Seattle police vet embarks on journey to treat debilitating disease

When the City of Seattle failed a former veteran Seattle police officer, the public stepped in to save the day. Now, Dave Clement’s journey to recovery begins.

Clement, a 26-year veteran of the force, was diagnosed with a debilitating illness called Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy, an autoimmune disease that attacks nerve cells, causing paralysis. There is a stem-cell procedure that has cured 80 percent of people with CIPD, but his insurer, the City of Seattle, wouldn’t pay for the operation.

Related: Claim denied: SPD vet’s insurance fight for lifesaving transplant

Two days after KIRO Radio’s “Ron and Don” aired the story, Clement’s stagnant GoFundMe page skyrocketed past the $145,000 goal to $180,000. On Tuesday, Clement updated his GoFundMe page with a photo of his buzzed head and a note saying he was on his way for treatment in Chicago.

Dear Friends,
Pam and I leave tomorrow (May 11th) for Chicago – we are scheduled to return on June 27th.

I have an EMG (procedure to assess the health of muscles and the nerve cells that control them) on Thursday, followed by appointment with a neurologist. This is to help set a baseline prior to treatment.
I begin treatment next week with some chemotherapy and then six mornings of self-administered injections of a drug that stimulates stem cell growth.
On May 27th, I am scheduled to have the stem cells harvested from my blood. They only need 2 million cells. 🙂
The rest of the treatment begins on June 8th – I’ll send an update.
We are so excited to get started. And often think of how fortunate we are to have had so many people participate.
Some good news…AETNA insurance has agreed to pay for the stem cell injections, which is a surprise and blessing as this saves us a few thousand dollars.

We continue to see God work throughout this process.

Thank you,

Dave and Pam

Don O’Neill credited the listeners who helped give Clement a chance — something other city leaders refused to do when the insurance company denied the dying officer four times.

“That’s why I don’t like the mayor — he could have stepped in, he could have said something publicly,” O’Neill said. “That’s why I don’t like the police chief — she could have stepped in and helped save his life. Instead, you stepped in to save his life. Otherwise, he’d just be dying.”

“That’s what you get for serving the City of Seattle for decades as a police officer. You get a no,” O’Neill added. “So thanks to all of you for saying yes.”

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