{"id":5,"date":"2015-01-14T14:55:51","date_gmt":"2015-01-14T14:55:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/?p=5"},"modified":"2016-04-22T13:45:41","modified_gmt":"2016-04-22T13:45:41","slug":"a-health-crisis-turns-a-familys-world-upside-down","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/2015\/01\/14\/a-health-crisis-turns-a-familys-world-upside-down\/","title":{"rendered":"Health Crisis Turns Family&#8217;s World Upside Down"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Isac and Elizabeth Madrid looked like a lot of families in North Texas: a married couple in their 20s with a young child and a house in the suburbs. Then a health emergency changed everything.<\/strong><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div id=\"attachment_6\" style=\"max-width:100%;  width: 974px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-6 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madridfamily-e1424805347309.jpg\" alt=\"Madrid family\" width=\"974\" height=\"583\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madridfamily-e1424805347309.jpg 974w, https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madridfamily-e1424805347309-300x180.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madridfamily-e1424805347309-800x479.jpg 800w, https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madridfamily-e1424805347309-450x269.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 974px) 100vw, 974px\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\"style=\"max-width:100%;  width: 974px\" >A health crisis sent the Madrid family of Rockwall into a financial crisis. Photo\/Dane Walters<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>As the Madrids play with their 1-year-old son, a smiling, curly-haired boy, they\u2019re the picture of a happy family. You\u2019d never guess what they\u2019ve been through in the last 18 months.<\/p>\n<p>On the day little Isac was born, Dad started feeling ill. Three weeks later, the Rockwall man was in the hospital, and didn\u2019t leave for months.<\/p>\n<div style=\"width: 498px;\" class=\"wp-video\"><!--[if lt IE 9]><script>document.createElement('video');<\/script><![endif]-->\n<video class=\"wp-video-shortcode\" id=\"video-5-1\" width=\"498\" height=\"280\" preload=\"metadata\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"video\/mp4\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madrid1b-1392849671-83.mp4-1.mp4?_=1\" \/><a href=\"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madrid1b-1392849671-83.mp4-1.mp4\">http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madrid1b-1392849671-83.mp4-1.mp4<\/a><\/video><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>His diagnosis? Erythropoietic Protoporphyria or EPP.<\/p>\n<p>Isac\u2019s case of EPP is severe and causes a blood deficiency as well as liver failure. He\u2019s already gotten a liver transplant and had one unsuccessful bone marrow transplant. He\u2019s scheduled for another.<\/p>\n<h4>The income came &#8216;to a stop&#8217;<\/h4>\n<p>Once a sturdy 210 pounds, Isac now weighs in the 140s.<\/p>\n<p>With a health crisis this serious, keeping his inside sales job wasn\u2019t an option.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy job tried to help me out as much as possible, but they could only do so much, which I\u2019ve very thankful for,&#8221; Isac says. \u201cI couldn\u2019t work so my side of the income came to just a stop.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Isac is on disability now, and it\u2019s up to Elizabeth to earn all the family\u2019s income.<\/p>\n<div class=\"audiobtn\">\n<!--[if lt IE 9]><script>document.createElement('audio');<\/script><![endif]-->\n<audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-5-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madrid1_soundbite1.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madrid1_soundbite1.mp3\">http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madrid1_soundbite1.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"audiotext\">\u201cBefore we were two incomes and now it\u2019s just me and we get Social Security, but it\u2019s not much,\u201d Elizabeth says. \u201cIt\u2019s not what he used to make before. And before everything started all of our bills depended on two incomes, and that\u2019s how everything was planned. And we were fine.\u201d<\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_12\" style=\"max-width:100%;  width: 1023px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-12 size-full\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/isacmadrid-e1424805440680.jpg\" alt=\"Isac Madrid\" width=\"1023\" height=\"557\" srcset=\"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/isacmadrid-e1424805440680.jpg 1023w, https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/isacmadrid-e1424805440680-300x163.jpg 300w, https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/isacmadrid-e1424805440680-800x436.jpg 800w, https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/isacmadrid-e1424805440680-450x245.jpg 450w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1023px) 100vw, 1023px\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\"style=\"max-width:100%;  width: 1023px\" >Isac Madrid shows recent scars from a liver transplant and a spleen removal. Photo\/Dane Walters<\/p><\/div>\n<h4>Worrying about every little thing<\/h4>\n<p>When your earnings drop that much, Isac and Elizabeth say your entire outlook changes.<\/p>\n<p>Their mortgage payment is a constant, nagging worry. They keep the house lights low and regulate the thermostat fiercely. Even trips to the grocery store are nerve-wracking.<\/p>\n<div class=\"audiobtn\">\n<audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-5-2\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madrid1_soundbite2.mp3?_=2\" \/><a href=\"http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madrid1_soundbite2.mp3\">http:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2015\/01\/madrid1_soundbite2.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"audiotext\">\u201cIt&#8217;s life-changing because before you didn\u2019t worry about small things, to now you\u2019re worrying about every little single thing,\u201d Elizabeth says. \u201cLike a little, simple decision. Now it\u2019s a big deal.\u201d<\/div>\n<div class=\"clear\"><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>A major illness means new expenses to fret over &#8212; doctors&#8217; visits and pills. Rockwall County Helping Hands, a nonprofit group, pays Dad and son\u2019s COBRA bill. While Baylor\u2019s drug assistance program helps with Isac\u2019s monthly haul from the pharmacy, it doesn\u2019t cover all 12 daily medications.<\/p>\n<p>Isac, who was born in El Paso, and Elizabeth, from Monterrey, Mexico, are the definition of a family living one crisis away.<\/p>\n<p>Before he got sick, things were good. Two steady jobs, two cars, a nice house in the suburbs, a little bit of savings.<\/p>\n<p>But when illness snuck up on him, everything changed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Isac and Elizabeth Madrid looked like a lot of families&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":12,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"audio","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5","post","type-post","status-publish","format-audio","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-one-crisis-living-on-the-financial-edge","post_format-post-format-audio","byline-courtney-collins"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5"}],"version-history":[{"count":57,"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":392,"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5\/revisions\/392"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stories.kera.org\/onecrisisaway\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}