Meet Melanie Shouse.

Meet Melanie Shouse.

A few years ago, Melanie was living the American dream when she transformed an old Domino's storefront into an expansion of her home business. But just as the store was opening, Melanie was diagnosed with stage four breast cancer and told she had only months to live.

Melanie had insurance, and she went straight to the experts at Siteman Cancer Center in St. Louis. Working with the world-renowned doctors there, she's beaten the odds and stayed healthy for years. But now her insurance company, a subsidiary of WellPoint, is refusing to pay for the medication her doctors recommend.

Now, meet Wellpoint CEO Angela Braly.

She makes almost $10 million a year in salary and stock benefits, and then defends dropping people's insurance when they get sick. Next week, Angela will be in Washington, D.C. attending a convention of the biggest insurance company executives in America. This conference is a great opportunity to confront insurance company CEOs who deny care to increase profits.

That's why Melanie Shouse will be there. Isn't it time that insurance company CEOs come face to face with those Americans who've been denied care? Melanie thinks so, and that why we're joining our friends at TrueMajority Action and standing with her. Please add your name to their petition of support right now.

http://act.truemajorityaction.org/p/7002/bluepetition?petition_KEY=140&source=dfa

we are all so fragile - one major illness can wipe out everything we've worked so hard for all our lives. It can destroy our financial security. When we have a life threatening illness, our health should be our only concern, not how we are going to pay the bills.

I am Shawn and I am very pleased to meet you.

My wife went through a very heavy breast cancer treatment regimen, too.

I'm lucky she is a German citizen who was treated in Germany. Who knows what an American insurance
company might have done? Maybe the same as with Melanie Shouse? I'm glad we never had to find out.

The only thing I'd add is
"Isn't it time that insurance company CEOs come face to face with those Americans who've been denied care?"
They don't care. If they were decent human beings they'd be trying to help people already. I don't think it will bother most of them in the least.

Does anyone still doubt all insurance companies are scum? United Healthcare denied coverage for a medication my cardiologist said I absolutely needed, and UHC didn't even pretend it was for medical reasons. They just kept me in a loop until I went to HR, and the HR lady came back and said it would never be paid for "because it was too expensive." Fortunately I managed to pay for it out of my own pocket plus getting it from Canada, until I got on Medicare, but it sends me into the Medicare donut hole each year.

and she exercised no stock options. For running a $22 billion company, that's on the low end of the scale as much as that might sound offensive to someone with low income... and Medicare has been paying for Melanie's treatment, which from my reading she purposely delayed seeking, contributing substantially to taxpayer cost of her treatment.

http://womensvoicesraised.org/statementShouse.shtml

What's your point?

Go, Melanie!

P.S. It would be cool if someone took pix of our heroes at this all-important event. ;)

Hellpoint

:kick: