[2]National Nurses United


Before you read my son Daniel’s story, I would like to ask you to sign
up right now for a NNU Movement Builder training. It took Daniel’s death
for me to get active and fight for Medicare for All, but we need
everyone to mobilize and pass Medicare for All before more people lose
their lives because of our backwards system.

[ [link removed] ]Sign up for a Movement Builder training right now.

[ [link removed] ]Sign up for a training »

*Content Warning: Suicide and Depression*

My name is Scott Desnoyers, and I’m going to tell you about how our broken
health care system is responsible for the death of my son Daniel.

Daniel was a son, a father, a sibling, and a friend. Life wasn’t easy for
him though, being diagnosed with mild psychosis and depression. He relied
on Risperidone, an antipsychotic medication used to treat his mental
disorder.

One day while trying to refill his medication, he was denied and told his
insurance had been cut off. His exact words to me that day were, “Pops, I
know I need this medication.” 

When he called his insurance company to ask about his loss of care, they
told him it was because of a single $20 payment he missed. He was unaware
of this and made the payment on the phone that very day, but was told his
insurance would not resume until the next month.

A known side effect of going off any typical antipsychotic is suicidal
thoughts, which can happen in as little as 2 weeks. And that was exactly
how long it took for those thoughts to reach Daniel’s limit. 

He then took his own life by gluing his seatbelt into the buckle and
driving his car into a nearby river.

I can't be quiet when such cold cruel judgement has been delivered to my
son for missing a $20 payment to a corporation that reported a $60.1
billion revenue in 2018. 

In the richest nation in the world we allow the insurance industry to
write laws and deliver them to our lawmakers’ desks, wrapped in a pretty
campaign-donation wrapping paper. If we were a just nation that put its
people before the profits of the oligarchy, if America was a real
democracy, then none of us would have to be here today. None of us would
be living this hell in the hands of billionaires’ profits that we are
today. I am standing up to demand that our nation put its people before
money.

If we had a single payer system like Medicare for All, my son would have
been able to get his medication and would still be alive today. 

The sad fact is Daniel’s story is far from unique, and I refuse to see
more families go through the pain and suffering we endured from the loss
of our son at the hands of our corporate-controlled broken health care
system. 

The only way we’ll be able to honor his life and the life of every person
who has died or is struggling right now due to a lack of care is by
getting mobilized, getting involved, and building this movement to win
Medicare for All.

[ [link removed] ]Passing Medicare for All would give every person in this country the
right to free, quality health care that could have saved my son. Will you
join me in this fight for Medicare for All by joining an NNU Movement
Builder training?

[ [link removed] ]Sign up for a training »

People tried to tell me that Daniel wouldn't have lost his care if he was
more aware of his payments. People told me I was responsible for not
knowing he had an unpaid balance. But the fact is no one deserves to die
because they missed a $20 payment. 

We can’t sit back and let these corporations stall reform efforts while
people like my son die because they are denied the care they need. It’s
time our politicians stand up for us, and demand a health care system that
prioritizes the people.

Get active, get motivated, and demand change with me in this movement to
fight for Medicare for All. Embodying solidarity means that
#NoOneFightsAlone.

Thank you for listening to Daniel’s story, 

Scott Desnoyers

 



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