DENVER, Aug. 6 (UPI) -- Cigna Health Care reportedly reversed its earlier decision and agreed to an experimental treatment for a Denver baby boy with a rare, fatal disease.
The health insurer had earlier twice told Ann Ayers and Mark Ritacco of Denver it would not pay for a stem-cell transplant for their 1-year-old son, Timothy, the Denver Post reported Friday.
Timothy's mother said she was excited and relieved when Cigna called with its latest decision.
A spokeswoman for Duke University Medical Center in North Carolina, where the transplant will be done, said Timothy has already undergone all the necessary preliminary tests, "so I'm assuming once they get initial confirmation from Cigna, everything will go ahead."
Cigna said its decision was based on "the extreme circumstances of this very rare disease with no established or documented treatment."
Hospital officials have told the family the transplant bill could run from $300,000 to $1 million, depending on whether there are complications.
Timothy has the rare Sandhoff disease. Children with the disorder lack an enzyme, and as a result, fats, or lipids, build up in their brains and other organs.
