Denied for lack of funds, not lack of pain!

This piece was born from a moment too familiar to too many when systems fail, but pain persists. “Denied for lack of funds, not lack of pain” is not just a title; it is a testimony. It speaks to the quiet battles fought in waiting rooms, on hold lines, and inside bodies that carry more than they are allowed to claim.

Sweetie watched me through it all her tweets timed to my breath, her silence louder than any diagnosis. This is for those people who were told “no” by a health system that never asked them, “how are you?” It is for the ones who heal anyway, who create anyway, who speak even when their voice trembles.

Denied for lack of funds, not lack of pain.” Transcript

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act includes $1 trillion in Medicaid cuts over the next decade.

Work requirements and eligibility checks will push millions off coverage, especially seniors,

and disabled adults.

Career changes include prior authorizations, reduced subsidies, and increased premiums

for drug plans.

Experts warn these cuts will disproportionately harm low-income seniors, rural hospitals,

and long-term care facilities.

It wasn't fraud.

It was forgetting.

They budgeted us out like we were numbers.

But I remember names.

I remember faces.

And memory doesn't depreciate.

It wasn't fraud.

It was forgetting.

They budgeted us out like we were numbers.

But I remember names.

I remember faces.

And memory doesn't depreciate.

They told me I needed a bone graft.

I told them I needed mercy.

They said Medicaid don't cover mercy anymore.

Back in 1965, Lyndon signed a promise.

Medicare.

Medicaid.

A safety net for the old, the poor, and the sick.

I watched it cradle my generation.

Now I watch it unravel.

They call it the One Big Beautiful Bill.

I call it the One Big Goodbye.

A trillion dollars cut from Medicaid, millions dropped, hospitals closing, nursing homes

gasping, and the rich, they get tax cuts and veneers.

They say it's fraud prevention.

I say it's elder evictions.

They say work requirements.

I say what work?

I'm 82 with a pacemaker and a poem.

So, I ask you, out stages, cafe crowd, how long do we have?

How long before Medicare becomes a memory and Medicaid a myth?

How long before the poor die with clean X-rays and no teeth?

Dignity delisted and compassion repossessed.

It wasn't fraud.

It was forgetting.

They budgeted us out like we were numbers.

But I remember names.

I remember faces.

And memory doesn't depreciate.

It wasn't fraud.

It was forgetting.

They budgeted us out like we were numbers.

But I remember names.

I remember faces.

And memory doesn't depreciate.

Denied for lack of funds, not lack of pain.

On the cafe wall.

A ghost elder passes by and whispers, that was me.

Dignity delisted and compassion repossessed.

It wasn't fraud.

It was forgetting.

They budgeted us out like we were numbers.

But I remember names.

I remember faces.

And memory doesn't depreciate.

It wasn't fraud.

It was forgetting.

They budgeted us out like we were numbers.

But I remember names.

I remember faces.

And memory doesn't depreciate.

Bone grafts can cost $700 to $3,000, depending on the type.

Insurance rarely covers them unless deemed medically necessary.

Seniors on Medicare or Medi-Cal often face denials or limited coverage, especially for

procedures tied to immigrants.

Many elders are turned away with no treatment, just United

It wasn't fraud.

It was forgetting.

They budgeted us out like we were numbers.

But I remember names.

I remember faces.

And memory doesn't depreciate.

Insurance doesn't cover empathy.

A ghost elder whispers, I came for help.

I left with shame.

How many elders were sent home today?

How many teeth were deemed too poor to save?

written, created, edited by

Vicki Lawana Trusselli

Trusselli Art

copyright 2025