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The Smiths, who raised six children together, consistently had employer-sponsored health insurance. Like the Krinskys, however, they began to notice a drift upwards in the cost of premiums as well as higher co-pays and higher deductibles in the 1990s.
"While we were both well, we could absorb that creep," said Donna, formerly a newspaper editor and now a community organizer for the California Nurses Association and the National Nurses Organizing Committee in Chicago.
But then the medical crises set in: Larry was diagnosed with serious artery disease, Donna with uterine cancer.
"Our debt was accelerating, but it wasn't just accelerating in medical debt," Donna said. "What you do is you hang on, you borrow from another place and pay the doctor. It's a balancing act all the time." The Smiths took payday loans, Donna pawned her engagement ring, and they even crawled to relatives.
"I can't tell you how humiliating it is," Donna said. "By the time you've gone through that kind of trauma, you've tapped out the good will of family and friends. You call them, and their tone of voice changes. You've damaged personal relationships. People are less excited about seeing you."
By 2004, their health insurance policy had a maximum out-of-pocket exposure of $9,000, and they were sued by a dermatologist for an unpaid bill. The amount? A mere $600.
Donna's wages were garnished, and the couple were forced to declared bankruptcy and sold their house for pennies on the dollar, all while they were technically fully insured.
The couple first moved in with a daughter living in Colorado and are now renting in Chicago.
"I don't know if we have enough working years left to buy a house," Donna said. "That's pretty heavy punishment for having gotten sick."
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