Mission
To provide stroke and brain injury survivors with financial assistance and resources to help them better control and manage their journey to recovery.
Goal
To provide support to stroke and other brain injury survivors with inadequate health insurance coverage so that they can benefit from rehabilitation therapy, equipment and continued care to aid in an optimal recovery.
Vision
We BELIEVE that with patience, perseverance and proper support, the journey to an optimal stroke or brain injury recovery is possible. Believe you can, because we do!
The Need
Recovering from a stroke takes patience and perseverance. There can be long hours of physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT) and speech language pathology (SLP) – all the rehabilitation work that only a stroke survivor can do.
While a typical insurance plan* might cover two months’ worth of rehabilitation in one calendar year (for example, 30 combined visits for OT and PT and 20-30 separate SLP visits), this is not nearly enough therapy for many stroke survivors to get back on the road to recovery.
Thankfully, there are nonprofit organizations who offer wellness programs and support groups for stroke survivors and their caregivers, but there are not many organizations who offer financial support to help stroke and brain injury survivors continue with needed rehabilitation. That’s where BELIEVE – Stroke Recovery Foundation comes in.
*All insurance plans differ. This statement is based on information received from rehabilitation centers on average insurance plans.
What We Offer
BELIEVE – Stroke Recovery Foundation partners with local, vetted rehabilitation centers to provide additional physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT) and speech language pathology (SLP) for qualified stroke survivors whose insurance coverage has run out and who would benefit from continued therapy. Once an applicant has been approved to receive financial assistance from BELIEVE – Stroke Recovery Foundation, a participating therapist evaluates his/her progress to help determine how much additional therapy this calendar year would be beneficial.
Through generous grants, donations and sponsorships, BELIEVE – Stroke Recovery Foundation provides funds for additional rehabilitation sessions and equipment to eligible stroke and brain injury survivors, with the potential for added sessions on a case-by-case basis. The goal is to help continue needed care and help the survivor stay on the road to recovery. The result is a survivor who receives PT, OT or SLP that he/she needs, without facing the financial burden of additional rehabilitation sessions.
*Disclaimer, while BELIEVE – Stroke Recovery Foundation recommends working with Steps for Recovery for rehabilitation, all participants have the right to select their own vetted rehabilitation center for their journey to recovery.
Why
Most stroke and brain injury survivors typically have standard insurance policies that only cover two months’ worth of rehabilitation in a calendar year. Though this is the industry standard, it’s not nearly enough therapy for most stroke and brain injury survivors.
BELIEVE – Stroke Recovery Foundation was started by Michael Erwin in 2019, with the goal of providing a continuum of care for stroke and brain injury survivors whose insurance coverage has run out for the calendar year, but who would greatly benefit from additional rehabilitation. Erwin suffered a Hemorrhagic Stroke (also called a “Bleed”), which is the least common type of stroke. After doing out-patient PT, OT and SLP for two months, he had begun to regain his speech and some range of motion in his right arm and he was able to walk with a hemi-walker. But with all that progress, his insurance coverage for rehabilitation ran out for that calendar year.
After finding an out-patient rehabilitation facility that was as dedicated to him as he was to making progress, he realized there was even more he could do. He decided that as soon as he could walk again, he would start a nonprofit for stroke and brain injury survivors, helping relieve the financial burden of rehabilitation so that they could continue receiving the care they needed to make their own progress and journey toward recovery. Thus, BELIEVE – Stroke Recovery Foundation was born.