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For the past 17 months, Jackie Ritz has suffered the gut-wrenching roller-coaster of her son’s leukemia treatment.
Austin Ritz, 18, has been a patient at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario for more than 400 days — ever since being diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia. During that time, he has faced a series of medical challenges, including a collapsed lung, a blood clot, supraventricular tachycardia, and a fungal infection in his brain, which sent him into a coma and to intensive care.
To be at her son’s side, Jackie Ritz has cut back her work as an independent bookkeeper, which is one of the reasons that she’s grateful for the province’s new universal drug program for children and youth.
The $480-million-a-year program, known as OHIP+, covers all prescription medication for those under 25. It takes effect Jan. 1.
“It takes away some of the stress about worrying what medications are covered,” Ritz said in a recent interview at CHEO, where Austin continues to receive chemotherapy and antifungal medications.
“When you have a child with a critical illness, the last thing you want is to be worrying about what’s covered … There’s just so many things to think about when you’re fighting a situation like this.”
Dr. Donna Johnston, chief of the hematology and oncology division at CHEO, said the new drug plan will cover patients and families who would otherwise have to pay out of their own pockets for some medications.
“It’s really important because it means we won’t have to go back and forth with insurance companies trying to get coverage, or trying to get coverage through the EAP (the government’s Exceptional Access Program),” Johnston said. “They’re going to be automatically covered.”
Currently, she said, CHEO’s pharmacists and oncologists spend many hours filling out paperwork trying to stitch together drug coverage for medication administered outside the hospital. (All drugs administered in the hospital are covered by OHIP.)
Many insurance plans will cover only 80 per cent of those drug costs, but that can still leave patients’ families responsible for the remaining 20 per cent — a bill that can quickly mount into the tens of thousands given the enormous cost of some cancer and anti-nausea drugs. “I have one patient paying $2,000 a month on an 80-20 plan,” said Johnston.
Other patients can fall between the cracks.
“Some people don’t have insurance, but don’t qualify for EAP, so we have to come up with creative ways to fund things,” she said. “After January 1, they’ll all quality for OHIP+. The stress of trying to get drugs covered will be gone.”
Ontario is the first province to provide full prescription medical coverage for children and youth.
For the Ritz family, the new rules come into place at a time of intense stress: Recent tests suggest Austin may have suffered a relapse. Although more tests are needed, Austin was resolute in the face of the news.
“I’ve beaten it once; I can beat it again,” he said.
Austin’s cancer journey began in the early summer of 2016 when he felt lethargic and was suffering headaches. At first, doctors thought he might be having concussion symptoms since he was an avid BMX biker and had taken some serious spills.
When the symptoms persisted, more tests were ordered to rule out Lyme disease and mononucleosis. Those tests discovered his leukemia.
A Grade 11 student at Perth and District Collegiate Institute, and an accomplished musician, snowboarder and baseball player, Austin began his three-year treatment program on July 26, 2016. He’s scheduled to continue chemotherapy — different kinds and dosages — until at least November 2019.
“Austin has had an amazing attitude through this whole thing,” his mother said.
The family has been back home in Perth for only short visits; they’ve spent most of their time either in CHEO or at Ronald McDonald House. The family has been helped by several fundraising events in Perth organized by community members who have styled themselves “Austin’s Army.”
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Austin Ritz, 18, has been a patient at the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario for more than 400 days — ever since being diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia. During that time, he has faced a series of medical challenges, including a collapsed lung, a blood clot, supraventricular tachycardia, and a fungal infection in his brain, which sent him into a coma and to intensive care.
To be at her son’s side, Jackie Ritz has cut back her work as an independent bookkeeper, which is one of the reasons that she’s grateful for the province’s new universal drug program for children and youth.
The $480-million-a-year program, known as OHIP+, covers all prescription medication for those under 25. It takes effect Jan. 1.
“It takes away some of the stress about worrying what medications are covered,” Ritz said in a recent interview at CHEO, where Austin continues to receive chemotherapy and antifungal medications.
“When you have a child with a critical illness, the last thing you want is to be worrying about what’s covered … There’s just so many things to think about when you’re fighting a situation like this.”
Dr. Donna Johnston, chief of the hematology and oncology division at CHEO, said the new drug plan will cover patients and families who would otherwise have to pay out of their own pockets for some medications.
“It’s really important because it means we won’t have to go back and forth with insurance companies trying to get coverage, or trying to get coverage through the EAP (the government’s Exceptional Access Program),” Johnston said. “They’re going to be automatically covered.”
Currently, she said, CHEO’s pharmacists and oncologists spend many hours filling out paperwork trying to stitch together drug coverage for medication administered outside the hospital. (All drugs administered in the hospital are covered by OHIP.)
Many insurance plans will cover only 80 per cent of those drug costs, but that can still leave patients’ families responsible for the remaining 20 per cent — a bill that can quickly mount into the tens of thousands given the enormous cost of some cancer and anti-nausea drugs. “I have one patient paying $2,000 a month on an 80-20 plan,” said Johnston.
Other patients can fall between the cracks.
“Some people don’t have insurance, but don’t qualify for EAP, so we have to come up with creative ways to fund things,” she said. “After January 1, they’ll all quality for OHIP+. The stress of trying to get drugs covered will be gone.”
Ontario is the first province to provide full prescription medical coverage for children and youth.
For the Ritz family, the new rules come into place at a time of intense stress: Recent tests suggest Austin may have suffered a relapse. Although more tests are needed, Austin was resolute in the face of the news.
“I’ve beaten it once; I can beat it again,” he said.
Austin’s cancer journey began in the early summer of 2016 when he felt lethargic and was suffering headaches. At first, doctors thought he might be having concussion symptoms since he was an avid BMX biker and had taken some serious spills.
When the symptoms persisted, more tests were ordered to rule out Lyme disease and mononucleosis. Those tests discovered his leukemia.
A Grade 11 student at Perth and District Collegiate Institute, and an accomplished musician, snowboarder and baseball player, Austin began his three-year treatment program on July 26, 2016. He’s scheduled to continue chemotherapy — different kinds and dosages — until at least November 2019.
“Austin has had an amazing attitude through this whole thing,” his mother said.
The family has been back home in Perth for only short visits; they’ve spent most of their time either in CHEO or at Ronald McDonald House. The family has been helped by several fundraising events in Perth organized by community members who have styled themselves “Austin’s Army.”
查看原文...
