COLORADO SPRINGS – One of the biggest financial worries of any family is unexpected medical bills.
The Urban Institute study has revealed that one in seven families skipped getting medical care because of the cost, but there is a resource that can help kids get the care that they need, the United Healthcare Children’s Foundation.
At 13-years-old Killian Bristol is already putting in the work to become a video game developer. He’s spent years trying to find the right algorithms for his games and for his health.
He was born was a bilateral cleft lip and pallet. His mom, Josie, says that his condition required multiple surgeries and the latest one cost thousands of dollars.
“It was scary and we said well we’ll take out a loan, we’ll pay with credit cards,” Josie said.
Before they took out any loans, their case manager told them at the United Healthcare Children’s Foundation.
Since 2007 the foundation has awarded more than 18,000 grants worth more than $45 million dollars to families across the country.
To be eligible, patients must be 16-years-old or younger, must have a social security number, and the child must have health insurance through a commercial health plan or secondary insurance, like Medicaid.
“Everyone’s you know, ‘oh, you have insurance, you’re good’,” Josie said. “But that’s not always the case. You can be underinsured.”
Killian and Josie want other families to know about the grant, so instead of focusing on medical debt, kids can focus on being a kid.
“I know we’ve struggled with medical bills and this can help families and children,” Killian said.
If you would like to learn more about the grants, just head to www.uhccf.org.
