I (39F) have a cancerous tumor in my rectum that needs to be removed and I have been job hopping for 3 years trying to find a company with health insurance decent enough to pay for the surgery, and any subsequent treatments including radiation and/or chemotherapy. I also need 6 weeks off work to recover properly — not a single workplace has said they would allow that. Every time I get a new job and get the surgery scheduled, I have to fight back and forth with insurance about it being "necessary" and "not an elective surgery" even though the biopsy results clearly state this. And when I talk to someone from the insurance company they tell me "chemo is never covered and radiation is rarely covered"...Is it just commonplace in the USA now to not pay for surgeries and cancer treatment, like at all?! I understand bad companies exist but can it really be ALL of them? When I bring it up to HR they almost get defensive and snooty with me, like they think I'm trying to pull one over on them by trying to schedule the surgery so soon after I start. FMLA doesn't kick in until you've been at a company for a year, and short term disability is a bit of a joke, I've applied for STD at 4 different jobs and gotten denied each time because they don't see it as a necessary procedure. Am I supposed to just wither away and let the colorectal cancer take me out at this point? I'm not seeing many other options here...

I (39F) have a cancerous tumor in my rectum that needs to be removed and I have been job hopping for 3 years trying to find a company with health insurance decent enough to pay for the surgery, and any subsequent treatments including radiation and/or chemotherapy. I also need 6 weeks off work to recover properly — not a single workplace has said they would allow that. Every time I get a new job and get the surgery scheduled, I have to fight back and forth with insurance about it being "necessary" and "not an elective surgery" even though the biopsy results clearly state this. And when I talk to someone from the insurance company they tell me "chemo is never covered and radiation is rarely covered"...Is it just commonplace in the USA now to not pay for surgeries and cancer treatment, like at all?! I understand bad companies exist but can it really be ALL of them? When I bring it up to HR they almost get defensive and snooty with me, like they think I'm trying to pull one over on them by trying to schedule the surgery so soon after I start. FMLA doesn't kick in until you've been at a company for a year, and short term disability is a bit of a joke, I've applied for STD at 4 different jobs and gotten denied each time because they don't see it as a necessary procedure. Am I supposed to just wither away and let the colorectal cancer take me out at this point? I'm not seeing many other options here...