Cancer patient told to shut down yard sales

[FiveMagic]

When Jane Cline was diagnosed with bone cancer at the beginning of the summer, she didn't expect the terminal disease to eat holes into her bones and take away her mobility so quickly. Barely able to walk, she was unable to work and consequently could not get health insurance coverage. So, she was forced to sell her worldly possessions in order to pay for her monthly healthcare bills, which amounted and still amount to thousands of dollars each month.

 

Although Cline kept the yard sales in the backyard, neighbors complained. The city of Salem, citing a little known law that prohibits residents from having more than three yard sales a year, told Cline that "the law is the law" and she had to shut down the sales or face a $300 fine.

 

 

When news sources got ahold of Cline's story, people from all over the country pitched in and donated $16,500 to help pay for her treatments. Now, the mayor of Salem is trying to get her yard sale moved to a commercially zoned location.

 

I know that if I were in Cline's position, I would have done the same thing, regardless of whether or not I knew about the law. The real criminal here is the U.S. healthcare system that places more value on profit than human life. The corrupt and immoral system drives people to do things they wouldn't otherwise do (sell all possessions, get married, travel to different countries) just so they can afford the treatments required to keep them alive.

 

In the U.S., it is virtually impossible to get healthcare coverage with a pre-existing condition. A pre-existing condition can be anything from cancer to asthma to tingling in the legs (a potential precursor to Parkinson's or Dementia).

 

If you are lucky enough to be employed and to then have an employer who offers healthcare, you automatically get coverage. However, you still have to pay a monthly rate (which can cost hundreds of dollars), a yearly deductible (which can cost thousands of dollars), and any copayments (which vary based on treatments). Additionally, insurers will often flat out deny certain life saving care and will only cover a certain percentage of the cost of treatments they do authorize.

 

When a childhood friend of mine was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 25, she was working as a special education teacher and was fortunate enough to have great healthcare coverage. Nevertheless, her co-pays amounted to about $1000 a month. Four years of co-pays added up to an immense bill, and although she had a couple fundraisers to help pay the cost, she is still paying off medical debt four years later.

 

Though my friend was lucky enough to have a family that could organize fundraisers and support her while she was sick, Cline and others like are forced to break the law to ensure their survival or at least prolong their lives, and the fact that they have to do so is the biggest crime of all.

 

It's cases like Cline's that remind us how lucky we are to live in a country with a healthcare system that puts human life first.

 

 

http://news.sympatico.ca/oped/coffee-talk/cancer_patient_told_to_shut_down_yard_sales/bd3e298b

Edited August 26, 2011 by FiveMagic

[Gasterbator]

wow sad story indeed. and it is sad that we have to do whatever it takes (even breaking the law) for life.

 

"The real criminal here is the U.S. healthcare system that places more value on profit than human life. The corrupt and immoral system drives people to do things they wouldn't otherwise do (sell all possessions, get married, travel to different countries) just so they can afford the treatments required to keep them alive. "- FiveMagic

 

this is so true and sucks.

[Wifestein]

Those laws suck. Just let her do those yard sales

I'm glad there are some nice people that donated though