A message from Miranda Cristofani:Franco Cristofani has been a part of the Animation community, and a member of Local 839 since the late 70's. He has been a part of the community here in LA as well as an instrumental force in development of the industry in Asia and the Pacificrim. Franco has been diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma which is cancer of the blood plasma cells present in your bone marrow. He fell ill while working in Asia and he was flown to the Philippines and put into intensive care at the Makati med Hospital in Manila.
Franco is now stable but we are unable to get him the medication and care he needs due to outrageous hospital bills and medication expenses. Franco has medicare and could get the treatment he needs to survive here in the States but the Hospital is not letting him leave the country till he has paid his bill, and they are refusing to treat him further.
Although this seems inhumane and criminal, (we have called Amnesty International) it is legal in the Philippines to do so. Without treatment and medication we fear for the worst. We are pulling all our resources to pay for the bill and fly Franco to the States where he can start treatment that could save his life. Our goal is $7000. Please help us and donate whatever you can to our save Franco fundraiser, even $5 helps. All donations are tax-deductible. Thank you so much!!!
Visit this blog to donate through Paypal. Feel free to subscribe to the blog to get updates on his progress.
-- Miranda Cristofani
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9 comments:
Perhaps the news media should be contacted also. They may run such a story, and who knows, others might help out.
I don't know Franco, but I'll donate what I can.
Has the legitimacy of this story been verified? Not to sound mean, I just was to make sure this isn't some scam to take trusting people's money.
He was posting pictures on Facebook five days ago...
A law was passed in the Philippines some time ago making hospital detention illegal, but the patient must sign a form promising to pay the balance (sort of a payment plan I guess). Unless the patient is in a private room. I hope Franco's family is aware of this and can use it to their advantage,
This does sound strangely similar to the FB scam of getting an IM from someone on your friends list saying they're stuck in an overseas airport without any money or their passport.
Definitely double-check the source for this.
Mr Franco will be the first person to ever come to the US for affordable medical treatment!
But seriously keep us posted, I hope mr Franco is able to get home and get the care he deserves.
Hello Everyone.
I want to thank everyone for all there generosity and support, from some of you that know Franco and a lot of you that don't. I know this sounds very similar to some of the scams that are out there (medical condition, in a foreign country) but I can promise you this is very real and anyone that needs any answers can call me directly. Franco is very sick, and in danger of loosing his life. I saw the Facebook picture too, he was having fun with his kids and was trying to lift his spirits. I am very interested to hear about the law passed in the Philippines from an Anonymous commenter, if that person knows more please contact me. I have talked to the American and Italian Embassies and they tell me that the hospitals can prevent people from leaving the country. There was no payment plan offered, we were just given a deadline and now we are owing interest. I know it sounds odd to be able to get affordable healthcare here but I have contacted St. Josephs and inquired into his coverage and they tell me he is covered and eligible for complete coverage. to give you an example the Velcade medication he needs for the Multiple Mayeloma costs $8000 for 2 doses in the Philippines, and $1000 here ($400 to us) . A little more doable. I would love to contact the media if anyone has any leads. I am also looking for an international lawyer if anyone knows one. Franco wasn't paid for the last 6 months of work in China, and thats why I believe we are in this mess. If anyone needs any varification on the validity of this posting please contact me.
Thanks again for everyones support.
best
Miranda Cristofani
562.230.4877
OK, so now I'm confused. Does anyone know him since he is in our industry? Is there a record of him since it states he is a member of Local 839? Or is this a scam?
Hello
I want to thank everyone for the amazing support and generosity show by The Animation Guild. The response has been overwhelming. As far as the legitimacy of the situation I can tell you it is very real, and if anyone wishes to contact me directly I am open to answering any questions. My Father is very sick and is at risk of loosing his life. I think contacting the media is a good idea so if anyone has any leads please let me know. I saw the Facebook pictures too, he is trying to keep his spirits up.
I would love to know more about the law in the Philippines making hospital detention illegal, everyone I have talked to says its perfectly legal that they won't let him out of the country till the bill is paid. Can that person who wrote that comment contact me please? My email is below.
Franco has Medicare and I believe that he will qualify for Medical. Also and his medication is a lot cheaper here too, for example the Velcade he needs is $8000 for 2 vials in the Philippines, compared to $1000 (of which we pay $400) over here.
We are also looking for an international lawyer to take on the company that hasn't paid Franco for his last 6 months of work, which is why we are in this mess. Please let me know if anyone has any suggestions.
Thank you again for all the support the Guild has shown, you are wonderful people. We have raised around $2000 but there is a long way to go.I will keep you all posted.
Thank you
best
Miranda Cristofani
562.230.4877
macmoz@earthlink.net
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