San Francisco Firefighter Ken Jones Dies at 71 After Blue Shield Denied Stage 4 Cancer Treatment
Updated
Updated · NBC Bay Area · Jun 4
San Francisco Firefighter Ken Jones Dies at 71 After Blue Shield Denied Stage 4 Cancer Treatment
3 articles · Updated · NBC Bay Area · Jun 4
Summary
Ken Jones, a 71-year-old veteran San Francisco firefighter, died Saturday after a months-long fight with Stage 4 lung cancer and repeated denials of treatment his oncologist requested.
Blue Shield twice rejected a chemotherapy-immunotherapy regimen, and Jones' doctor said the failed appeal process caused weeks of delay as tumors grew, pain increased and his condition weakened.
Jeanine Nicholson, the former fire chief, said the insurer "expedited his death," while Blue Shield said it was saddened by Jones' passing and maintained its denials were based on medical guidelines, not cost.
More than $1 billion in city health contracts cover over 40,000 San Francisco employees and retirees, and Jones' case has already pushed supervisors to summon Blue Shield executives and press for reforms with the firefighters' union.
The dispute has resonated beyond one case because firefighters face cancer diagnoses about 9% more often than the general population and a 14% higher risk of dying from it, according to NIOSH research cited in the report.