There is a charity ice hockey game this Sunday to support Cameron Walterson, a 13-year-old Egg Harbor Township boy who is undergoing mental health treatment for traumas he suffered as a child in foster care.

The game featuring Atlantic County Police & Fire vs. New Jersey’s Strongest is at 1:30 pm Sunday at the Skate Zone, 501 Albany Ave in Atlantic City. Tickets are $15 and all proceeds go to support Cameron.

A post-game party at Ducktown Tavern will follow the game.

There is also a GoFundMe to support Cameron.

I asked Karen Walterson to give us some background on how their family came to adopt Cameron, the troubles he has been experiencing lately, and how the Waltrersons have been advocating for their son.

Here is what Karen wrote for me. Some of  Karen’s comments have been edited for this forum.

Adopted Son Was Born Drug-Addicted and Suffered Trauma in Foster Care

Hi, we are the Walterson Family. We are fundraising to get our son, Cameron ❤️ the urgent mental health trauma treatment he desperately needs before it’s too late. 

We adopted Cameron when he was 7 years old. He was born drug-addicted to heroin and cocaine. He spent the first 6 years of his life moving to 13 different homes in the foster care system.

He suffers from multiple traumas experienced during his developmental years.

Cameron is now 13. Throughout his life, he has been diagnosed with several severe mental health issues mostly from the traumas he’s suffered as a child in foster care. 

Three months ago our family was put through a horrifying situation. There were no available treatment facilities that were covered by our family’s two insurances. We are left with no choice but to try to raise the money ourselves to get our son the help he needs. To keep our family safe from harm.

Our family has private health insurance Horizon BCBS-PPO-primary & NJ Medicaid-secondary. Anyone with NJ Medicaid who needs a mental health facility has a wait time of at least a year, even if they are in crisis.

Horizon BCBS only offered us two other in-network facility options. Those two options denied Cameron access.

Hospitalized 12 Times In a Year With Mental Health Issues

Cameron had been hospitalized about 12 times in the past year. His mental health escalated to dangerous levels because not one of these 12 insurance-approved facilities had the specific trauma treatment he needed to improve his mental health. (even though they all claimed to)

His behavioral escalation problems have made Cameron a danger to himself, our family, and our friends.  

The psychiatrist who was treating Cameron in a Philadelphia facility referred him to a residential treatment facility that specializes in complex trauma treatment.

Since no residential facilities were approved by either insurance, Horizon BCBS representatives told the Philadelphia facility to send him home, overruling his current psychiatrist and 11 prior facility recommendations.

All of his prior facilities have claimed that Cameron was extremely unsafe to himself and others, due to his lack of appropriate treatment.

Despite all this, Horizon BCBS-PPO insurance told Cameron’s doctor & social worker that they didn’t care if he or his family was unsafe. They said insurance would not pay for him to remain there or any other hospital until the appropriate facility had an opening.

Congressman Jeff Van Drew Steps In to Help

Congressman Van Drew was the key component in helping us pressure our private insurance & E.H.T. School District to make a single case agreement with Calo Residential Mental Health Facility in Lake of the Ozark, Missouri, an amazing facility we found that has the exact treatment Cameron needs. 

Our state’s and this country’s mental healthcare system is inadequate. It’s failing to provide critical mental health services to keep our children and their families safe, even for people who do have health insurance. 

The Financial Aspect of the Situation

Our goal is $250,000 to cover Cameron’s treatment. Because our private insurance has agreed to a single-case agreement, much of Cameron’s treatment is now covered.

However, many expenses are not covered and are draining our family’s resources.

These include the huge loss in our family income over the past year, the transportation for Cameron and the family to get to and from Missouri for visits, and bi-monthly parent seminars and retreats.

We will also have to hire a specialized lawyer to lead our fight against the insurance company for coverage. Cameron needs a minimum of one year of treatment, but the insurance company is trying to reduce the length of stay despite the doctor’s recommendations.

We are hiring a company to battle the insurance company for the claims they have already denied. There are also the costs of paying the claims that have already been refused, co-pays, and out-of-network charges.

We hope to be able to save our son and keep our family safe. Please help in any way you are able. Even sharing this with someone else you know is a help.

Awareness of this problem is important, too. 

Thank you for supporting our family during this horrifying crisis! Our family also promises to pay it forward when we reach our goal and help/support other families that are suffering.