Reece Huculak, the million dollar baby
One Canadian couple is getting hard lesson about healthcare in the United States. Jennifer Huculak and her husband were vacationing in Hawaii while she was six months pregnant. They took all the precautions—bought health insurance from Blue Cross and received clearance from her doctor. And then the
unthinkable happened:
But two days into her trip, Huculak's water broke and she spent the next six weeks on bed rest in a Hawaiian hospital. Her daughter was born nine weeks early and spent two months in intensive care.
While she's grateful that her 11-month-old daughter is now healthy, Huculak and her husband were left with a $950,000 medical bill.
"It makes you sick to your stomach," she told CTV Saskatoon. "Who can pay a million-dollar medical bill? Who can afford that?"
Blue Cross has denied their claim saying it was a "pre-existing condition":
In a letter to Huculak, the company noted the following: "Ms. Huculak was diagnosed and treated for a high-risk pregnancy in the six months prior to departure. As Ms. Huculak is currently hospitalized and being treated for this high-risk pregnancy, any expenses incurred are not eligible under the terms of your policy."
Jennifer Huculak and her doctor deny she was high risk and the couple are trying to figure out what to do next. One can only guess that trips to the United States are now out of the question.
See the CTV interview with Jennifer Huculak here.