The people of Appleton Wisconsin mourn their young resident after his life-ending event triggered intense anger about medical treatment expenditure increases.
The death of 22-year-old Cole Schmidtknecht has elevated into a powerful symbol regarding how our inadequate healthcare system makes patients decide between their own health and economic security.
Chronic asthma took hold of Cole’s life for several years because he needed continuous medical care and depended on prescribed inhalers every day.
Through careful asthma management with his needed Advair Diskus inhaler Cole maintained a determined life while dealing with his health condition.
Each refill of essential medication entitled him to a price range between $35 and $66.86 through his insurance coverage.
Everything in his life changed all of a sudden.
In Fall 2023 OptumRx which UnitedHealth Group controls as its owner announced an important update to their coverage requirements.
The healthcare system became more expensive for Cole as OptumRx secretly took his inhaler off its approved medicine list.
Cole paid a visit to his neighborhood Walgreens pharmacy on January 10th of 2024 expecting the regular refill process but remained unaware of an upcoming policy transition.
The price charged to Cole revealed itself as $539.19 while representing a 700% growth from his usual prescription payment.
The cost of $539.19 exceeded what a 22-year-old doing it alone could manage to pay for his medication.
His urgent medical needs drove Cole to leave the pharmacy without any medication since he lacked sufficient money to get his only asthma-treating medication.
For five consecutive days Cole attempted to control his symptoms using only an emergency inhaler dated from the past even though the device was for emergency situations only.
The worsening respiratory troubles prevented him from finding any comfort against the tightening sensations in his chest.
Family members described how he operated under different treatments even though his unregulated asthma only intensified.
On January 15th 2024 Cole experienced a life-threatening asthma attack which prove fatal.
The emergency responders discovered him unconscious and blue in the face indicating a dangerous oxygen deprivation.
All attempts to revive him proved unsuccessful because Cole never woke up from the coma.
His devastated parents had to make an impossible decision when medical support kept him alive for several days.
His parents made an unbearable decision to have life support terminated on January 21 thereby ending his brief existence.
The dismal end of their family’s life has propelled Cole’s family members to reverse the situation.
The family member of Cole Rivera filed legal charges of wrongful death against OptumRx, Walgreens and Walgreens Boots Alliance because of their suspected negligence in his medical care.
The complaint presents a case against Wisconsin state law because the law requires insurance companies to inform their patients in advance about insurance coverage changes by providing a 30-day warning period.
The legal documents show that Cole never got any notice before becoming uninsured.
The complaint points out that Walgreens pharmacist did not seek alternative solutions with Cole including the availability of more affordable inhalers.
With proper notification about an economical replacement option or help finding another solution he could currently be alive.
The deceased family members claim compensation for wrongful death negligence which they hope will stop additional tragedies from taking more lives.
The healthcare system shows disturbing systemic problems through this economic dilemma that forces patients to avoid essential medications until they become available to type.
A $7.3 billion price-gouging scheme operating for five years emerged as per new reports from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) against OptumRx, Cigna’s Express Scripts, and CVS Caremark Rx regarding their unprecedented price spikes on essential medications.
The FTC report discovered that the largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) raise specialty generic prices at their affiliated pharmacies to unbelievable thousands of percent levels.
Current investigations directed at UnitedHealth Group demonstrated the company achieved $5.54 billion in net income throughout the last quarter of 2024.
The corporations achieve record-high profits through their business yet patients including Cole must battle life-threatening illnesses.
Excellent treatment prices from PBMs rarely become more than didactic flashpoints to showcase how profit centers put profit interests above human life.
His household works to pursue justice while making sure the avoidable death of their family member will never be forgotten.
Feature Image (Credit: @facebook)