Alexis and Richard were students at Texas Tech University when they found out they were going to have a baby. Their son, however, would be born with no kidney function and would likely have other severe health problems.
Because the doctors in Lubbock weren’t equipped to treat baby Ian’s condition, Alexis and Richard moved to San Antonio so he could be born in a hospital that could care for him, and they assumed he’d be covered through Alexis’ father’s insurance plan. When they found out that wasn’t the case, they enrolled Ian in Medicaid.
While Medicaid covered the majority of Ian’s costs, the co-pays essentially bankrupted Alexis and Richard. Neither parent worked so that they could spend all their time at the hospital with Ian, so they relied on family for housing and food stamps to eat.
After six months of fighting to survive, Ian passed away in the San Antonio hospital in early October. Richard has been working a well-paying job since late this summer and he and Alexis are living in San Antonio.
