Letter: Health insurers thoughtless

Why do we pay so much for insurance, put our health in their hands and let the bean counters decide our health?

I have been undergoing chemotherapy for the last five years for Stage 4 lung cancer. I was told five years ago that I had six months to live. I have made it this far due to the UCD cancer center in Sacramento and my wonderful nurses, and Dr. Ghandara (head of oncology) and the No. 1 doctor in the USA for his cancer research.

I will get to the point. A few years ago my blood work showed something else was going on. Dr. Ghandara ordered a PET scan. He found the cancer had started to spread. I was taken off the chemo I had been taking for 2.5 years, and started on yet another type of chemo. The only way my cancer shows progression is through the PET scans. My insurance has denied me these life-saving scans, stating they are medically unnecessary. My doctor has even notified the insurer numerous times he can't detect cancer progression any other way. My insurer contends this type of scan is medically unnecessary because I have been cancer free for about six months, except for the spread to my brain that was also discovered through the PET scan.

How can these companies be allowed to deny vital medical procedures with no forethought of what is going to happen with the patient? In all reality they are saying, "We don't care if you die, we are going to save some money."

Tina Palmer

Sutter