‘RHOBH’ Alum Brandi Glanville Has ‘Exhausted’ Her Savings in Brutal Health Battle
Bravo star Brandi Glanville’s efforts to treat her mysterious medical problems have left her broke and struggling financially.
Brandi Glanville has spent $130,000 on medical bills
Brandi has spent at least $130,000 on doctors bills and medical treatments since she began experiencing strange symptoms following her return from filming The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip in Morocco in 2023.
After participating in the Housewives spinoff, “crazy lumps” appeared in her face, she told Us Weekly in a recent interview.
“My face started, like, moving around and doing things. I started to lose my eyesight in my left eye. It’s insane,” she said. “At first, my face was blowing up and getting really swollen. Then it started sinking in, and I felt like something was just eating me from the inside. I’m like, ‘It’s eating my flesh.’”
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum became convinced that she had contracted a facial parasite, perhaps from bad meat that she ate while filming RHUGT. But doctors who were in-network with her insurance struggled to provide a concrete diagnosis for the uncomfortable and disfiguring symptoms that left Brandi unwilling to leave her home.
“They didn’t believe me,” she said. “My insurance was like, ‘Nothing’s wrong with you. It’s just inflammation and old filler.’”
‘RHOBH’ star feels like a ‘loser’ because of financial struggles
Eventually, Brandi started seeking opinions from doctors who weren’t covered by her insurance. (She’s also tried controversial DIY treatments, like applying Nair to her face in an attempt to irritate the suspected parasite.) Soon, the bills started to pile up.
“I’m paying the minimum on my credit cards. I’ve exhausted my savings. At my age, I feel like such a loser in a way, because I was taking care of everything,” she said. “I was together. I had great credit. Now I’m scared about every little thing.”
But recently, Brandi has found a lifeline. To get her finances under control, Brandi has started working with Rachel Strauss, a healthcare strategist who helps people navigate medical bills.
“She advocates for people that have tons of medical bills that end up bankrupting them,” Brandi explained. (One 2019 study found that medical expenses contributed to 66.5% of bankruptcies in the U.S.)
Strauss told Us Weekly that she was working to make sure that procedures were properly coded and that Brandi’s insurance paid what it was required to cover. For the bills that are Brandi’s responsibility, she’s making sure they are accurate and setting up payment plans.
“Where it does fall on her responsibility is working with the hospitals she saw to review what was billed and making sure it was billed properly. There are certain things that were truly emergencies that doctors will validate, and [we can get] those reduced however we can,” she said. “Once we negotiate the service fees, we’ll work on a payment plan so that Brandi can live and have a roof over her head and be able to have food and everything that you need to sustain.”
The Bravo star is feeling optimistic about her future
Meanwhile, Brandi’s health journey continues. Recently, she’s started working with Dr. Michael Scoma, an infectious disease specialist in New York after her reached out to her on social media.
“They say Twitter is the devil but all it took was me screaming in my tweets asking for help for this lovely man to reach out,” she wrote on Instagram on August 14. “Thank you so much to Michael R. Scoma, M.D who specializes in infectious diseases for taking the time to meet with me and help me try to figure out what is going on inside.”
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