Missouri man says he killed wife because of her costly medical treatment

[Jilly_in_VA]

A 75-year-old Missouri man strangled his wife to death in a hospital bed while claiming that he could no longer afford to pay for her ongoing kidney dialysis treatment, according to authorities.

Ronnie Wiggs has been jailed on a count of second-degree murder in connection with a femicide that starkly demonstrates how US women in general face disproportionately high levels of violence at the hands of intimate partners and family caregivers.

According to a statement that prosecutors published on Saturday, Wiggs had accompanied his wife to a hospital in Independence, Missouri, so that she could receive a new medical port device allowing her to continue undergoing kidney dialysis.

Wiggs then fatally strangled her – covering her nose and mouth to keep from screaming – while she was in bed, prosecutors and local news outlets reported.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/article/2024/may/07/missouri-man-wife-medical-treatment

But let's not talk about the elephant in the room, which is the exorbitant cost of US medical care.....

[ret5hd]

1. i thought dialysis care was covered...

unequivocally and completely under medicare/medicaid.

regardless, no excuses…that is absolutely horrible.

[VMA131Marine]

3. It is covered.

But the new port may not have been.

[getagrip_already]

4. I think it's based on an end state diagnosis

Outpatient home care is not so generous, requires part a and part b, and has limits.

but I'm not an expert and don't use the services, so I'm just going by what I read.

[emulatorloo]

2. He murdered his wife. No elephants, no excuses. And medicare covers Dialysis.

https://www.healthline.com/health/medicare/does-medicare-cover-dialysis

[XanaDUer2]

5. Reminds me

Woman killed husband bc his cancer bills were bankrupting them.

[Jilly_in_VA]

6. It doesn't cover everything

Just the dialysis itself. Not the associated medical expenses.

[snot]

7. I can confirm,

there's a LOT that Medicare + available insurance don't cover.