"I'm going to die slowly." Insurance ceases to cover essential drugs to humans

ELK GROVE, California –Mark Dendy was able to lead a normal life through a variety of life-saving drugs, but he now claims that his insurance company will no longer cover the exorbitant cost of Syprine.

Mark Dendy usually has a sense of healthy humor with the staff and students that he hosts at Brightwood College in Sacramento.

Many are aware that, for Dendy, his work diverts attention from a deadly disease that literally poisons him from within.

"Without drugs, I'm going to die a slow death," he told KTXL.

At 27, Dendy was diagnosed with Wilson's disease. It is an extremely rare disorder that causes copper buildup in vital organs like the liver and brain.

"The prognosis was that I would be dead before I turned 30," Dendy said.

Mark is now 64 years old and lives a normal life thanks to a variety of life-saving drugs. For 12 years, he has been taking a medicine called Syprine.

In July, his insurance company, Sutter Health, informed him that she would no longer cover the drug.

The worst is that since 2015, the only pharmaceutical company that makes it, Bausch Health, has increased the price of the drug from $ 600 to $ 21,000 for a month of supply. This is an increase of more than 3,000%.

"We do not have a lot of options if Sutter continues to deny," Dendy said. "Where is the humanity? Is it profits for these big companies?

Dendy's health care plan no longer covers the cost of the drug because his case "did not meet medical necessity," even if he did not take it, he risked liver failure that could be fatal.

Sutter Health has sent KTXL a statement in which it echoes: "This drug is on the Sutter Health Plus form and is covered if it is medically necessary."

"I see a neurologist, I see a liver specialist," said Dendy.

In the meantime, Dendy is doing everything in her power to stay alive. He also appealed to Sutter Health regarding the decision not to cover his medication.

But he has no idea how long it might take or how much time he has left without his medication.

"It's not about me," he said. "It's about being human."