BlueState Insurance company recently sent a health risk survey to client Erica Wahlin, asking when her chronic bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) would be cured.
BPD is a lung disease that develops at birth as a complication of another breathing condition. It causes wheezing, shortness of breath and financial instability.
“If the treatments work, then at some point you will get better and no longer need them,” said a BlueState representative, noting that Wahlin has had BPD for the entire nine years of the policy. “We have a window of six months, which should be more than enough.”
BlueState has been covering the cost of Wahlin's asthma medication for most of her adult life. The company fears that continued coverage will severely affect its profits.
“If there's no end goal, then clearly the treatments aren't working and won't be covered under our policies,” BlueState claimed. “We're sorry, but we have to think about our bottom line.”
Further investigation into the 28-year-old's medical history revealed that the congenital disease first manifested 28 years ago.
“Twenty-eight years is a long time for a chronic condition to linger,” argued the insurance company. “We've been very generous up to this point, but it is no longer feasible. We're not asking for an exact end date, just a ballpark answer.”
Whalin tried explaining that without her medication she wouldn't survive very long, and oh boy did they take that the wrong way.