Govinda's medical journey fund

***UPDATE as of January 2024:***

We are confident that getting Govinda to America saved his life, however he is still struggling with the difficult challenges of being on hemodialysis several days a week. He has access to an investigational medication that is helping a great deal, but he will still need to get a kidney transplant. Govinda has been on hemodialysis for 5 years now. Unfortunately, he has B+ blood type and there is currently an approximate 10 year wait in Northern California for B blood type transplants as not enough people who have B blood are donors.

In 2022, Govinda and Mira's Humanitarian Parole stay expired. USCIS has received the request for extension and processed their application payment, but there still is no update on their documents. It has been over 19 months since the application was received and it still shows a status of "Pending".

Mira is an experienced nurse who passed the NCLEX to work in California, however her authorization to work is only valid if her visa is valid. She has received several offers of employment with sponsorship for green card, however she cannot get hired until the Visa is approved.

We have faced some set backs and challenges, but we are determined to see this through. We not only want to ensure Govinda gets his transplant and has improved health, but we will continue to advocate for others face similar situations. We are actively involved in improving legislation, educating and bringing awareness about organ donation and assisting those who are stranded with immigration status issues due to their medical situation. We are not professionals, but we are dedicated to helping others.

-end of update-

-Original post-

Govinda Regmi and his wife Mira are from Nepal. Govinda has Primary Hyperoxaluria Type 1 (PH1) and is in end stage renal failure. PH is a rare, genetic liver disorder that can damage the kidneys. It affects about 1 in a million people. Govinda's health was declining and he was unable to receive the proper care in Nepal for his disease and he was not expected to survive much longer. Govinda was able to connect with our family through a social media support group over a year ago. We have 2 children with the same rare disease and understand the desperation they feel living with this disease. We bonded with Govinda and Mira and they have become part of our family.

We were successfully able to sponsor Govinda and Mira to come to America and live with us for 2 years on a Humanitarian Parole which is a program used very sparingly for extreme medical situations. They arrived on June 30, 2021 and Govinda was admitted to UCSF medical hospital in San Francisco to begin stabilizing his health and start the process of getting ready to be screened for a clinal study for PH patients. This clinical study will help Govinda get healthier and stronger so that he can eventually get a transplant. Most patients need a liver and kidney transplant, but this medication being studied could fix the problem in the liver and he would only need a kidney transplant.

Our family is sponsoring Govinda and Mira and covering all costs for them living with us. With both of our kids being on dialysis and waiting for liver and kidney transplants, we commute to San Francisco for dialysis and all medical appointments. With our schedule being so full, there will be times Govinda will need to use Uber to get to his appointments. The cost of gas in the Bay Area is also very high, ($4.49/gallon) so any extra help is appreciated. We are hoping to raise some money to put into an account so that Govinda and Mira can have some independence while they are here. We would like to get them prepaid debit cards so they can use the money when they need it. All money raised through this site will be used for Govinda and Mira and their medical journey.