Insurance battle goes on after death
March 26, 2008
By Clare Walters SPECIAL TO THE HERALD NEWS
FRANKFORT -- Cyril Strezo never imagined he would have cancer.
And the Frankfort man certainly never imagined that his battle for insurance coverage for chemotherapy drugs would inspire state legislation.
Strezo died Sunday morning at the Joliet Area Community Hospice. He was 58.
"There are no words that can describe the pain and emptiness I now have," said his daughter Jody Polka, who led the family's battle against UniCare -- the man's insurance provider. "My dad truly was one of the most amazing men in this world."
Strezo never smoked or drank, which made his June diagnosis of esophageal cancer "really startling."
Determined to fight the disease, Strezo began a course of radiation and chemotherapy in July. UniCare denied coverage of the drugs prescribed by his oncologist, and the doctor was forced to change his regimen.
After eight weeks of treatment, Strezo underwent surgery in October to remove his esophagus, during which doctors discovered the cancer had spread to his liver.
Strezo's oncologist again prescribed a "best course" of treatment that was denied by UniCare as "experimental or investigative."
This time, the family was determined to fight the insurance company's decision, believing the drugs would give this patriarch the best chance of survival. Sun-Times News Group first reported on Strezo in December as his family awaited a response to his appeal to UniCare.
The day the article ran, state Rep. Mary Flowers, D-Chicago, and the Illinois attorney general's office stepped in, and UniCare had reversed its decision the following day.
But Strezo had grown increasingly ill and his cancer spread. He was hospitalized and moved earlier this month to the hospice facility.
Flowers and the attorney general again intervened on the family's behalf last week when Unicare notified the hospice Strezo had reached his hospice benefit limit of $10,000. The company said it would not pay for hospice care after March 19, Polka said.
On Thursday, the family learned UniCare agreed to extend hospice benefits another week.
Since December, Polka shared her father's story at a health care reform rally in Chicago and testified before an Illinois House of Representatives health committee in support of legislation.
The bill, introduced by Flowers, aims to expedite the insurance appeal process in cases like Strezo's, where a delay could further impact the patient's health.
The bill last month won unanimous approval of the committee and likely will be heard by the full House next month.
Strezo, who lived in Dolton until moving to Frankfort in 1994, ran his own excavation and trucking company. He most enjoyed spending time with his wife of 36 years, Terry, their three children and two grandchildren.
He was a die-hard fan of the Green Bay Packers and White Sox. During treatments, he even received a get-well card signed by pitcher Mark Buehrle.
Visitation for Strezo is from 2 to 8 p.m. today at Kurtz Memorial Chapel in Frankfort.
His funeral is Thursday. He will be buried with full military honors at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery in Elwood.

I work for an insurance company and Unicare stating the chemo drugs are experimental/investigational just doesnt seem right. I can see them only covering the hospice up to $10,000, if that's the limit in the policy the insurance company is doing no wrong there. I think there is more to the chemo drug thing then we are being told about. Wonder if there was some sort of drug maximum in the policy that was already met???