Unemployed Aloha Worker Faces Major Medical Bills

HONOLULU -- Many of the laid off Aloha Airlines employees will lose their former medical coverage once the airline's final divisions are sold off over the next month and that leaves one man with a life-threatening condition scrambling to pay for his medical insurance.

When Aloha Airlines' passenger business closed at the end of March, many of its former employees filed for continuing medical coverage under a program called COBRA. That is only good as long as their former employer continues to operate. When Aloha closes for good later this month with the expected sale of its cargo unit, their COBRA medical coverage will end.

On March 31, when that final Aloha flight arrived from Maui, Aaron Chun, 25, was working the late shift as a customer service agent.

He is still moved to tears remembering Aloha's final flights.

"The last two days were just the toughest ever," Chun said.

Chun has hemophilia; a bleeding disorder that means his blood does not clot. So he could bleed to death from even the smallest cut.

"If I was to get hit internally, I could die in seconds," Chun said.

A seven-year employee of Aloha, he said the airline's generous health package covered expensive drugs that he must inject twice a month.

"My medication for my hemophilia per month could go up to $150,000 per month, just for my medication," Chun said.

On Monday, when Aloha announced it was closing its cargo operation he said it was scary.

"I was telling myself that I was screwed," Chun said.

That's because his and other former Aloha employees' continuing medical coverage through COBRA expires when their former employer closes. So, he immediately filed for Quest, the state's health insurance for low-income folks.

He uses crutches because he has hip problems and just got a hip operation on April 7 because of complications from his hemophilia. Then he had complications.

"I was trying to get out of my bed, and all I felt was a big 'pop,'" Chun said.

He said his hip popped out just two nights ago, and he may need a hip replacement.

"I don't know where I'm going to get the money to cover the expenses," Chun said. "Tonight's fundraiser is very important to me and to others that have medical issues."

Murphy's Bar and Grill scheduled a fundraiser on Friday night to help Aloha workers like Chun that have special financial needs after Aloha's end.

Chun told KITV he stocked up on three months of his expensive hemophilia medication while he's still insured. His health insurance through COBRA costs him $300 a month and he's worried that Quest insurance won't cover as many of his medical costs as his old insurance did.