New front in disease fight: Medical Fundraisers

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Even with insurance, costs add up quickly: Medical bills lead many families to file for bankruptcy

Two days after Caitlyn Lippolis’ 12th birthday she received news that changed her life, and the lives of those around her, forever.

The bubbly, active pre-teen was diagnosed with an aggressive form of bone cancer.

The eight months since have been a whirlwind.

Caitlyn and her dad, Robert Lippolis, commuted weekly from their Grants Pass, Ore., home to Doernbecher Children’s Hospital in Portland for MRIs, biopsies, X-rays and chest scans. Caitlyn began chemotherapy to combat the growing tumor that ballooned her knee to the size of a football.

After three months of driving back-and-forth, the family packed up and moved to Vancouver in June to be closer to Caitlyn’s medical providers. A couple weeks later, surgeons amputated Caitlyn’s right leg, leaving her with a stump beginning four inches above her knee.

She’s now in the middle of an aggressive 26-week course of chemotherapy, and last month received her prosthetic leg. After the chemo treatment wraps up in early December, Caitlyn can begin physical therapy and the arduous task of learning to walk again.

As Caitlyn faces the reality of life as a tween with a prosthetic leg, Robert and his wife, Chrissy, face the reality of mounting bills and little means to pay them.

In 2007, more than 822,000 Americans filed bankruptcy, according to the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts. More than 60 percent of all bankruptcies that year were due to medical expenses, according a study in the American Journal of Medicine.

After exhausting their own resources, many struggling families, like the Lippolises, turn to friends, family members and their communities for help. They set up bank accounts and solicit donations. They host dinners, auctions and benefit concerts to bring in a few bucks. They use social media and websites to raise money.

While the fundraisers can bring in thousands of dollars, it’s not always enough to keep families out of financial trouble.

The Oberst family

Most of the people who filed medical-related bankruptcy in 2007 were well-educated, owned homes and had middle-class occupations, according to the American Journal of Medicine study. Three-quarters had health insurance.

The Oberst family of Battle Ground fits that profile.

In February, Steve Oberst was diagnosed with Stage 4 prostate cancer. By the time it was detected, the cancer had already metastasized and spread. Unsatisfied with the treatment proposed by local physicians, Steve and his wife, Susan, sought a second opinion at the Cancer Treatment Centers of America near Chicago. The team there created a plan of attack that included high-dose radiation, hormone therapy and chemotherapy.

At the forefront of the Obersts’ minds, however, was whether they could afford to seek out-of-state treatment.

In the summer of 2009, Steve was laid off from his job as a union carpenter and foreman; his first layoff in nine years. Since then, Steve has worked on and off. Without a steady second income, the Obersts struggled to save money.

Two weeks before his diagnosis, Steve started a new job. But the cancer diagnosis has made working impossible.

While the fundraisers didn’t cover all of the Obersts’ bills, they did bring the family some relief.

“I slept at night,” Susan Oberst said. “It’s sad that that is what you rely on. You don’t want to feel like you have to rely on that, but you’re helpless.”

The Lippolises are also turning to their new community for help. A family friend is in the early stages of planning a fundraising event, and the family has set up a bank account at iQ Credit Union to accept donations.

Local credit unions have for years hosted bank accounts set up on behalf of people struggling to pay medical bills and related expenses. While the number of donation accounts doesn’t seem to be increasing, the fundraisers do appear to becoming more visible, thanks to social media, said Danette LaChapelle, chief communication officer at iQ Credit Union.

“I just think we hear about it more because through social media it’s so much easier to find out about what’s going on in people’s lives,” she said.

Turning to social media

Another way social media and the Internet are raising the profile of community fundraising efforts is through “crowdfunding” sites. The sites allow people to create Web pages about their causes and collect donations.

Founders of two popular crowdfunding sites — GiveForward and YouCaring — created their sites to serve various projects. Both quickly realized the popularity of online medical fundraisers.

GiveForward launched in 2008. A year later, the business shifted its focus to fundraising for medical services.

Uncertain future

Despite the help from the community, the future is full of uncertainty for the Obersts and Lippolises.

The Lippolis family will continue to put off their dream of owning a home, and Robert will pick up work when he can to help make ends meet.

“We’re going to make it,” Robert said. “It’s just tough.”

Steve Oberst will continue his treatment and awaits a prognosis due in January. Even as they grapple with mounting medical bills, the Obersts wouldn’t change their decision to seek treatment out of state.

“He’s only 48 years old. I can’t lose him,” Susan said. “We’ve been married 25 years. We have four kids.”

“I’d live under a tree just to know I could have him,” she added.

Marissa Harshman: 360-735-4546; http://twitter.com/col_health; http://facebook.com/reporterharshman; marissa.harshman@columbian.com.