Michael Moore’s film, Sicko, tells many stories of people who have health insurance, but can’t get coverage for specific illnesses that should be covered under their plan. While the film is heartbreaking in many ways, it barely scratches the surface of real life people who never dreamed that they would lose their insurance.

The LA Times recently reported on one of those people, Cynthia Campbell – and her story is no less heartbreaking. She is a 52 year old nurse who paid into the health insurance system for over 30 years. At a recent rally in California, her husband held up a sign that read, “Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Don’t Kill My Wife – We paid premiums for 30 years and now you won’t insure her? How dare you!” The nurse had her health insurance coverage dropped once Blue Cross / Blue Shield found out that she had cancer. In a frenzy, she and her husband searched everywhere to find her insurance – to no avail. She had become “uninsurable”.

Time is ticking

Time is ticking for this 52 year old nurse. She loses her insurance on July 20th, 2007 – and then she’s on her own. She addressed the crowd at the rally and appeared frail – her hair just recently growing in after her last round of chemotherapy. She talked about her frustration in trying to obtain insurance – especially now that she desperately needs it. Echoing her husband’s sign, she told the crowd that her insurance company had always been there for her – as long as she didn’t make any claims. Now, they’ve abandoned her altogether.

A shocking alternative

As part of her search for insurance, she contacted Medicare to see if she could start receiving benefits early, but was told that she couldn’t as you must have had your disease for at least two years. Unfortunately for her, she might not even be around to meet that deadline. In a shocking comment, she explained that she had also tried to get onto MediCal, California’s version of Medicaid. She was told that she made too much money but that she could get on the plan if she got pregnant, aborted the baby and then kept the card! Her response was, “I would let the cancer take me first.”

A possible happy ending

After the LA Times reported the story, a follow up was printed stating that she might be getting a job with a member of a California congresswoman who saw her story. While that’s certainly good news for her, it’s just not how the system should work. Her story is just one in a million and others might not get such a happy ending. Although her insurance company dropped her when her policy expired, many others have had their insurance wrongly rescinded or their insurance company simply not pay. If this has happened to you, contact an attorney who knows how insurers operate and let them fight for you.