Soto’s Medical Expenses

Hi, friends-

The Andy Soto we know and love needs our help. On 4/7, while riding his e-scooter, he was struck by a driver who ran a red light in downtown Long Beach. It is terrifying to think how close he came to losing his life. He sustained major injuries, however: shattered tibula at the left knee, broken right femur, and catastrophic injuries to his right foot that required the amputation of two toes and the application of a skin graft to save the remainder of the foot (oh, and there is a ton of hardware holding all those pieces together). Also, his right clavicle is broken, so he only one functioning limb, his left arm, for the foreseeable future. While this is awful to relate to you, he was actually quite fortunate because, prior to the emergency surgery after the accident (the first of two surgeries he’s had in the last week), there was a very real possibility of his left leg being amputated at the knee and losing his right foot entirely. Also, he did not have brain, spinal or internal injuries, probably due to his cat-like wrestling reflexes which made him instinctively tuck and protect while airborne. So, we have eternal gratitude that the outcome was not even worse than it is.

That being said, he is completely unable to be transferred out of the hospital for some time, since you need at least 2 limbs to get in/out of wheelchair. PT is extremely limited as well, because his foot cannot be lowered for more than 3 minutes at a time, or it risks separating the skin graft from the foot wound. We honestly have no idea how long he will be in the trauma ward, and when he is released, he will be going to a skilled nursing facility for round-the-clock care and PT once he is cleared to do so. A doctor yesterday mentioned “approximately 100 days in the nursing home, give or take,” so…. it’s going to be a long, long road. For now, they said he’s not leaving the hospital any time soon.

Though he is fortunate to have insurance (and good insurance at that), the out-of-pocket costs have already gone up to $4,000 in the past 6 days. Between that and the other expenses that will be coming, I can see the worry on his face. He’s in too much pain and too broken to expend any energy on anything except for healing, so let’s help give him some peace of mind, if you are able to help.

We are still awaiting the police report, but we are 99.99% sure this was a hit and run. The legal side of catching this person and suing them is a whole different topic we will address at another time, but we truly appreciate any help you can contribute to give him some peace of mind to focus on healing. If Venmo is your thing, he is @Andy-Soto (and his profile pic is him in a chicken onesie ).

Thank you for your love and support,

Sonia