CARING ABOUT KIDS

Dr. Jonathan Bernstein wouldn't call himself a businessman, though he figured at some point in his career he'd do a little fundraising.

When a patient who doesn't qualify for Nevada Medicaid or Nevada Check Up needs care and can't pay, the pediatric oncologist isn't thinking dollars and cents.

He's thinking about saving a life and preserving that patient's childhood.

"Usually, I don't get much of anything. It just depends,'' Bernstein, director of the Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases of Las Vegas, said about providing uncompensated care to Nevada's uninsured children with cancer and blood disorders.

The center, on Desert Inn Road, was awarded a $150,000 grant from St. Baldrick's Foundation this week to help offset costs associated with treating the uninsured and to make clinical trials more accessible to pediatric cancer patients.

Based in Pasadena, Calif., the foundation is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing funding for pediatric cancer research, said Executive Director Kathleen Ruddy.

Bernstein was awarded the grant because of his philosophy of providing care to all children, no matter their financial status, she said.

"When I visited Dr. Bernstein's center, I realized there was great need. He is trying to do what a staff 10 times his size is doing,'' Ruddy said. "I was incredibly impressed with his shoestring budget and the number of patients he was seeing on a daily basis.''

Although $150,000 might seem like just a drop in the bucket considering the cost of medical care today, Bernstein said every dime counts. That's especially true when 10 percent to 15 percent of the patients have no means to pay, or their health insurance policies don't -- or only partially -- reimburse for certain treatments.

Bernstein's office sees about 27 patients per day.

In many cases, children don't qualify for state-run Nevada Medicaid or Nevada Check Up plans because they're not U.S. citizens.

Medicaid is the state-run federal insurance plan for low-income adults and children.

Nevada Check Up provides low-cost, comprehensive health care coverage to low-income, uninsured children up to age 19 who don't qualify for Medicaid and whose families earn between 100 percent and 200 percent of the federal poverty level.

"When I lived in California, we had a slightly different type of Medicaid called Medi-Cal. It didn't pay doctors very much, but it covered most patients without health insurance, including those not from the United States,'' Bernstein said.

"Here, we don't have anything like that. Our rules are fairly strict. Nevada Medicaid and Nevada Check Up do not cover anyone not born in the United States unless you have a green card,'' he said, referring to documentation that allows visitors to work in this country.

Bernstein said that's why nonprofits such as St. Baldrick's are so important. They step in to replace the decrease in funds for care of children with cancer.

On Friday, some of Bernstein's employees and patients' parents seemed thrilled about the grant.

"Dr. Bernstein's office hasn't asked me for any money. He just said, 'Let me treat your son; then we'll talk,''' said Theresa Cummings, mother of a 17-year-old boy who is receiving chemotherapy treatment at the center.

Her son, James, is insured under Nevada Medicaid.

In the beginning, Nevada Medicaid was reluctant to pay for James' care, said Cummings, who is a Mesquite baker. She had to take a leave of absence to bring James to Las Vegas for chemotherapy treatments and office visits.

"They said I didn't need the medications,'' James chimed in while playing a video game.

His right arm was connected to two IV bags, one containing chemotherapy and the other a liquid to keep him hydrated.

James was diagnosed with Stage II Hodgkin's lymphoma -- cancer of two or more lymph nodes -- in August.

Cummings, who was sitting on a love seat a few feet from James, said Medicaid appears to be changing its mind. She has heard that it will pay for some of the care.

"Sometimes we're waiting for a year or two when battling through the Medicaid system,'' Bernstein said. "And that's to be expected. A lot of times, I just tell parents to just give me what their last co-pay was. We try to make them (parents) responsible, but I'm never going to turn a kid away.''

Contact reporter Annette Wells at awells@reviewjournal.com or (702) 383-0283.