Real Stories, Real People
Patient Testimonies
My name is Sarah Duhart Clarke, and I live in Raleigh, North Carolina. Eleven years ago, I was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, an autoimmune disease. Diabetes is an incredibly expensive diagnosis. When I was first diagnosed, I was still a teenager and remained on my parents’ insurance. The cost of medicine and supplies created […]
Patient Testimonies
I didn't have any other choice.
My name is Samantha Rynearson and I’m from Selinsgrove, PA. I was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease after over a year-long battle fighting severe unexplained anemia. It was a relief to finally have answers, but it was devastating to learn that there was no cure and that I would be dealing with this disease for the […]
Patient Testimonies
There was no way I could afford either prescription.
My name is Miriam Wolfe and I’m from York, Maine. I live with chronic pain because I’m unable to afford the medications I need. Last year, I developed constant and severe pain that required analgesic suppositories to control. My doctor wrote a prescription for nifedipine and lidocaine that had to be filled at a compounding […]
Patient Testimonies
This relief comes with a steep price tag.
My name is Lisa Ann Wetzel-Trainor and I’m a chronic illness writer and after school art teacher. I live in Wall, NJ with my husband, Stephen, and our three rescue dogs. When I was 16, I experienced a trauma that left me with severe fibromyalgia and PTSD. At 19 years old, I was officially diagnosed […]
Patient Testimonies
My name is Marcus, and Nov. 25, 2000 will always be seared into my mind as the day my life changed. It was my sophomore year of high school. I was going to the bathroom once every five minutes and was very lethargic. No matter what I ate, I kept having to pee. I wrote […]
Patient Testimonies
I know what it's like to live without.
My name is Valerie and I’m from Long Beach, CA. I live with rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, and bipolar disorder, and I’m advocating for affordable prescription drugs because I know what it’s like to live without. Though I initially had a hard time finding doctors who believed my pain, I was finally diagnosed with both RA […]
Patient Testimonies
Patients like me have to plan our whole lives around the costs.
My name is Kaitlyn May and I live in Plattsburg, Missouri. When I was 15 years old I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), a chronic, long-term disease that affects my liver. After spending two and a half years trying to determine my diagnosis, I mostly focused on the health side […]
Patient Testimonies
Drug prices have forced me to ration my multiple sclerosis meds.
My name is Carol and I’m from Bisbee, AZ. I was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2004 and began receiving daily Copaxone injectionsin 2005. I was shocked at the price tag — if I recall correctly, my insurance plan was billed $1,500 each month, and the price of Copaxone kept rising. At one point, my […]