In April this year, the Go & Express reported on Sean Harrington’s desperate plea for a heart transplant.
Harrington was also in need of a left ventricle assist device (LVAD) and his friends and family were working tirelessly to raise money for the transport and accommodation costs as both procedures would have to take place in Cape Town.
More than three months have passed, and Harrington has yet to receive authorisation for either procedure from the medical aid.
Harrington’s partner, Cheryl Larsen, has been supporting him emotionally and physically and has been liaising with the medical aid officials daily to get answers.
“We are still awaiting authorisation from the medical aid to be able to go to Cape Town to have the LVAD fitted. It will be going on four months now since the process started. We do understand that there is a process the authorisation must go through, however a person’s life is in the balance.
“The most frustrating thing is that medical aid can never give me any answers as to why the process is taking so long.
“I have started phoning them every day, and I get told they are still in discussions, promising I will get a phone call before close of day. This started on May 17 and we are now in July,” Larsen said.
Ray Hartle, a former heart transplant patient, said his own experience with medical aid was quite a struggle too.
“(Dealing with) the medical aid can be a long-winded process. The important thing is that heart transplant treatment is a prescribed minimum benefit for all medical aids in SA. So the benefit already exists — a medical aid can’t bounce anybody out who clinically has been assessed and found to be both in need of a heart transplant and medically fine in all other respects to receive transplant treatment.
“But getting authorisation can be a nightmare.
“Historically, I have always managed the engagement with our medical aid and it was quite difficult for me to wait on the outside of the interaction,” Hartle said.
With all the fundraising done by Harrington’s friends and family, the costs of the accommodation, and transport are partially covered so far. The authorisation of the LVAD will allow Harrington to travel to Cape Town for the expensive procedure.
The LVAD is estimated at about R2.2 million (excluding hospital fees), while the heart transplant cost also runs into millions.
