Picture This

Picture the look on Mary’s eyes when she was told that she had to go home with the drains, new exercises and no breast. No amount of begging could convince Mary’s insurance provider to allow her to stay in the hospital longer. Mary’s doctor’s hands were tied. So there the nurse sat with her patient, giving Mary the instructions she needed to take care of herself, knowing full well that Mary didn’t grasp half of what was being said, because the glazed, hopeless, frightened look spoke louder than the quiet ‘Thank You’ that was muttered.

A mastectomy is when a women’s breast is removed in order to remove cancerous cells/tissue. If you know anyone anyone who has had a Mastectomy, you may know that there is a lot of discomfort and pain afterwards. Insurance companies are trying to make mastectomies an outpatient procedure.

Let’s give women the chance to recover properly in the hospital for 2 days after surgery. Please take the time and ask others you know to do the same. If there was ever a time when our voices and choices should be heard, it is now.

There’s a bill called the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act which will require insurance companies to cover a minimum 48-hour hospital stay for patients undergoing a mastectomy. It’s about eliminating the ‘drive-through’ Mastectomy where women are forced to go home just a few hours after surgery, against the wishes of their doctor, still groggy from anesthesia and sometimes with drainage tubes still attached.

Lifetime Television has put this bill on their web page with a petition drive to show support. Last year over half the House signed on. Sign the petition by clicking on the link above. You need not give more than your name, state, and zip code.