My Experience Fundraising for Medical Expenses

Today I want to share about an organization that can help chronic illness patients fundraise for medical expenses. Chronic illness is expensive, and I am so thankful to have recently found out about Help Hope Live, which can help with co-pays, prescriptions costs, insurance premiums, and more.

In this post, I’ll share about my experience fundraising with this organization, so you can see if it would be a good fit to help you or a loved one living with chronic health conditions or a serious injury.

This post is for informational purposes only, and I am not affiliated with Help Hope Live. Please contact the organization directly if you have questions.

Searching for Help with Medical Expenses

If you haven’t checked out my last post, I shared about several organizations that provide medical grants. You can read it here: How to Find Financial Assistance for Chronic Illness Expenses.

As I shared in that post, this summer I found myself in need of financial assistance in order to try a very expensive infusion to help with POTS and neuropathy. (Unfortunately, I had to stop the infusion because it caused too many reactions. Trial and error is part of many of my chronic illnesses, including POTS, fibromyalgia, autoimmune disease, and ME/CFS.

I didn’t find any grants that I was eligible for, so I was referred to Help Hope Live.

What Makes This Organization Different?

Help Hope Live is similar to organizations like Go Fund Me, but it offers advantages that will benefit anyone fundraising for medical expenses in the US.

Donations are tax deductible because Help Hope Live is a nonprofit.

You’re not charged to sign up. The administrative fee is 3% for check donations and 5.65% for online donations.

You can get help for many medical expenses for catastrophic illness or injury, including doctors’ co-pays, medication costs, home modification, in-home care, physical therapy, travel expenses and more.

You can also fundraise for emergency rent/housing costs.

Help Hope Live might be a great option if you receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Here’s what their website says:

“Because Help Hope Live maintains discretion over the funds you raise, they won’t likely jeopardize your eligibility for asset-based assistance programs. You should check with your state Medicaid office to be sure.” (x)

I’ve been fundraising by sharing with friends via social media, and there are other ways to fundraise as well. Help Hope Live shares ideas for planning community events like fun runs, and they can provide materials and ideas to get you started.

You can even design shirts, bags, and journals to raise funds, which is so clever, and they would make great gifts for a good cause. This is something I might pursue in the future. (I just haven’t had the bandwidth lately.)

They also provide media support so you can get the word out to your community.

Find out more about the advantage of fundraising with Help Hope Live. Or check out their FAQ.

My Experience Fundraising with Help Hope Live

I can’t overemphasize the help this organization has been to me. Medical costs can feel so overwhelming—an added stressor on top of trying to sort through medical advice, choosing treatments, and all the other decisions involved.

I was concerned that I still hadn’t found any grants when I got my first infusion, but thankfully Help Hope Live lets you submit claims going back a little bit before you’ve been approved.

I called and spoke with a coordinator who explained how the program works and answered all my questions.

I signed up, and the application was pretty simple. In addition to filling out the application, I needed to get a doctor to sign a Medical Verification form to prove medical need. This organization does their due diligence to make sure fundraising is going to people who need it.

Within a few days of me getting everything submitted, I was approved!

While I was getting the application filled out, I was able to reach out to my coordinator via phone or email, and she was always prompt at replying. She has been wonderful throughout the process and made it easy to know what to do next, even when my brain fog has been really bad. (Also, she updates me on how her kittens are doing, which is delightful!)

The welcome packet I received includes a Getting Started Checklist, Sample Eligible Expenses, and a worksheet with ideas for fundraising.

I set up my fundraising page next. If you’d like to check out my fundraising page to see how I set it up, my fundraiser can be found here. You can also run a search on the website to see what others have shared.

And if you’ve been helped by this blog, I am grateful for any donations to my fundraiser. My blog costs more to run than I make back in affiliate links, and your support can help me keep my blog running.

You can have a team help you manage your fundraising page and fundraising efforts.

Once you’ve raised funds, you submit fund requests to pay bills.

 

Submitting fund requests is pretty easy. You can send the bill directly to Help Hope Live and request that they pay it. Or, you can submit your receipt and get reimbursed directly. You can get reimbursed for travel if you submit information about mileage, and you can also submit a per diem for days that you travel to appointments.

You may need a doctor’s note showing medical need for some expenses. I’ve requested one from my doctor to help with massage therapy expenses. (My insurance doesn’t cover any massage despite the fact that I have chronic pain from several of my chronic illnesses, so this would be a big help.)

So far I’ve been reimbursed or had bills paid directly for my infusion, lab work, diagnostic tests, doctor’s appointments, and chiropractic visits.

I’ve found that getting reimbursed is the option that works best for me, especially if a bill arrives with a quick turnaround for payment, and I want to make sure it gets paid right away.

 

I hope this information has been helpful!

Again, if you’re looking for other options for financial assistance, be sure to check out my previous post.

Finally, could you do me a favor and share this post on social media? Or share it with a friend or family member who could you use help?

I’d love for more people to know this kind of fundraising assistance is available to them. You never know who it could help!

Did you know organizations like Help Hope Live existed for medical fundraising?

If you have a story about successfully fundraising, I’d love to hear it in the comments!

 

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