1984 Olympic Gold medalist Mary Lou Retton in ICU

[mcsangel2]

1984 Olympic gymnastics champion Mary Lou Retton has been in an ICU with a rare form of pneumonia for more than a week, and she is intubated. News outlets are just now picking up the story from her daughter's Instagram. 


www.nytimes.com/2023/10/10/sports/olympics/mary-lou-retton-hospitalized.html

[Poeticxpassion]

mcsangel2, I can’t read the article, but does it mention she doesn’t have health insurance?

[starlily]

I'm not sure as to the NYT article specifically, but there have been other outlets that mentioned she doesn't have health insurance.

ETA: There is speculation from some online commenters that she doesn't have insurance because of her political beliefs.

[mcsangel2]

Oct 11, 2023 15:42:54 GMT -5 Poeticxpassion said:

mcsangel2 , I can’t read the article, but does it mention she doesn’t have health insurance?

Yes, it's in the header.

[curbsideprophet]

Oct 11, 2023 15:45:16 GMT -5 starlily said:

I'm not sure as to the NYT article specifically, but there have been other outlets that mentioned she doesn't have health insurance.

ETA: There is speculation from some online commenters that she doesn't have insurance because of her political beliefs.

Like, she does not believe in health insurance? I am confused.

[karinothing]

Oct 11, 2023 16:13:34 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

Oct 11, 2023 15:45:16 GMT -5 starlily said:

I'm not sure as to the NYT article specifically, but there have been other outlets that mentioned she doesn't have health insurance.

ETA: There is speculation from some online commenters that she doesn't have insurance because of her political beliefs.

Like, she does not believe in health insurance? I am confused.

She is very conservative and wouldn't have bought via the marketplace. There is also rumor she has covid and her family won't say. She also has a mansion she could sell...

I am sad she is suffering but she is anti gay and victim shamed abuse victims in gymnastics so I am finding it had to Elbe sympathetic

[starlily]

Oct 11, 2023 16:13:34 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

Oct 11, 2023 15:45:16 GMT -5 starlily said:

I'm not sure as to the NYT article specifically, but there have been other outlets that mentioned she doesn't have health insurance.

ETA: There is speculation from some online commenters that she doesn't have insurance because of her political beliefs.

Like, she does not believe in health insurance? I am confused.

That she's anti-ACA, universal healthcare, etc. because she has historically supported conservative causes.

Personally, I wonder whether the pneumonia is Covid-related, but no one in the family wants to admit it's Covid.

[shopgirl07]

Oh god, I had no idea she was so vile. Great, now the taxpayers will have to foot the bill.

[cap]

Is it bad that when I saw the thread title, I wondered if she was one of those famous people from my childhood that are now known to be shitty?

[StrawberryBlondie]

Oct 11, 2023 16:28:15 GMT -5 starlily said:

Oct 11, 2023 16:13:34 GMT -5 curbsideprophet said:

Like, she does not believe in health insurance? I am confused.

That she's anti-ACA, universal healthcare, etc. because she has historically supported conservative causes.

Personally, I wonder whether the pneumonia is Covid-related, but no one in the family wants to admit it's Covid.

That was my thought when I read "rare pneumonia" too.

[lilac05]

Oct 11, 2023 16:37:43 GMT -5 cap said:

Is it bad that when I saw the thread title, I wondered if she was one of those famous people from my childhood that are now known to be shitty?

Same. Ugh.

I named my favorite Barbie after her because the Barbie had straight arms and could be a good gymnast.

I had no idea what she was like as an adult.

[nothingcontroversial]

Yeah, I read a news article that linked to her daughter's Go Fund Me site for her medical bills.

I remember that one of the magazines that I read as a youngster included a full page ad that said "The official shoe of the little girl from West Virginia who vaulted into the hearts of the world." Or something like that. Was it Teen magazine? I would have thought that she would have made a lot of money from product endorsements. It sucks that she's sick now, but why should I give money for her medical bills? I could give the money to someone else who had more "need" in life.

[Deleted]

Oct 11, 2023 16:34:17 GMT -5 shopgirl07 said:

Oh god, I had no idea she was so vile. Great, now the taxpayers will have to foot the bill.

Apparently her GoFundMe has raised over $280k. Sadly healthcare is so screwed up in this country that I don’t that’s going to go very far.

[shopgirl07]

Oct 11, 2023 18:52:12 GMT -5 @villainv said:

Oct 11, 2023 16:34:17 GMT -5 shopgirl07 said:

Oh god, I had no idea she was so vile. Great, now the taxpayers will have to foot the bill.

Apparently her GoFundMe has raised over $280k. Sadly healthcare is so screwed up in this country that I don’t that’s going to go very far.

Exactly, her bill will be in the millions. I wish the $280k would go to help those is Israel or Ukraine instead.

[karinothing]

Oct 11, 2023 18:14:44 GMT -5 nothingcontroversial said:

Yeah, I read a news article that linked to her daughter's Go Fund Me site for her medical bills.

I remember that one of the magazines that I read as a youngster included a full page ad that said "The official shoe of the little girl from West Virginia who vaulted into the hearts of the world." Or something like that. Was it Teen magazine? I would have thought that she would have made a lot of money from product endorsements. It sucks that she's sick now, but why should I give money for her medical bills? I could give the money to someone else who had more "need" in life.

She has made millions. She is a motivational speaker, lives in a mansion, and has a net worth of 8 million

[msmerymac]

Oct 11, 2023 16:37:43 GMT -5 cap said:

Is it bad that when I saw the thread title, I wondered if she was one of those famous people from my childhood that are now known to be shitty?

She pretty much immediately supported Reagan and campaigned for him with her new found fame. Granted, she was 16, but she’s consistently stayed that shitty, if not worse.

ETA: her ex husband also has a lot of money

[spindle92]

It's not like she doesn't have access to health care - she has chosen to not have it.

[mcppalmbeach]

I had no idea about any of this. Wowza.

[jlt19]

Great, this will become fodder for the GOP to argue against universal healthcare. See? Private charity (Go Fund Me) WILL provide!

[nothingcontroversial]

She had a cameo in "X Files" once. She gave a eulogy at the beginning of a funeral that turned weird. 

[lilac05]

Oct 11, 2023 20:27:14 GMT -5 jlt19 said:

Great, this will become fodder for the GOP to argue against universal healthcare. See? Private charity (Go Fund Me) WILL provide!

Except it won’t. $280K sounds like a lot of money…but an extended ICU stay will exceed that very quickly.

[Poeticxpassion]

Ick. I had no idea she was like that.