Thread by @KFILE

I wrote for the @nytimes about the costs of childhood cancer.

Each day my daughter battled cancer was horrific. But I was one of the lucky ones.

Families go bankrupt, have utilities shut off, max out credit cards, & lose at least one parent’s income.

nytimes.com/2021/08/05/opi…

A 2018 NCCS survey of 449 families found 95 % said their child’s cancer caused a financial burden on their family. A 2009 study in the American Journal of Medicine found that 14.6% of medical bankruptcies were caused by the illness of a child.

nytimes.com/2021/08/05/opi…

“I got a cold call from H.R. that said, ‘You’re terminated effective immediately and all your benefits expire at midnight.’ We went from 50K a year to zero,”

One parent told me, of when her unpaid medical leave ran out.

nytimes.com/2021/08/05/opi…

It doesn’t end with death: Many families regularly crowdfund their children’s funeral costs, because their treatment was such a financial strain.

Other families pay thousands of dollars if their child survived for physical therapy/medical check ups.

nytimes.com/2021/08/05/opi…

"We’re 15 years from diagnosis, and this year we’ve had over $4,000 in out-of-pocket costs for my son’s ongoing medical care. It’s never ending. The financial burden of treatment and survivorship can be lifelong, and as my son gets older I fear his own economic mobility..."

Recognizing these problems also means finding solutions. Proposals from Democrats and others bipartisan are trying to ease the financial stress with paid family leave, tax credits for caregivers, and making it easier for families on Medicaid.

nytimes.com/2021/08/05/opi…