Overview
- Retired firefighter Ken Jones, who has metastatic lung cancer, was prescribed chemotherapy and immunotherapy at UCSF that his family says Blue Shield initially denied.
- After public pressure, chemotherapy was approved, though the family says immunotherapy remains unapproved or delayed and treatment timing was pushed back.
- Mayor Daniel Lurie joined Supervisors Connie Chan and Matt Dorsey, the firefighters union, and advocates at a City Hall rally calling for the insurer to cover the recommended care.
- Supervisors submitted a formal letter of inquiry and reported at least three similar cases among firefighters, with some approvals coming only after extensive advocacy.
- Blue Shield said it cannot discuss individual cases, cited CMS-based coverage criteria and the appeals process, and the family reported discovering a $47,000 treatment denial at a UCSF appointment; a GoFundMe has raised more than $50,000.