Your HHRS News 2022 "Jersey-Est" Awards: The Diffused Time Bomb And The Mega Mountaineer [View all]

NEW JERSEY: It borders on extortion, what happened to Lauren Soto -- and to think she was one of the first people to receive a stomach-stapling procedure.

Over the years, she developed hernias that eventually flattened her lungs. Only one doctor was willing and able to make the repairs, but because he and Soto weren't within the same health insurance network, she'd have to come up with a $10,000 deductible.

"Lauren Soto is our 2022 'Jersey-Est' Woman Of The Year for being a single payer health care advocate without really trying," explains Adrienne Collier, editor of Your HHRS News.com, online home of New Jersey health, medical, fitness, and nutrition news and events. "And that's because she was too busy 'trying' to breathe!" Thanks to a fundraiser in which she was described as a "ticking time bomb," she succeeded in raising the funds, and can now brag of being able to bathe within 40 minutes because she no longer requires a nebulizer.

The Jersey-Est Man Of The Year is Jim Raffone, CEO of JAR Of Hope because he's also the father of a 13-year-old with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. "He was advised to take his son home and literally love him to death, but he decided that wasn't an option," says Ms. Collier. "His fundraising efforts have included running marathons, but this year, he literally 'topped' that!" Raffone spent part of April climbing Mount Everest to raise funding for the first formal Duchenne hospital study!

More 2022 awards and news highlights are at https://yourhhrsnews.com/jerseyest-2022. YourHHRS News is grateful to their readers to be able to celebrate its ninth year, and story contributions are welcome at https://yourhhrsnews.com/contact.


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