Meet Ellie from Seymour

11-year-old Ellie loves playing with her brothers, enjoys swimming and is obsessed with dogs. When she and her twin brother were born, her parents had expected complications – in fact, they were prepared that Ellie wouldn’t survive. Ellie’s mom went into labor early, and as soon as Ellie was born, she was transferred from a local hospital to Children’s Wisconsin. Ellie was born with her bladder outside her body and several other GI and kidney challenges. During her first year, she had surgery to create a colostomy, a G-tube inserted for feedings, two bladder repairs and a flight to Children’s Wisconsin Intensive Care Unit. While Children’s Wisconsin providers were able to repair function in one of Ellie’s kidneys for two years, she needed a transplant. After traveling to Children’s Wisconsin for dialysis three times a week, Ellie received a kidney from her mom when she was 3 years old. Recently, Ellie learned her body was rejecting the kidney. She returns to Children’s Wisconsin regularly for coordinated follow-ups with several specialists. Medicaid has been an absolute blessing throughout Ellie’s complicated and scary medical journey. Medicaid not only helps offset some of the large copays left after her primary insurance pays, but on at least three occasions, Ellie was able to get a lifesaving medication and/or procedure due to Medicaid allowing it when the primary insurance denied it. She is thriving amidst a life of medical procedures, in large part to the help she has received from Medicaid, and her family is so grateful.

Please keep Medicaid strong for kids like Ellie!