Teen to Aetna After Brain Surgery Denied: 'Screw You'

When Cara Pressman gets seizures, she describes it as "like having a nightmare but while you're awake," giving her the chills and the shakes and causing her to zone out for up to two minutes. So the 15-year-old, who a release says is from New York and has suffered from seizures since she was 9, was elated when she was set in October for a minimally invasive brain surgery called laser ablation that could end her trauma, per CNN

But just days before the procedure, it was canceled, because Aetna, the family's insurance company, denied the coverage, saying the surgery is "experimental" for epilepsy and "the effectiveness of this approach has not been established." Instead, Aetna approved a more expensive temporal lobectomy, despite laser ablation being FDA approved and a Mayo Clinic neurosurgeon saying the procedure is a well-regarded one.

Read the full story on Newser.com


More From Newser

Photo: Getty Images


Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content