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[Update] After Being Denied Health Insurance Coverage, IGF Chairman Seeks And Receives Community Assistance
Update: Brandon Boyer has reached his $110,000 goal on Gofundme. Currently, Boyer's Gofundme account has raised $110,120, and that number is still rising. You can continue to give donations to Boyer by heading here.
Yesterday Boyer offered this tweet thanking everyone for their help in this time of need.
ok basically thanks for also proving that the internet and also ‘games culture’ sometimes isn't just a wretched hive of scum and villainy
— Brandon Boyer (@brandonnn) March 7, 2014
Boyer also offered this gratitude on Twitter a few moments ago.
so, like, just thanks isn't enough, but *thank you* & i am thinking now more than ever about how to channel this good will to others like me
— Brandon Boyer (@brandonnn) March 8, 2014
Original story:
Brandon Boyer has been a part of the video game community for a decade, contributing to Edge and Gamasutra before striking out on his own. Currently, Boyer serves as the chairman of the Independent Games Festival and runs a website called Venus Patrol that helped launch the Horizon indie festival during E3 2013.
In 2013, Boyer suddenly underwent emergency treatment for cancer, which had been previously undiagnosed. His health insurance company, Humana, denied his claims for pre-existing condition reasons (Boyer admitted to a doctor that he had previously had stomach aches).
This left him with over $100,000 in unpaid medical bills and no recourse. The United States health insurance reforms only protect patients from pre-existing exclusions as of January 2014, leaving him unaffected by the reforms.
Boyer is asking for assistance via Gofundme, and the development community has come together to support him. Throughout the day, journalists and developers have been sharing Brandon’s story via social media and helping erode the mountain of debt.
If you are interested in learning more about Brandon, you can read his full story on the Gofundme page. You can also check out his website, Venus Patrol, which is dedicated to finding and promoting the beautiful things about video games.
Update: Devolver Digital is also doing its part to support Boyer with a new humble bundle. The publisher is pairing five games and five independent films. At the "pay what you want" level, you'll get:
- Duke Nukem 3D: Megaton Edition
- Shadow Warrior Classic Redux
- Austin High (Film)
- The Poisoning (Film)
- One Couch at a Time (Film)
If you donate $10 or more, you'll get another group of games and movies.
- Defense Technica
- March Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure
- Cosmic DJ
- Good Game (Film)
- Mars (Film)
You can purchase the Humble Bundle here.
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