HealthWell Foundation Offers a Financial Lifeline to Medicare Patients Living with Tardive Dyskinesia
New Fund Provides Copayment and Premium Assistance
GERMANTOWN, Md. — March 8, 2018 — The HealthWell Foundation®, an independent non-profit that provides a financial lifeline for inadequately insured Americans, has launched a new fund to provide copayment and premium assistance to Medicare patients living with Tardive Dyskinesia (TD). Through the fund, HealthWell will provide up to $10,000 in financial assistance for a 12-month grant to eligible tardive dyskinesia patients who have annual household incomes up to 500 percent of the federal poverty level.
TD is a neurological disorder caused by the long-term use of neuroleptic drugs or anti-psychotic medications. Characteristics of the disorder may include frowning, tongue sticking out, rapid eye blinking, and rapid movements of the arms, legs, and trunk. Severe cases may involve problems such as difficulty swallowing, speech interference, disfigured facial features, and breathing trouble. According to Mental Health America (MHA), it is estimated to effect at least 500,000 people in the U.S. Approximately 60 to 70 percent of the cases are mild, and approximately 3 percent are extremely severe.
“So many people dealing with TD also have an uphill battle when it comes to financial assistance,” said Paul Gionfriddo, president and CEO, Mental Health America. “Finding payment methods that will allow people – often living on disability and Medicaid or Medicare – to afford the new treatments is critical. We applaud the HealthWell Foundation for this generous effort, which will undoubtedly help many people dealing with this difficult condition.”
“People living with TD can endure a variety of symptoms and some of those symptoms can be quite debilitating,” said Krista Zodet, HealthWell Foundation President. “TD can be difficult to diagnose, and treatment for the disorder can require a long-term commitment. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we can provide a financial lifeline to ease some of the burden these patients face in accessing treatment so they can focus on better quality of life rather than the costs associated with managing their condition.”
To determine eligibility and apply for financial assistance, visit HealthWell’s Tardive Dyskinesia Fund page. To learn how you can support this or other HealthWell programs, visit HealthWellFoundation.org.
About the HealthWell Foundation
A nationally recognized, independent non-profit organization founded in 2003, the HealthWell Foundation has served as a safety net for more than 320,000 underinsured patients in more than 60 disease areas by providing access to life-changing medical treatments they otherwise would not be able to afford. HealthWell provides financial assistance to adults and children facing medical hardship resulting from gaps in their insurance that cause out-of-pocket medical expenses to escalate rapidly. HealthWell assists with the treatment-related cost-sharing obligations of these patients. For more information, visit www.HealthWellFoundation.org.
About Mental Health America
Mental Health America (MHA) – founded in 1909 – is the nation’s leading community-based non-profit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness and to promoting the overall mental health of all Americans. Our work is driven by our commitment to promote mental health as a critical part of overall wellness, including prevention services for all, early identification and intervention for those at risk, integrated care, services, and supports for those who need it, with recovery as the goal. Much of our current work is guided by the Before Stage 4 (B4Stage4) philosophy – that mental health conditions should be treated long before they reach the most critical points in the disease process. To learn more, visit: http://www.mentalhealthamerica.net.
# # #