Fundraiser Planned for Heart Transplant Patient

by David Croyle

A fundraiser planned at Sugarcreek Township Fire Hall will assist with medical expenses of a local man who had a heart transplant.

61-year-old John McHaddon from Karns City received his transplant on July 29.

Family spokesperson Lori Huber said John was first admitted to the hospital in 2003 with congestive heart failure. Although he was stabilized at that time, the last 18 months were very tumultuous. His condition required doctors to install an artificial heart until a donor could be located.

“His heart was practically gone. It wasn’t functioning,” Huber said.

The average transplant costs nearly $1 million, but that’s only the beginning. According to Emily Joyner at the National Foundation for Transplants (NFT) in Memphis, Tennessee, John faces significant expenses for the rest of his life.

“The (insurance) co-pays can get astronomical because a lot of these patients they can be taking up to 40 pills per day. So it is not just a couple of prescriptions.”

To illustrate costs, Joyner gave the example of one of the board members, who is also a transplant recipient.

“Her insurance coverage does pay for her medications; but one month, there was an issue and she had to pay for her own. For one of her pills alone, her co-pay was $1,800. Some of the expenses that they face are really shocking. Even if co-pays are on the smaller end, when you are talking about 20 prescriptions, it can really add up.”

Joyner said the role of the NFT is to provide donors with a tax-deductible receipt for their contribution in addition to watching over the disbursement of the funds so donors know their funds were properly used.

“We require receipts or proof of payment so that we see all those to verify. We also often just pay the doctor’s bills or pharmacy directly. It is a safeguard for the donors. There’s a lot of crowd-funding options right now. The problem with those is that you don’t know where the money is going.”

To process checks and paperwork, NFT retains 3% of the donation for expenses.

Tickets for the beef tips fund-raiser scheduled for Friday, October 28 at 5PM at the fire hall are $20 per person (children under 10 are free). Huber said the event will include live music, a bake sale, auction, and raffle.

“A lot of people are donating the baskets and different gift certificates and things for the raffles. We have a caterer who is donating her time to do it and we are trying to get food donated to offset the cost there.”

The family has already raised $4,700 to date. They are hoping the fundraiser will bring in several thousand more.

There are 350 tickets for sale. To purchase your ticket, call Huber at 724-545-6739.

To make your tax-deductible donation in honor of John McHaddon, checks can be mailed to: NFT Pennsylvania Transplant Fund, 5350 Poplar Avenue, Suite 430, Memphis, TN 38119. Secure donations can be made online at www.transplants.org. Click on “Find an NFT Patient” to locate McHaddon.

 

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