Oakville amputee, 70, asks community for help getting prosthetic

A 70-year-old Oakville amputee who’s homeless is looking to the community for help to get a prosthetic leg. He says because of his complex case, the equipment the Ministry of Health is able to provide won’t fit his needs.

He says his only other option is a prosthetic from a US company, but that would cost him tens of thousands of dollars.

Thomas Mohr began living in his truck in Oakville after he lost everything to pay off his father’s debt.

His father died in 2020 and shortly after, Mohr had a fall and his leg resulted in being amputated last year. He now says he needs a prosthetic to go back to work but there’s complications.

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For most equipment and supplies, Ontario’s Assistive Device Program also known as A.D.P., covers 75 per cent of the cost and the remaining 25 per cent, the patient will have to pay out of their own pocket.

“Well, that may have been true in 2006 and that was the last time their fee schedule was updated, so what we see within The War Amps is that they cover anywhere between 20 to 40 percent of the artificial limb,” Annelise Petlock from The War Amps said.

“Because it hasn’t been updated, it has devices that are obsolete and does not have current technology listed.”

Mohr was self-employed so he doesn’t have insurance. So, not only is it something that he can’t afford, he says in order to use the prosthetic that the Ontario Ministry of Health will cover, he would have to get another surgery since his case is complex.

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“I have what’s called a bulbous stump. And where the cut occurred it’s 24 inches in circumference, as it travels up towards the knee it’s 18 inches,” Mohr said.

“The Ministry of Health wants me to get a subsequent operation to make my leg conical.”

He says the only other suitable option is a prosthetic from Martin Bionics south of the border, but that would cost around $80,000.

Mohr launched a GoFundMe campaign for $1.5 million to pay for the prosthetic and other expenses that he says aren’t covered.

CHCH News reached out to the Ministry of Health but have yet to hear back.