Say...what?!

I've never been a big Wal-Mart shopper, but Sean recently read/heard about a pretty sick story that pretty much sealed the deal that I will never personally go spend money there. I will not support a company that does this to their employees:

"A collision with a tractor-trailer seven years ago left 52-year-old Deborah Shank permanently brain-damaged and in a wheelchair. Her husband, Jim, and three sons found a small source of solace: a $700,000 accident settlement from the trucking company involved.

After legal fees and other expenses, the remaining $417,000 was put in a special trust. It was to be used for Deborah Shank's care."

"Two years ago, [Wal-Mart]'s health plan sued the Shanks for the $470,000 it had spent on her medical care. A federal judge ruled last year in Wal-Mart's favor, backed by an appeals-court decision in August. Now, Deborah's family has to rely on Medicaid and her Social Security payments to keep up her round-the-clock care."

"The reason is a clause in Wal-Mart's health plan that Deborah Shank didn't notice when she started stocking shelves at a nearby store eight years ago. Like most company health plans, Wal-Mart's reserves the right to recoup the medical expenses it paid for someone's treatment if the person also collects damages in an injury suit."

"In cases such as the Shanks', in which injuries and medical costs are catastrophic, accident victims sometimes can be left with little or none of the money they fought for in court. Health plans increasingly are adopting language such as Wal-Mart's, which dictates that it is to be paid first out of any settlement, regardless of what remains for the injured person. Moreover, the victim is responsible for all legal costs in pursuing the suit."

What also scared me about this is the article stated "like most company health plans". So, apparently Wal-Mart isn't the only one.

Nonetheless, I won't be shopping there anymore. I won't go so far as to call people who do shop there terrible people...or vow to never set foot in Wal-Mart...I just won't spend my money there.