Manassas Grandfather Struggles To Cover Costs Of Heart Procedures

MANASSAS, VA — A Manassas family is holding a fundraising campaign for their husband and father who was taken to the hospital in February after experiencing trouble breathing.

Ron Nipas works as a security officer in the Washington, D.C., area. Between the November election and the Jan. 20 inauguration of President Joe Biden, Nipas was assigned to guarding and monitoring a government building in the District of Columbia.

About two weeks after the inauguration, Nipas, 62, started feeling out of breath and had trouble talking. At first, he chose not to see a doctor because he did not have health insurance to cover the cost of the visit. But his wife, Maria, finally convinced him to go to the hospital.

"I could see that he could not breathe anymore," Maria told Patch.

The doctors at Novant Health UVA Prince William Medical Center diagnosed Ron with atrial fibrillation and acute diastolic congestive heart failure. AFib is an irregular, often rapid heart rate that commonly causes poor blood flow that can lead to blood clots and then a stroke or a heart attack.

Ron wanted to go back to work in mid-February, only three days after he was released from the hospital because he was worried about making money to pay the medical costs. But in his condition, it was too risky for Ron to go back to work.

Ron and his wife Maria, who immigrated to the United States from the Philippines, are paying out of pocket all of his hospital expenses. They have two adult daughters who were raised in the United States and who both live in Northern Virginia. They also have four grandchildren.

Because her father does not have health insurance, the Nipas’s oldest daughter, Sherry, set up a GoFundMe campaign to cover his medical costs. The current bill for her father’s medical expenses is more than $25,000.

“My parents are truly grateful for the medical staff at Novant Health for saving my dad's life, so they want to use the money to pay the hospital back,” Sherry told Patch.

All funds will go to pay for Ron’s medical bills. To contribute money to pay for Ron's medical costs, visit the GoFundMe site.