Poverty: A Death Sentence

My friends and I have been pooling our efforts to come up with a plan to help our friend, Mariano Gonzalo, or Kuya Ric to us and those who are close to him.

Kuya Ric is suffering from Kidney failure and diabetes. He has been living alone and until last week, when my friends found him, has been living in a ran-down house with no-one to take of him. Kuya Ric was thrown out from the house of his nephew because of some feud between them ensued.

He was for some time confined in the hospital but was also forced to checked out because he couldn't afford the money to stay in the ICU of the ITRMC. According to a friend, it will cost around P15,000.00 a week for a kidney dialysis, save for the expenses for the additional medicines.

A few days ago, a friend of mine accompanied Kuya Ric to the doctor and the doctor have given Kuya Ric only a few weeks to survive. Or according to my friend who accompanied him, he could go anytime.

The irony, i thought, is that kidney diseases are now curable. This is not cancer or AIDS. But the doctor was just truthful. He probably said the same to dozens of unfortunates several dozens of times over. Based on the economic condition of Kuya Ric, he cannot afford the procedure required to survived his ailments.

Although, his ailment has rendered him weak, ultimately poverty have given him his death sentence.

The irony is (the truth, rather) is that if you are rich and you are sick, you have the right to survive longer. The procedures, the doctors and other specialists are there, more than ready and willing to give you an extra day, week, month or even years. But if you are sick and poor, in this country, you are as good as dead.

In fact, some even choose death over prolonging the agony of being poor.

Remember Janeth Ponce who poisoned her three children then committed suicide afterwards.