Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, February 22, 1994 TAG: 9402220243
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-5 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: New River Valley bureau
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Wert originally was to have left for New York City todayCQ Tues. to begin several days of tests leading up to surgery next week.
But her surgeon at New York University Medical Center notified her that he was not yet ready because several pieces of specialized equipment had yet to be transferred from his former practice at the Mayo Clinic, Dave Wert, Kelly's father, said Saturday.
The delay could be up to five weeks, putting her new surgery date near the end of March.
The good news is that the fund-raising efforts for the Christiansburg native were an overwhelming success. The Feb. 6 spaghetti dinner at Christiansburg High School raised $13,400. Other events garnered $33,500, for a total of more than $46,000, First National Bank of Christiansburg President Sam Tollison said Friday.
Kelly Wert was substitute teaching in Montgomery County and looking for a full-time teaching job when a movement disorder she's had since age 13 worsened last fall. Because she'd left her parent's health insurance policy and obtained her own, short-term plan after graduating from college last spring, both plans considered her health problem a pre-existing condition.
On the weekend of the spaghetti dinner, the Werts learned that their family carrier, Travelers Insurance Co., had decided to cover Kelly as a disabled dependent, after previously denying coverage.
Though 80 percent of her treatment will now be covered, the family will still owe thousands. Moreover, there's no guarantee the total cost will stay below the original $44,000 estimate.
Fund organizers therefore will wait until after the surgery to decide what to do with any surplus. Possibilities include helping someone else in need, or donating it to charity.
by CNB