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Home » Video » P.O.V. | Critical Condition | Hector's Story

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P.O.V. | Critical Condition | Hector's Story | PBS

Duration: 07:28

  • POV

    Program: POV #2111
    Broadcast Date: Sep. 30, 2008

What happens if you fall sick and are one of 47 million people in America without health insurance? The documentary film "Critical Condition" puts a human face on the nation's growing health care crisis by capturing the harrowing struggles of four critically ill Americans who discover that being uninsured can cost them their jobs, health, home, savings, even their lives.

Hector Cardenas, a warehouse manager in Los Angeles with diabetes, opted to amputate his infected foot before losing his job and medical benefits. When his insurance coverage lapses, he struggles to repair his broken temporary prosthesis on his own. He cannot walk properly or earn money without a permanent prosthesis, but he cannot afford the permanent prosthesis without a job that offers basic medical benefits.

A production of Public Policy Productions in association with Thirteen/WNET New York and American Documentary P.O.V.money

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Post Date: September 26, 2008