Facing Brain Surgery 

Robert is a member who recently underwent brain surgery to remove a tumor. First Health 
made sure that his benefits were coordinated seamlessly, paid his claims quickly and 
accurately, and offered a choice of carefully credentialed doctors and hospitals. As a result, 
Robert and his family were able to focus on his recovery—not on his medical bills. He shares 
how First Health helped him at a time of crisis.

"You know you have insurance but you really don't think about it, and you really don't know if it's going to be bad or good until you have to use it. I had never thought about it. I mean, I felt healthy pretty much all my life. Well the unthinkable happened: brain tumor.

"When I scheduled the surgery, my only question was, 'Do you accept First Health?" They said they did, and I assumed they would take it from there, and they did. So I was able to stay with my own doctor and hospital. In fact, the hospital in my hometown I do not like, so I had the CAT scan done at a hospital in another town. And I was perfectly happy with the two hospitals that I used. It just went real smooth. I had a lot of things on my mind, so it was nice — to go down to the hospital to do these tests and tell them you have First Health and everything after that is taken care of.

"The day of the operation I went in and talked to the doctor and to my wife, and then I don't remember too much after that. I just remember waking up in ICU. And in ICU I got excellent care. The nurses were just unbelievable…the hospital staff was wonderful.

"After an operation and a week recuperating in the hospital, with doctors and nurses monitoring my every move, it finally came time to go home. Well, of course, I still wasn't thinking about money at the time. I figured I would have a lot of bills, and I would worry about that later.

"When my wife and I went to check out we were told all we owed was $100. I cried.  I remembered what was done to save my life, and I could only estimate the cost. I have a long road back to recovery, but First Health has smoothed out a lot of the bumps. The only time I needed to call First Health was afterwards, to tell them how happy and grateful I was.

"To be honest, I didn't know anything about First Health before this. I worked for a company that used First Health. If I were to go out and buy health benefits, I would buy services from First Health, knowing what I know now. I just really appreciate everything that First Health has done."