Anniversary of Michael's Passing

I found this memorial to Michael on Names of the Dead

Michael Wieser
27, La Crescent, MN

Jeff Conway writes:

"Michael has been a role model in this community since he was in elementary school. He was big for his age, athletic, smart, well-behaved with a great sense of right and wrong that was instilled in him by his parents. He was the all-american boy who was a stand out football, basketball, and baseball player. Michael led his football team to its' only Coulee Conference title in school history. He was also the leader of conference championships in basketball and baseball. He received a football scholarship from North Dakota State University. Michael was on track to become an NFL player until he came down with Wilson's disease. Doctors in North Dakota saved Michael's life and he was able to finish college. He was never able to regain enough weight to have a NFL career, but he was an All-Conference and All-Region TE. After college Michael moved to Las Vegas and worked in the entertainment industry there, along with a local healthclub. Michael no longer qualified to be under his parents healthcare plan, but was unable to get insurance of his own because of his medical history. His Wilson's disease was a pre-existing condition that made insurance unaffordable. Mike also could not afford the expensive medication he was required to take and tried to get by on generic substitutes. Regular doctors visits were also beyond his ability to pay. Last spring Michael's Wislon's disease came back. he was hospitalized in Las Vegas because his kidney's were failing. His family flew out to Vegas to try to get him the help he needed to survive. Because Michael used generic drugs and did not go to the doctor regularly hospital admisnistrators (a real death panel) sentenced Michael to death by refusing to give him the transplant he needed. For three long days Michael's parents fought to save his life trying to find any hospital in the country that was willing to take Mike and give him the tranplant he so desparately needed. A number of institutions ignored the hypocratic oath and turned Michale down. The Mayo Clinic finally accepted Mike only to have his departure held up by the hospital in Las Vegas because they wanted to know who would pay his medical expenses. They held his body ranson and delayed his parents attempt to save his life until they got their "0 pieces of silver". Michael arrived at the Mayo Clinic and was moved to the top of their donor list due to the critical nature of his condition. As he was going through testing for his transplant, Michael's fever spiked to a level that made it impossible for him to receive a transplant. He died the next day. This country lost one of it's best and brightest young men because it was more economically benefitial to insurance companies and hospital adminitrators to let him die. Why do we continue to let this happen? Why? In the name of Michael Troy Wieser, please change this system so that he did not die in vain. Keep fighting the good fight. God bless you, and have mercy on the rest of us who have allowed this immoral system to continue."

- Jeff Conway