Help Paul LeVasseur with Medical Bills

OUR MISSION: 
To those reading, however this GoFundMe Campaign found it’s way to your hands... you may not know Paul personally... but I can promise if you’re fromMid-Michigan he has in some way, shape, or form, touched your life. 

TV5 does not define Paul. His fierce friendship, love of music, creativity, and humor might help do a better job of that. But his career is definitely one of the ways that he’s met and impacted a lot of us. Whether you’ve known him from the depths of TV5’s basement keeping the whole ship afloat on 2 hours of naps and energy drinks, or you were a reporter and he was your photog meaning he was the creative genius behind your live shots and packages, or maybe he’s a friend you’ve known from around BayCity... Paul needs our help, and let’s be honest he’d do it for any of us in a heartbeat no questions asked. 

I’m (Coty Kuschinsky) am creating this GoFundMe because what happened to Paul had such a great impact on me and he deserves a helping hand. Below are some details Paul has sent over to me for those who don’t know exactly what happened. Let me just say... I cried tears of gut wrenching fear that I would lose one of my greatest work friends when seeing him in the hospital... to crying tears of absolute joy seeing him walk out of his house with a huge smile on his face. To see that process you’d know him and his family have been through more than enough and hospital bills should be the last of their worries! 


FROM PAUL: 

On January 28, 2019 I was admitted into the hospital with subarachnoid hemorrhages caused by a ruptured brain aneurysm. Surgery was done that day to correct the problem and was followed up by a hospital stay that lasted several months and by physical and occupational therapy.

Throughout that time I lost the power of speech. Unable to swallow, a feeding tube was administered when my weight dropped below 125 lbs.

The hospital stay was a very difficult time. I was unable to move in bed and needed the nursing staff to reposition me several times a night. I was aware the entire time, but unable to communicate. It was like being trapped in my body. I won't go into all the gross details, but it was a humiliating, de-humanizing experience.

I was released from the hospital and completed the last of my therapy over the summer. I returned to work on July 22nd.

I am still currently taking medications to regulate my blood pressure. I had a very frightening episode back in May that felt like a 24-hour panic attack.

These days I am suffering from depression. I've dealt with it for years, but since my hospital stay it has been pervasive and non-stop.

The hospital initially screwed up and said that what I had was a “work-related” injury. This caused the insurance company to deny the majority of my claims, citing it as a “workman’s comp” issue. They are in the process of re-evaluating my case, but in the meantime I have a mess of hospital and medical bills stacked to the ceiling. Some have gone into collections, and my credit has been adversely affected by it.

In theory, I have a $2,000 deductible with a maximum out-of-pocket expense of $4,000. But until the insurance company straightens everything out, the responsibility rests on me to address all of these bills.