Patient Saved After Hospitals, Surgeons Near His Home Decline Care

I discovered this amazing story today and a true miracle. What a truly amazing and kind surgeon.

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla. —

Confessor Correa had an aortic dissection, but he was almost denied a life-saving surgery because hospitals and surgeons near his home believed he had no health insurance.

Correa, of North Miami, had chest pains earlier this month. When the concrete-cutter lost the ability to talk, he went next door with a written note asking his neighbor to call 911.

Unconscious, the staff at his local hospital assumed he had no health insurance. They needed to transfer him to a hospital that did open heart surgeries to repair an aortic dissection. But without coverage, no hospital or surgeon could be found in Miami-Dade County that was willing to take him on as a patient.

Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center agreed to have Correa transferred there. Dr. Arthur Katz signed on to do a life-saving seven-hour surgery.

“To me it’s the most abhorrent, shameful, unconscionable thing I’ve ever heard of,” Katz said.

By the time Correa arrived, he was near death, Katz said.

“How could you ever think of allowing a 40-year-old — any age, but especially someone as young as him — to potentially succumb to a life-threatening, potentially curable problem?” Katz said.

Correa’s prognosis looks good, but it’ll be months before he is back to normal.

“I’m just very grateful,” Correa said.

There are getting to be too many of these stories about people with legitimate issues and not able to get the care with our almost having to darn near die while waiting to get it.

Brian Tinsley

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Tagged as: Lack of Care