Radburn Royer is unable to obtain private health and life insurance—because he donated a kidney to his daughter Erika in 2008.
Royer, now 53 years old, went through a careful screening process to ensure he was healthy enough to provide the transplant and is currently physically active. However, his applications were rejected by the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota because he had donated a kidney, which the companies classified as “chronic kidney disease.” This is in spite of the fact that his remaining kidney is healthy and functioning, while a 2011 American Medical Association study found that donating a kidney did not increase risk of illness or death.
“It’s absurd,” stated Matthew Cooper, who is the director of kidney transplantation at the University of Maryland Medical Center, Baltimore. “These patients are handpicked. They’re some of the healthiest people around.”
This certainly is not an isolated case. Although technically donating an organ is not sufficient grounds to enable a denial of coverage, a 2007 review study published in the American Journal of Transplantation found three to 11 percent of donors had had trouble getting insurance after donating an organ.
“I was really surprised,” kidney donor Beth Stary-Bain said of the 800-dollar per month plan she was offered by an insurer. “I didn’t realize that because I’d donated a kidney I was considered unhealthy.”
One worry is that this obstacle is deterring potential donors from going through with the procedure. Not only does a transplant dramatically improve a patient’s quality of life, as dialysis can be physically disabling due to fatigue, it also relieves society of its cost. Kidney dialysis cost $39.46 billion in public and private spending in 2008, according to the United States Renal Data System (USRDS).
“A friend was going to donate a kidney to me, but changed her mind after a conversation with an official from her insurance company,” said 42-year-old Susan Galbreath, who is currently on dialysis. “The conversation left her feeling very very uneasy, and I told her she shouldn’t do it if anything made her uncomfortable.”
Although with the health care overhaul law insurers will not be able to deny or raise rates for coverage based on preexisting conditions—which some think will get rid of this problem— the provisions will not take effect until 2014. In the meanwhile, donors will be able to sign up for state preexisting-condition insurance plans, which were created by the new health law. However, there is yet another difficulty: they must have been uninsured for six months.
“This is unfair,” said Carol Sun, a sophomore at Irvine High School. “It really shouldn’t be about who has two kidneys and who has one, especially since the person in question has donated the kidney to help another person.”
Great article! This is an issue I knew nothing about – and it’s really enlightening. I kind of expected an interview from Royer, as he was in your lead, but I found your article very well done. Good job!