Local woman moving to Belgium for healthcare
Story By: Nicole Vandeputte
Source: KOAA
Published Mon Oct 13, 2008, 04:19 PM MDT
Updated Mon Oct 13, 2008, 10:48 PM MDT
Healthcare, and ways to make it more affordable, is a hot topic on the campaign trail. Barack Obama and John McCain have very different plans to fix our crumbling system.
It comes too late for one woman in Colorado Springs. Barbara Calder lives in constant pain, and she's making a drastic move to find relief.
Calder's joints dislocate everytime she moves. She says her arms and shoulders dislocate when she moves. Her right hip dislocates when she walks. She can't sleep. "When I sleep they continually dislocate," Calder says, "I can't put blankets on my toes, because they continually dislocate."
She suffers from Ehlers-Danlos. It's a rare disease that makes her tissue so flimsy the joints can't hold together.
She says she once was told to sing to distract from the pain. She sings all the time. Her only other relief is Ibuprofin. It's the only treatment she can afford. Her husband's healthcare won't cover treatment for this disease. She says, "There's so few doctors over here that treat this disease, and it would be unaffordable. I couldn't find any doctors on Medicare who would treat it."
So, Calder and her husband are moving. They're selling their home in Colorado Springs, and they've sold most of their possessions.
They're moving to Belgium. She says, "3 of the top doctors in the world in Ehler's-Danlos are out of the University of Gent, that's in Belgium."
She's moving for the doctors, and to be in a system where everyone's covered. In Belgium, a small percentage of each paycheck pays for the country to have healthcare. She says it was a source of pride when she took a trip there to make her decision. "We're all in this together. All of us are going to get old. All of us are going to get sick sometime, and taking care of each other makes a healthy country," says Calder.
A move across the ocean; It's the only prescription, Calder believes can save her from the pain.
Maybe another sign of the times. The only thing holding the Calders here is that they're having trouble selling their home.
