Stranded on the Streets of Usa with a Handicapped Son
My life is consumed by anguish…Ps 31:10 (NIV)”
I had stayed in USA for 8 months and I was staying in an apartment in Beaverton where my son was sharing it with four of his friends. The rent was 940 US dollars i.e. about Rs 45000 per month. Some how I managed to bear it as it was being shared by five. Three of his friends moved out in course of time leaving behind the two of us. Since the rent was exorbitant to be borne only by two, the other person wanted to move out to live with some of his friends, thereby subjecting me to pay the full rent by me from 01st June 2001 onwards apart from changing the rental contract on my name and to pay six months rental advance @ Rs 45000 per month. I could not even think of having to pay such a heavy rent leave alone the six months advance! And I did not know what to do further. Adding fuel to my situation, my son was completing 100 days in the Rehabilitation Centre on 31st May 2001 beyond which the Insurance conditions did not have provision to meet the expenses in a calendar year. If my son had to stay in the Rehabilitation Centre after 1st June 2001, the expenses had to be borne by me or alternatively I had to shift him to my apartment. Per day charges for the Rehab. Centre including the medication for my son was 500 dollars i.e. Rs 24000/-. My head began to swirl. Neither I could think of paying the Rehabilitation charges by myself nor take my son to my apartment where I was unable to pay the rent. A situation had come when virtually I and my son could not stay in USA after 1st June 2001. Then I thought, why not I return to India with my son? But Karthi’s condition was quite unpredictable and very unstable. The Lord had saved his life! But 100% recovery and healing was miles
afar. He had no memory. His eye sight was diminishing, he could not speak as his tongue was pulled inside because of tracheotomy, he had no control over his bladder and bowl, his lower portion below the hip was totally paralyzed, he had to be tied tightly to the wheel chair with a belt when he was made to sit on it, lest he might fall down to the front or collapse by the side. He was just a living vegetable. Bringing him to India in such a precarious and unpredictable condition by traveling about 38 hours by air was really risky. Yet I had decided to return to India and started exploring the possibility of medical evacuation of my son by air. On enquiry, I was told that it would cost around 15800 dollars i.e. roughly 7.5 lakhs in Indian currency. I was dumbfounded. I spoke to Ms Susan Baumgardner, Director of International Medical Services in St Vincent Hospital who had then become a close friend of us. She spoke to the Insurance Company about medical evacuation of my son to India which will be only an one time expense for the Insurance Company. But the Insurance Company did not agree for it saying that it would set a wrong precedence and once if they agreed to give for Karthik, there might be innumerable similar requests from other patients. I was dumb struck and stranded alone having come to the dead end.