If You Know Sunday Driver..

[Steffers]

Hey boys and girls.. Here's a friendly heads up. Rather than explain it all to you, I'll just show you the "official" comment from Sunday Driver.[/color]

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Our loveable bass player, Arnold "Square-O" Nese thought it'd be very 'extreme' to skateboard down the hill of a mansion in Connecticut. Little did he (and we) know a small, drunken child would trip him on the way down and he'd badly break his leg. We took Arnold to the ER in Danbury, CT where he did NOT receive medical attention due to a lack of insurance. We then proceeded to haul buns back to Miami and get Arnold PROPER medical care. After 25+ hours in the bumpy van (and Arnold in the back with a severely broken leg) he received care at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, FL. MIAMI -- Home of insurance-less care...how it should be.

If you wish to send Arnold get well cards/love letters/candy/money please do so.
Send e-mail to: [e-mail] - ALL e-mails will be forwarded to Arnold.
Square-O also enjoys Diet Coke and Mongolian BBQ.

Please send your get well wishes to:
Arnold Nese
c/o BRIAN KURTZ/KSB Management
1200 Brickell Bay Drive, Suite 2402
Miami, FLORIDA 33131

Update: Thanks to everyone who has sent Arnold well-wishes about his broken leg and upcoming surgery...You guys are really awesome for taking the time to write! If you're willing to donate ANY money to financially aid in Arnold's medical bills and rehabilitation costs, you can send PayPal donations to [e-mail]
EVERYTHING HELPS and is GREATLY APPRECIATED by ALL OF US!!

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First of all, the offical diagnosis is a tibial plateau fracture. Now, I just got off the phone with Arnold and after almost 8 hours of intense knee surgery on cosmic tuesday, the doctors told him that he was going to need an ADDITIONAL surgery next week to (hopefully) repair the remainder of the problem. So he'll be in the hospital for another week at least.

So please, if you have a little extra time, send a get-well email/card or a diet coke care package or some boredom busters. If you're feeling extra generous, send them some money. Surgeries and physical therapy don't come cheap.

I'd surely love you, and I know he would, too! That's all..[/color]

www.driveonsunday.com
www.myspace.com/SundayDriver

[Sean Jordan]

Wow - that really sucks.

For those of you that have reached the age of majority (ie, your mom and dad don't pay your bills any more!) you NEED health insurance.

Case in point - last year I broke my arm. I was lucky enough to break my arm in such a way that it didn't require surgery, casts, not even any pain killers.

BUT, the cost of x-rays, and a doctor just to TELL me it was broken - almost $1000. Having been a motorcycle roadracer for 5 years, I have seen some various serious breaks, and the bills that accompany them. Arnold's care is probably well into the 5 digits as far as cost is concernced (easily over $10,000.)

You can not afford to not have health insurance!!! I know people that tell me that they don't make very much money, and can't afford health insurance, but they always have enough money for a frappucino from Starbucks, or a new CD. Don't be on of these people.

And the idea that healthcare should be free is ridiculous. Imagine that going to the doctor was like visiting the DMV. Imagine having to get on a waiting list months-long for minor procedures. Granted, there are definitely way in which the US healthcare system could be improved, but making it FREE is not the answer.

Rant over.

[Trishee]

My health insurance ends today, and I have no idea what to do.

[Steffers]

I agree with Sean. I don't think healthcare should be free across the board. But I do think that every state should have free clinics for those who are truly not wealthy enough to afford health insurance. In an ideal society, for there would be a free clinic for every 10,000 people in the population. Granted, not all of those 10,000 people would NEED to use the clinics' services, as some of them would already be insured. But, it would be an allover method of distributing the clinics evenly based on population.

But.. In Arnold's case.. Yes.. His care is easily going to cost tens of thousands of dollars. Physical therapy alone will kill him financially, even at the shoddiest establishment found.

And Trish.. If you're referring to the health insurance policy that your parents were carrying on you.. Start shopping around.. There are LOADS of independent insurance agencies that can take care of you. It just takes a little time a research and calls to find out who has the best policy (lowest copays, lowest deductible, best providers, etc). If you need some help, let me know and I can help you wade through the process. It's a difficult and tedious task, but.. In the long run, you REALLY NEED to have insurance.. PERIOD..

Even WITH medical insurance (like my family has now), because of all of the surgeries and stuff that I've had (the total accumulated cost of my last heart surgery cost around $500,000.. Yeah.. Five.. Hundred.. Thousand.. Dollars.. And that's just for one procedure.. That's not counting the hospital stays in between, the ICU hospitalizations, the ambulance rides, the post-op meds, my daily meds.. ) we still may have to file medical bankruptcy if anything else happens. Because we are still responsible for a share of those costs.. Deductibles, co-pays, things the insurance just doesn't cover.. And I'm sorry, but.. We're not rich.. We're not moderately rich.. But we're not digging-in-the-dumpsters-poor either.. We're in the gray area.. Where we have barely enough money to pay the necessary bills, but then add health-related bills, and.. We automatically go into the red..

So yeah.. Sorry for rambling.. I've got a migraine and took some meds and now I'm just typing and I'll be surprised if it makes sense..

Bottom line:
1) You really need medical insurance.

2) Free healthcare across the board isn't a good idea.

3) A few free clinics scattered amongst each state IS a good idea.

4) Trish, if you need help researching independent insurance policies, let me know.

5) Arnold goes into surgery again today (Tues). I'll let you know how he's doing.

The end

[Trishee]

I'll definitely let you know/ask questions when I need help. I love you Stef!