Leah Calvert's Daughter: Ali Simms' Medical Bills Cause Stress For 'Teen Mom 2' Star
Leah Calvert is struggling to pay her daughter's ongoing medical bills.
Although Calvert has previously bragged about her husband's high income, she claims her daughter Ali Simms' mounting medical bills are causing her financial stress.
"It’s stressful because insurance doesn’t cover the whole cost. One bill alone was $20,000,” Calvert told In Touch Weekly of her daughter’s treatment for Titin muscular dystrophy, a rare form of the disorder.
Calvert and her ex-husband, Corey Simms, struggled for years, not knowing what was wrong with their daughter, but last summer, during a visit to their doctor, they discovered Ali was suffering from Titin muscular dystrophy, a form of the condition that has only ever been found in adults.
According to an April 14 Wetpaint Entertainment report, the condition Ali is suffering from "can affect the heart or breathing," and is currently found in less than 20 people in the world. In the future, Simms could develop respiratory difficulties and heart problems, but most sufferers live well into their fifties or even longer. Simms is also expected to eventually begin using a wheelchair full-time.
Currently, Ali is doing just fine and while her physical state often leads to weekness in her body, her mental skills are through the roof.
“She uses big words — like ‘optimistic’ and ‘challenging’ — sometimes things I wouldn’t even think to say,” Calvert said. “Ali is really smart and she’s well aware of her disease, but she doesn’t let it burden her.”