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Eight Hundred Thirty-Two and Eighty-Seven

Eight hundred and Thirty-Two dollars and Eighty-Seven cents ($837.87), that is what it cost us for Ashley's recent trip Shands Hospital. One trip that only included an MRI with contrast and blood work.

Eight hundred and Thirty-Two dollars and Eighty-Seven sents for an MRI, gas, labs, meals, and parking just for Ashley to be at the hospital for a total of two hours at the least. A visit that takes us all day to complete.

Just one trip! Multiply that amount by 3 or 4 and you might have a better understanding of what we spend out-of-pocket on just Ashley alone for her visits to Shands Hospital Liver Clinic

That's $2,498.61 to $3,331.48 dollars out of our pocket each year just for her trips to Shands. That doesn't include the visits to her pediatrician which can be once a week or labs done at our local Quest Diagnostic Center (at least 6 times a year).

Okay now even more of a shocker...multiply that yearly amount by 11. That's $36,646.28. That's just only a fraction of what we have paid out-of-pocket on Ashley since she was born in July 1998; since she was diagnosed with liver disease.

You can probably take that $36K amount and multiply that by 2, that may get you close to what we spent during Ashley's first two years of life - about $73 thousand dollars.

None of these dollar figures include her medicines, which can run $200 a month.

Folks, this is our out-of-pocket expenses; after insurance claims have been paid. It's crazy stressful.

None of this includes Brad's medical care for his horrible allergies or asthma. It doesn't include dental care; braces or regular check-ups to the dentist. And it doesn't include medical care for Ashley's dad and me.

And what if Ashley were sicker? Can you imagine what our out-of-pocket expenses would be then? I can't, I don't even want to think about it.

How do people manage without healthcare?

Now you know why we are fundraising.

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