On page 7 of the GOP non-budget FudgeIt, the GOP introduces us to:
Mr. Dobbin’s sad saga began in May of 2007:
A CANCER patient faces having to pay £25,000 or die – after health chiefs refused to fund the only treatment that can save him.
Ian Dobbin, 54, of Acomb, said a cure for his leukaemia did exist, but the cash-strapped North Yorkshire & York Primary Care Trust (PCT) was not prepared to pay for it.
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He said: “It is a death sentence for me. I feel absolutely gutted because there is no way I can find that sort of money.“My life is dependent on getting this drug and without it I will die. I am totally devastated.
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Mr Dobbin was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in April last year.He was successfully treated with chemotherapy last summer, but a rare complication – previously unseen in York Hospital – damaged his brain and left him barely able to walk.
Two months ago, Mr Dobbin’s cancer returned and now hospital consultants have identified clofarabine as the only alternative drug that can save him.
Consultant haematologist Dr Lee Bond said: “Mr Dobbin needs more chemotherapy, but we don’t want to give him the normal chemotherapy because of the complications he had before.
“Clofarabine, followed by a bone marrow transplant, is the only treatment that would offer him a chance of a cure. It is not a licensed drug for treatment of this particular type of leukaemia, but it has been used in clinical trials.
The article adds this:
“Clofarabine, followed by a bone marrow transplant, is the only treatment that would offer him a chance of a cure. It is not a licensed drug for treatment of this particular type of leukaemia, but it has been used in clinical trials. [Ed: Sorry for the duplication. MsJoanne]
“The PCT also has to carefully consider the use of any drug when its use is proposed outside the drug’s licence indications.
“While we do appreciate the difficult circumstances around any decision regarding access to drugs, the PCT has a responsibility to ensure that it uses its resources both safely and effectively.”
Only 2,000 patients are diagnosed with the illness in the UK every year.
Mr. Dobbin appealed the decision. The following month, PCT approved the use of this drug.
Fast-forward to June of 2007 – one month after PCT’s decision to allow the use of Clofarabine:
But before Mr Dobbin can be given the new drug – the only treatment that gives him a chance of a cure – he needs to have a bone marrow transplant.
No one in his family was able to donate their marrow to Mr. Dobbin, for they were not a match.
In August of 2007, a donor was found:
Ian Dobbin, of Acomb, York, was facing death by Christmas unless a compatible bone marrow donor could be found to save him.
But today, the father-of-two, who is suffering from acute myeloid leukaemia, said he was “on cloud nine” – after receiving the long-awaited news that a match had been found.
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“I don’t know who my donor is because that is kept secret, but I can’t thank them enough – they have literally saved my life.Next week, Mr Dobbin will return to York Hospital to start his four-week course of chemotherapy – and provided he goes into remission, the bone marrow transplant will be carried out in November.
Ian Dobbin received his drug. He got his transplant. Ian Dobbin did not have to pay for this because he had socialized medicine. How many of you have been turned down by insurance companies who refused to let you have a test? A procedure? Something less than life-threatening? How much did it cost you? How about being denied insurance coverage because of acne?
I wonder if this outcome was ever reported to the GOP. Because, in my eyes, this is further proof of why we need to have better healthcare in this country. From page 6 of the GOP non-budget FudgeIt:
Apparently, Rush Limbaugh wrote the 19 page non-budget FudgeIt because it refers to the “Democrat plan” and if any serious person was the author, they would have written the proper “Democratic” or “Democrat’s” and not played these silly word games. The GOP, much like its FudgeIt, are anything but serious.
But I tell you what, if I could have free doctor care, free chemotherapy, free bone marrow surgery, hell yeah I would want government-run healthcare! My doctor’s currently have no say in what insurance will and will not cover. My premiums go into the CEO bonuses. ENOUGH! All American’s deserve healthcare…no matter how much – or little – we earn.
h/t: alleen at They Gave Us A Republic. Alleen, thank you for the 411 on Ian.
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TheZoo 
The British NHS has its faults, though it can be argued that such faults have been caused as much or more by Conservative ( and conservative) class-based ideological interference with the socialized health system, over the decades, than anything inherent in the NHS concept itself–primarily because of their constant focus on the short-term costs of treatment.
Just over 40 years ago my eldest brother (12 years old at the time) was found to have a hole in his heart (the size of a silver dollar). The open heart surgery required to fix it was still experimental and hugely expensive .
My parents had enough to worry about, the life of their child, but they didn’t have to worry about the expense of the operation (which would have been about 5 times the price of their 20 year mortgage)–they paid no more in taxes per week and had no more out-of-pocket expenses than if my brother had broken an arm or caught the measles.
In the US every single ailment has been designed to be increasingly expensive, medical care is defined and judged by its expense, like cars or handbags–and self-medication is promoted (with cursory legally warnings) only AFTER which the ‘patient’ is exhorted to consult their doctor, about a product. .
While Republicans emphasis the cost of universal health care, they never talk about the savings.
Right now, we pay premiums, part of which goes to insurance companies profits and commissions. That money would be saved.
Right now, the cost of health insurance is factored into every product on the market. That money would be saved.
The only thing I would agree with the Republicans on is this: National health care under a Republican administration would be a disaster. Just look at how they mistreated our veterans, if you doubt me on this.
But I still say, why can’t we have the same health plan that our elected representatives get? It’s taxpayer funded. If it’s good enough for them, why not us?