A sportswriter argued that an insurance company was “trying to kill” his fiancée after it denied her coverage for a necessary procedure in her lymphoma treatment.
“An insurance company is trying to kill my life partner,” Charlie Cummings wrote via X on Monday, June 8, alongside a lengthy statement explaining the situation. “Felt it was appropriate to write down the rage I feel.”
Cummings, an NBA writer for a variety of outlets, including DraftKings Network, explained that he and his fiancée, Kelsey Martin, are four months into her cancer treatment and she desperately needed a stem cell transplant. However, before she could get the transplant, she must first have had an open wound closed on her neck from a previous excision.
“A wound care specialist and her primary oncology specialist both agreed on this,” he wrote. “A referral was made to a plastic surgeon to close the wound, and the procedure was scheduled for today, with a tight two-week recovery window before her transplant.”
Cummings continued, “While sitting in the waiting room, we were told that insurance denied the procedure. They gave no reason. My best guess, they saw ‘plastic surgeon’ and reflexively denied it. The surgeon is furious, her care team is furious, and I’m left with a rage that can only be described as homicidal. Heads, spikes, that sort of thing.”
Cummings posted an update on Tuesday, June 9, showing his fiancée had the surgery. He told Us Weekly that the insurance company, United Healthcare, had not yet reversed its decision.
In his initial statement, however, he acknowledged the “vast support system we have.”
“Friends and family have offered their support to help us if we have to foot the bill, which can be up to $90,000,” Cummings wrote. “I”m eternally grateful for their support. It also makes me think of how close you are to the brink in this country.”
Cummings later thanked followers for the outpouring of support, but in his statement, he also remembered those who don’t have the same support system.
“My heart breaks thinking about those with less means,” he said. “Those with less of a support system, less income, no insurance. Stuck with a five-figure bill for the privilege of survival. No way out.”
He continued, “It’s a stark reminder how close we all are to being thrown out on the street. You could have a cushy six-figure job, a stable and hopeful life, and an arbitrary decision made by a corporation ruins your life. All wiped out in the name of shareholder value. Reminded that you aren’t a person with aspirations for life, you are a number on a spreadsheet to the ruling class.”
“Today it’s us,” Cummings concluded. “Tomorrow it could be you. Never forget who has the boot on your neck.”
