I was in the hospital for less than 24 hours for my mastectomy, it was way too fast. What this DR mentions here about her patient reaction, is truly how I felt. I didn't comprehend all that was being told to me. I was in a lot of pain, I was scared, medicated and not sure how I was even going to survive this. So if there could be given to the women, at least 2 days that would be a tremendous help. If you feel like helping this bill go through, please do.
Thanks,
Lynn Woodard
Proposed Mastectomy Law Change
(written by a surgeon);
I'll never forget the look in my patients eyes when I had to tell them they had to go home with the drains, new exercises and no breast. I remember begging the doctors to keep these women in the hospital longer, only to hear that they would, but their hands were tied by the insurance companies.
So there I sat with my patient giving them the instructions they needed to take care of themselves, knowing full well they didn't grasp half of what I was saying, because the glazed, hopeless, frightened look spoke louder than the quiet 'Thank you' they muttered.
A mastectomy is when a woman's breast is removed in order to remove cancerous breast cells/tissue. If you know anyone who has had a mastectomy, you may know that there is a lot of discomfort and pain afterwards. Insurance companies are trying to make mastectomies an outpatient procedure. Let's give women the chance to recover properly in the hospital for 2 days after surgery.
This Mastectomy Bill is in Congress now. It takes 2 seconds to do this and is very important. The Breast Cancer Hospitalization Bill is important legislation for all women.
If there was ever a time when our voices and choices should be heard, this is one of those times.
There's a bill called the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act which will require insurance companies to cover a minimum 48-hour hospital stay for patients undergoing a mastectomy. It's about eliminating the 'drive-through mastectomy' where women are forced to go home just a few hours after surgery, against the wishes of their doctor, still groggy from anesthesia and sometimes with drainage tubes still attached.
Lifetime Television has put this bill on their web page with a petition drive to show your support.. Last year over half the House signed on. PLEASE! Sign the petition by clicking on the web site below. You need not give more than your name and zip code number.
This only takes a few seconds. Thank you!
