When Joan McCarville had her first lung transplant in 1997, her insurance paid. When she had another lung transplant the same year, the plan paid again.
Now that the 44-year-old Iowa County dairy farmer and mother of two needs a third lung transplant, the same plan – the state’s Health Insurance Risk Sharing Plan – won’t cover it.
UW Health says McCarville must prepay $330,000 or provide a letter of guarantee from a bank for that amount in order to have the procedure.