Alex in Ann Arbor, Michigan

I just graduated from the University of Michigan and will go on to teach special education in Phoenix, Arizona through Teach for America. I spent most of my life without insurance because my divorced parents were both self-employed and could not afford health care. When we were sick or hurt, we would call family friends who were doctors to ask for advice and avoid actually going in to the doctor's because of the high costs. When I did finally get health care a few years ago, I came down with appendicitis and had to be hospitalized. I went to the University of Michigan hospital because it was the only one I knew of. When I left the hospital after an overnight stay, I was later sent a bill for $18,000 with the claim that my insurance would not cover any of the costs. My mother's income is below poverty level and I have paid my way through school on my own. To have this $18,000 bill looming over my head was a disaster. The bill has since been reduced, but it is still more money than I can manage to pay on my own.

Alex
Ann Arbor, Michigan

http://stories.barackobama.com/healthcare/stories/12902