NPR

Father's And Son's Hand Injuries Lead To The Mother Of All Occupational Therapy Bills

After surgery for separate hand injuries, a father and son endured lengthy occupational therapy, which their insurer considered to be an alternative treatment. The family owed more than $8,500.
Angel Dean Lopez and his son Theo both sustained serious injuries to their hands that required surgery and months of occupational therapy.

Angel Dean Lopez is a Hollywood television writer and father who enjoys doing projects with his three kids. Every fall, he helps them transform 7-inch-long blocks of wood into whimsical race cars for the neighborhood's annual pinewood derby in the Los Feliz area of Los Angeles.

"So you have to take your block of wood, shape it, sand it, paint it, use your imagination," Lopez said, pointing to some favorites from derbies past that sit on a shelf in his home office, cars in the shape of an ice cream cone, a penguin and an Altoids peppermint box.

But one derby project lives in infamy: a San Pellegrino bottle on wheels. It was the

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