casarez. My niece, Joleigh is in serious need of a cranial facial surgery (cleft palate reconstruction). My sister was told to get United Healthcare insurance (by an employee at Dell Children's Hospital in Austin) & that it would cover the surgery in it's entirety. They even went as far as to schedule the surgery & set a date. Two weeks prior to the surgery my sister got a phone call saying that they had made a mistake and the surgery was not to be covered afterall. This was all due to a mistake made by the employee working for the scheduling department at Dell Children's Hospital. The insurance company now claims that it is an 'elective' surgery so they will not cover it.

If Joleigh does not get the surgery soon it will cause infection in her ears, speech impediment & possible choking. She has a huge hole in the roof of her mouth. This is not an ELECTIVE surgery. But you know...as well as I...that insurance companies are horrible- soul-sucking entities that will try to do anything in their power to screw over the very people that fund their business.

My poor sister has been battling the insurance company for months now, trying to find a hospital/surgeon that can perform this very specialized type of surgery & also take her insurance... with no luck so far. They have made & continue to make her jump through hoops with no end in sight.

We are attempting to raise money to cover the cost of surgery, hospital stay & anesthesiologist since it looks like we have no choice but to pay out of pocket. The hospital stay alone is over $30,000. And that doesn't include the actual surgery/anesthesiology portion.

Any amount that you can donate would be a huge light at the end of the tunnel. The U.S. healthcare system is seriously flawed & broken. This whole process has been hugely deflating. Although our hope has been somewhat diminished we will still push through and try every avenue possible to get Joleigh taken care of. We would much rather spend this money on Joleigh's future education & life fulfillment but life doesn't always go as planned.

Please help us restore some of the hope in humanity & get JoJo the surgery she desperately needs. Thank you for your consideration.