Support Shumate Family: Dad's Path to Recovery

Help My Dad Walk Again: Fighting for Care Against Insurance Denials

On October 15, 2024, my dad’s life was forever changed. What started as a routine heart checkup turned into a nightmare. On his way home, he stopped at Walgreens for a quick snack. Suddenly experiencing a spasm he panicked and left the store, only to trip and fall directly onto the left side of his face, knocking himself unconscious. The fall caused catastrophic injuries that left him paralyzed in all four limbs, requiring emergency surgery.

The hospital assured us he would receive excellent care in their rehabilitation ward. However, the facility was not specialized in spinal cord injuries. Over four weeks, his progress was slow but steady until an outbreak of COVID swept through the ward, and my dad was hit hard. Isolated and confined to his room, he could only receive limited physical and occupational therapy, and his health deteriorated rapidly.

The hospital decided to move him to Acute Care, promising this would stabilize him enough to reapply for inpatient rehab. After 30 days in Acute Care, his doctors submitted a request for inpatient rehabilitation, only for his insurance, Humana, to deny it through an automated response. Even after filing a family appeal, the denial was upheld.

Now, we are faced with the impossible task of bringing my quadriplegic father home with no proper equipment, training, or resources to care for him safely.

To further complicate matters, I’ve had to leave my life and my husband, who is completing his military service in New Mexico, to return to West Virginia with my 1-year-old son to care for my dad. We are doing everything we can, but we are overwhelmed. My dad is a loving, active grandfather who adored spending time with his grandkids. He deserves the chance to regain his independence, to walk again, and to be part of the family life he cherished so much before this accident.

Insurance has failed us. Their denials have robbed my dad of access to the specialized care he desperately needs. We need your help to send my dad to an out-of-pocket inpatient rehab facility, where he can receive the proper therapy, and we can learn how to safely care for him at home. Every donation will go toward his rehabilitation, equipment, and the training needed to give him a fighting chance.

Your generosity can make all the difference in my dad’s life and our family’s future. Please consider donating and sharing our story. Thank you for standing with us in this fight for his recovery.

With gratitude,

The Shumate family