Drive Through Mastectomy

When my surgeon called on Wednesday afternoon to change his recommendation from excision to mastectomy for the next day and told me it would be an outpatient procedure, I remember being quite surprised (as has pretty much everyone I've told that I had a mastecomy and went home the same day)! Actually, the low-key Dr. Majerick probably held the phone about a foot away from his ear when I shrilled "tomorrow, don't you need more time in the OR - don't I have to stay overnight?" He calmly answered that it wasn't major surgery and I would be fine to go home. He was, of course, correct. It wasn't major surgery (in the true - surgery sense), and I was fine to go home. Believe me the last thing I wanted to do at that time was spend any more time in the hospital than I absolutely had to. And this was my second surgery - I already knew how to take care of my drainage tube because I had had one with my axillary dissection and I was 2 weeks recovered from that procedure. At this time I had no idea that it was the insurance companies that were deciding how much time women can spend in the hospital after such a surgery. I am sure there are woman who would benefit from having the option of spending the night in the hospital after such a procedure and certainly spending up to 2 nights after a dissection.

There is currently a bill in subcommittee - H.R. 758, which would require that health plans provide coverage for a minimum hospital stay for mastectomies, lumpectomies, and lymph node dissection for the treatment of breast cancer and coverage for secondary consultations.

Please take a few minutes to visit this site and sign the petition urging congress to pass this bill.

Thanks!

http://www.mylifetime.com/community/my-lifetime-commitment/breast-cancer/petition/breast-cancer-petition