Remi Bateman was born without her left forearm and hand, but she’s determined not to let it hinder her.
Now 9 years old, Bateman is enjoying riding her bike and scooter around her Utah neighborhood — and she’s eager to master even more daily tasks, like cutting her own food and styling her hair.
Since she was 6 months old, Remi has been using a silicone prosthesis, which is covered by her health insurance. While the prosthetic is beneficial, it is heavy and lacks finger movement capabilities.
“Her current prosthetic is quite stationary and doesn’t offer much functionality,” her mother, Jami, shared with “CBS Mornings.” The hand on Remi’s prosthesis is molded into a plastic fist.
A “life-changing” mission
Last year, Jami stumbled upon a social media post about Open Bionics and their 3D-printed multi-grip “Hero Arm.” Each finger operates independently, allowing for precise gripping of everyday objects. Within 48 hours, Jami and her husband, Josh, arranged a video consultation and drove to the Open Bionics clinic in Denver, Colorado for an initial fitting.
“It was truly life changing,” Jami expressed. “This bionic arm feels like 95% of having a real hand.”
Initially, the Batemans hoped their insurance would help cover the Hero Arm, but their provider denied the claim, stating it wasn’t “medically necessary,” according to Jami. Without insurance, the bionic arm is priced at $24,000.
“While I understand that living without [a hand] is entirely possible, just imagine what you could accomplish with two hands. The world seems designed for individuals with two hands,” Jami reflected.
Like many American families facing medical expenses not fully covered by insurance, the Batemans turned to crowdfunding.
On December 10, 2024, the story of Remi’s quest for her Hero Arm was featured in local news. Within just four days, the Batemans managed to raise over $24,000. Andy Schoonover, CEO of CrowdHealth, a crowdfunding platform for medical expenses, reached out to the Batemans after witnessing their online appeal for assistance.
“He offered to pay for Remi’s arm in cash,” Jami mentioned.
And that’s where the narrative takes an uplifting turn.
Paying it forward
With Schoonover’s donation, Jami realized they still had $24,000 in funds. She then asked Remi what she wanted to do with the money.
“Help more kids,” Remi enthusiastically replied. “So others can have a life-changing arm like mine.”
In Maryland, 9-year-old Tyraun “Taj” Johnson was also trying to raise funds for a Hero Arm. Born with a partial left hand, his family consulted specialists at Johns Hopkins Medicine to explore surgery and various prosthetic options that could provide him with some functionality. They were hopeful that the Hero Arm could be the solution they were waiting for.
Sadly, like Remi, Taj’s insurance also denied coverage for the Hero Arm. His family was heartbroken.
“You’re telling me that for a child to perform daily tasks — even something as simple as feeding themselves or getting dressed — is not ‘medically necessary’?” his mother, Kaitlin Skinner, questioned.
“If I could, I would give Taj my left hand,” Kaitlin added.
The family began holding lemonade stands to collect funds for the bionic arm. After four months, they managed to raise only $1,500.
Then they received a transformative call from Jami Bateman. The Batemans generously offered to use the donations they collected for Remi’s arm to fund Taj’s Hero Arm.
Open Bionics facilitated the connection between the families. Samantha Payne, a co-founder of Open Bionics, stated to CBS News that clinicians dedicate significant effort to help families appeal insurance denials. “The technology has been around for 20 years and has been thoroughly tested,” Payne added.
A dream come true
Kaitlin was overwhelmed with emotion by the Batemans’ kind offer, expressing her gratitude for making Taj’s dream a reality.
“Taj became teary-eyed when he watched a video of Remi holding a fork with her Hero Arm,” Kaitlin shared. One of the things Taj is most excited about is playing sports.
Kaitlin and Taj recently traveled to New York City to meet Daniel Green, an upper limb prosthetist at Open Bionics, who will create the mold for Taj’s Hero Arm. While in New York, they had a surprise visit from Remi and her mom, who came at our invitation.
A new friendship has blossomed through the kindness of strangers. Remi and Taj plan to reconnect during the summer.
“If we have a playdate with our [Hero] robotic arms, we could be like Ironman,” Remi exclaimed.
As donations for Remi continued to come in, she has committed to paying it forward, utilizing the funds to assist two more 11-year-olds in acquiring their Hero Arms after their insurance claims were denied.
