Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban stepped in after a toddler from Minnesota with a rare cancer was denied coverage for an emergency medical flight needed to reach critical treatment in Cincinnati.
Stella McMahon was 16 months old and battling infant T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia when her doctors determined she needed a specialized treatment available through a clinical study at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. Her family’s insurance covered the treatment but denied the medical flight, which doctors believed she needed because she was too sick for a long trip by ground.
Stella’s mother, Alexandria McMahon, recorded the insurance denial and posted it on TikTok in hopes that someone could help. The video eventually reached Cuban, who turned to Dr. Warris Bokhari, a physician and co-founder of Claimable, to make sure the toddler could get to Cincinnati.
Cuban Steps In
Bokhari contacted McMahon after seeing the video and told her that help was on the way. Cuban had seen the post and asked Bokhari to handle the situation.
The response was quick. Cuban and Claimable covered a fully staffed medical aircraft so Stella could make the trip without waiting for the insurance dispute to be resolved.
Cuban told Fortune in March, “I didn’t think that deeply about it. It was the right thing to do and Warris made it happen.”
Stella and her family flew from Minneapolis to Cincinnati, where she received the treatment, then returned to Minnesota the same day.
For McMahon, the intervention meant one less problem to solve while her daughter was fighting a serious infection and undergoing cancer treatment.
Stella’s Final Days
The treatment initially brought signs of stability, but Stella’s condition later worsened. She died on April 3, one day before her 17-month birthday, after further complications.
Her story brought renewed attention to the difficult choices families can face when specialized medical care is available hundreds of miles away but getting there becomes an insurance battle.
In Stella’s case, the treatment was covered. The medical transportation was not.
Cuban’s intervention allowed her family to make the trip without waiting for the insurance company to change its decision.
On the date of publication, Caleb Naysmith did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. For more information please view the Barchart Disclosure Policy here.