The death of the four time X Games champion Sarah Burke on Thursday January 19, 2012 was not only a great loss but also brought a huge burden to her family.
29 year old Sarah died during a training run sponsored by Monster Energy Company on the famous Super Eagle half pipe in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Reports indicate that Sarah’s accident on January 10 caused irreversible damage to the brain after a cardiac arrest caused by a ruptured vertebral artery.
Her 9 day stay in hospital led to a medical bill of around $200000 after undergoing surgery and treatment. Since Sarah was a Canadian receiving treatment in the US her insurance cover was unable to cover the cost.
There was however an overall appeal from the public for Monster Energy to cover the bill but this did not happen.
Her husband Roy Bushfield set up a website as a fundraising campaign and by Saturday the site had raised $246701 towards covering the medical bill.
This has ensured that Sarah’s family won’t have to deal with the huge medical bill left behind by her unfortunate demise.
Donations Cover Sarah Burke's Medical Bill
What? The greatly toted medical coverage in Canada only works in Canada? At least if you buy insurance in the USA, you are covered wherever you go! It sounded as though you were being critical of America because it wouldn’t flip the bill for free. Chances are the hospital is privately owned. We have gov’t hospitals, but even then you are still expected to pay if you do not have insurance.