Man Dies From Toothache, Couldn't Afford Meds

slimvictor

slimvictor

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A 24-year-old Cincinnati father died from a tooth infection this week because he couldn't afford his medication, offering a sobering reminder of the importance of oral health and the number of people without access to dental or health care.

According to NBC affiliate WLWT, Kyle Willis' wisdom tooth started hurting two weeks ago. When dentists told him it needed to be pulled, he decided to forgo the procedure, because he was unemployed and had no health insurance.

When his face started swelling and his head began to ache, Willis went to the emergency room, where he received prescriptions for antibiotics and pain medications. Willis couldn't afford both, so he chose the pain medications.

The tooth infection spread, causing his brain to swell. He died Tuesday.


cont at
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/insurance-24-year-dies-toothache/story?id=14438171
 
wow. what a bummer. (insert comment about the sad state of American healthcare)

All you usually have to do is tell the doctor you can't afford the meds and they will set you up with a caseworker from the hospital...
 
damn, i once smashed my face off a wall while drunk and on benzos and my tooth got infected pretty bad. I had to pay out of pocket at the time and it sucked, i was so out of it and also going through 400 mg of codeine/day so i let it go for as long as possible. Luckily i got in with a dentist when the pain became unbearable but if i didn't have the $800 it cost, i would have ended up like this guy. I seriously considered ripping it out myself simply to save the money.
 
RobotRipping said:
damn, i once smashed my face off a wall while drunk and on benzos and my tooth got infected pretty bad. I had to pay out of pocket at the time and it sucked, i was so out of it and also going through 400 mg of codeine/day so i let it go for as long as possible. Luckily i got in with a dentist when the pain became unbearable but if i didn't have the $800 it cost, i would have ended up like this guy. I seriously considered ripping it out myself simply to save the money.
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i have a friend that has ripped it out himself, even after i explained the dangers and high possibilities of infection. he did it for the same reason, no money to pay for the bill well that and because he is an idiot. lol
 
I have a tooth in the back of my mouth that should have been taken out 6 years ago. My dentist set me up with an oral surgeon to have the procedure done back then but I was chicken shit to go threw with it. My tooth doesnt hurt at all, I floss & brush twice a day so that helps & I also dont eat candy & sweets much.

I called my dentist today for a check up & will tell him to set me up with the oral surgeon to have this tooth taken out & I guess have something else put in its place, I know its expensive but my insurance covers it. I procrastinate too much, that is why I havent had it done yet. If I keep procrastinating, I may end up like the guys above in the stories, (knock on wood it doesnt happen).
 
Reading stories as sad as this make me realise how lucky I am to live in a country with a social healthcare system. Here he would have had that tooth pulled for free due to his financial circumstances.
 
I once had a tooth abscess that had gotten so bad my jaw had swelled to the size of my fist and the infection was starting to spread down my neck to my chest. I was laying on my couch for days in a feverish delirium because I didn't have money, until my mother came over to visit unannounced and rushed me to the hospital where they drained my abscess and stuck me on IV antibiotics. The doctor told me that if I had left it for two or three more days I'd have ended up like the guy in the OP.
 
slimvictor said:
where he received prescriptions for antibiotics and pain medications. Willis couldn't afford both, so he chose the pain medications.
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lol I've done the same thing a few times

All you usually have to do is tell the doctor you can't afford the meds and they will set you up with a caseworker from the hospital...
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This is true; usually in the US you can get them to front you the medical care, although sometimes with the dental work it's like applying for the papacy. Also, where I live, to get free meds you have to be declared indigent, and the people who make said declaration have a backlog of weeks (really, I used to be one). You can expedite the process by moving into a homeless shelter, but even then you'll have to wait like 72 hours to be processed.

There are options other than the guvment. You can buy dope pretty cheap, and in the same neighborhood where you buy dope the mom-and-pop pharmacies will sometimes sell you penicillin (cheap) without a prescription.
 
That's a shame. I have to admit I'm kinda confused though, antibiotics are not expensive drugs. You can get a script filled for $4 at wal-mart or kroger unless he got scripted some weird expensive shit like cipro. all the generic antibiotics are cheap as hell though.
 
you know guys I hear that dying from tooth pain is among some of the most horrid ways to die. just existing with the tooth pain is bad enough. it stings and you cant eat ice cream. but then, when it approaches levels of im gonna kill ya fool, it becomes the pain of a thousand needlespawns right in ya mouf
 
Years of reading articles linked in Drugs in the Media and I've never read something so uniquely tragic.

I've had my share of abscessed teeth, and fuck they can hurt.

This poor guy was probably in so much pain that he was desperate for relief in the moment rather than paying for the antibiotic which takes days to fully kill the infection.

RIP
 
I have found that some doctors are willing to give you the drugs if you explain to them that you don't have insurance. That's assuming that they have them in stock (they get lots of samples), that you don't lie to them (tell them you don't have insurance but are billing the visit to insurance), and you don't do it every other visit. I've had two doctors that have had no problem handing over everything from Amoxicillin to Methylprednisolone, Oxycontin and Zolpidem.
 
True story..
When I was homeless back in 2008 I had the same problem. Had to get a tooth pulled, but what was I to do? WELL there are places that are ran by the state that does shit like this. So I told the folks at the homeless shelter (salvation army) that I was having a tooth problem and they took me to a state health and dental place, and they did everything for free! even gave me 30x ibuprofen 800mgs for the pain and 2weeks worth of amoxicillin 500mg's. (they pulled the tooth, gave me novacain atleast :/)
All I did was ask for help.. even if there's not a homeless shelter where he lived he could have contacted the state/county health department..
didn't need to go to the hospital and get a script that I knew i couldn't pay for..

USE RESOURCES!

sucks he died.. hopefully people will learn.
 
D's said:
True story..
When I was homeless back in 2008 I had the same problem. Had to get a tooth pulled, but what was I to do? WELL there are places that are ran by the state that does shit like this. So I told the folks at the homeless shelter (salvation army) that I was having a tooth problem and they took me to a state health and dental place, and they did everything for free! even gave me 30x ibuprofen 800mgs for the pain and 2weeks worth of amoxicillin 500mg's. (they pulled the tooth, gave me novacain atleast :/)
All I did was ask for help.. even if there's not a homeless shelter where he lived he could have contacted the state/county health department..
didn't need to go to the hospital and get a script that I knew i couldn't pay for..

USE RESOURCES!

sucks he died.. hopefully people will learn.
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Unfortunately he probably didn't have the slightest idea that was an option. But what confuses me is why didn't he tell the prescribing doctor that he couldn't afford both meds? Or perhaps he did and was ignored (doubtful).
 
USA = Land of the free, yet you're gonna die over a toothache. Social Healthcare > USA Healthcare.

Can't have a fair healthcare system when it's FOR PROFIT, like everything else in the USA.
 
Dental care is one of those health procedures that often gets dropped early because it is viewed as costly and by some to be cosmetic. It is in fact one of the most important things to keep an eye on for the sake of overall health. It sucks how many American's don't have dental insurance. I'd take state dental over state health, personally. I haven't been to the dentist in years.
 
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