Are Changes Coming to Healthcare Coverages? Advocate Shares Valuable Insights for Navigating Complex Medical System

ESSEX JUNCTION, VT, Jan. 10, 2024 — Advocate, artist and author Linda Moran wants to bring about change in the world by empowering others to advocate for better healthcare for themselves and their loved ones.

“I need to get the word out that you have choices, and they’re your choices — they’re not your doctor’s choices,” Moran said.

When her husband’s health began its serious decline after open heart surgery, she was prepared to support him through a challenging recovery that included a stroke and speech Aphasia. But as Dean pinballed from one medical crisis to another, the couple encountered unexpected obstacles completely beyond their control, including a network of doctors that gave them contradictory care instructions and left them feeling woefully uninformed.

Along the way, they grappled with questions such as: Why is it so hard to get answers from a doctor’s office or an insurance company? Why does it take weeks (or even months) to get an appointment? And how do we find the financial resources to cover co-pays and medical expenses?

After two years of navigating the chaos of the American healthcare system, Dean received a referral for hospice care — which meant he wasn’t expected to live for more than six months.

Her new book, The Perks of Hospice: Stories of Love, Life, and Loss, is filled with intimate personal stories as well as practical checklists for those facing similar journeys. So much more than a story of illness, hospice and death, theirs is a love story that offers hope and strategies for navigating the unwieldy reality of healthcare as well as suggestions for an end of life that allows peace for everyone involved.

“The Perks of Hospice shows us how the end of life can be so much more than an ending,” Moran added. “If you are reaching the end of life, check on hospice and palliative care services in your County or State. They are amazing people and want whatever you need to live your remaining days as comfortably as possible. They are the angels who walk among us.”

About the Author: Linda Moran

Married for almost 45 years, Dean and Linda Moran did everything together, especially in their two decades as fiber artists, experimenting with an ancient paper process on fabric. Their art provided a needed respite from medical reality and helped them create a lasting legacy at the end of their lives together.

For over two years, including through the Pandemic, they were cared for by an amazing team of hospice workers. To carry out her husband’s love of helping others, Linda Moran decided to write about their experiences and provide checklists about end-of-life care. After 30-plus years as a public school teacher, from earth science to history to mathematics, she’s facing a different retirement than planned, with writing, quilting, reading and solo travel.

For more information, please visit , or follow the author on Substack or LinkedIn (Linda Lemke Moran).