Mel on Mickey D's Cups
Has there ever been a US weightlifter on a Wheaties box? Not yet.A System of the Absurd
Charge for wellness checkup blood tests @ St. Lukes Hospital: $1142.20. Amount written off by hospital as negotiated by Anthem BC/BS: $967.20. The insurance company pays NOTHING for this service. Amount patient required to pay: $175 Does any of this make sense? Does $1142.20 represent the true cost of doing the testing for the hospital? What if I had requested to pay cash for the whole thing? Same charge? BTW, my mom's hospital bill (Des Peres Hospital) for her same-day surgery (rotator cuff repair)--ready--$33,000. Not sure what her insurance is going to cover yet, but she was at the hospital from 8 am to 5 pm, and in actual surgery less than 2 hours. Never admitted to a room, just in and out burger style. The surgeon had 8 similar surgeries on the schedule that day. Bonus!
Comments
I'd hate for some young person to make a connection between drinking soda from a McDonald's cup to being Olympic in nature ("eat and drink McDonald's food and you can be just like her!").
I'm wishing Melanie the best! Good luck!
Alex
This is a financial opportunity of a lifetime few weightlifters get. The $500 a month they get from USAW is a drop in the bucket to the training, travel, coaching and medical care expenses they incur, if they are not resident athletes at the OTC.
Now, also think about child care (3 kids under 7)--to have a few hours a week to yourself to keep your marriage together--and the thousands of dollars in one-on-one therapy and support services a special needs child may need for the rest of his adult life.
An apt in Beijing for the family to accompany an athlete runs up to $500 per day during the Olympics; airfare is $1300-$1800 each for mom, mother-in-law, son, husband, personal coach. Plus you have to pay for the room and board for your personal coach for the two week training camp prior to the competition as USAW is only paying for 5 days.
Every penny helps. And this athlete relishes every opportunity to break the stereotype of the female weightlifter. So, she takes the good with the less than optimal and does the best she can with it.