How the US Medical System Failed This Pokémon Voice Actor

Highlights

• Rachael Lillis, a renowned voice actress, tragically lost her battle with cancer at age 55.

• The failures of the American medical system compounded his struggle and led to his premature death.

• Despite the heartbreaking outcome, the overwhelming support from fans helped bring comfort.

On August 10, 2024, Rachael Lillis, an acclaimed voice actress for many years, died at the age of 55 after losing a battle with cancer. For fans of her work, the loss has been difficult, and many of them (along with her co-workers) posted tributes and reminisced about her most popular work on social media. As fans process her loss, for months Rachael has been fighting two battles: cancer and the American medical system. In a way, she would lose to both and the story is as tragic as it is frustrating. These were the last days of this acclaimed Pokémon voice actress.

Who was Rachael Lillis?

Rachael Lillis was an American voice actress best known for her work in several anime series. Born in Niagara Falls, New York, on July 8, 1969, Rachael attended Smith College, where she was a medical student. She studied voice acting in Boston and moved to New York City in 1996, appearing in several stage productions, animated series, and independent films. Later she would also work as a scriptwriter and translator for various projects.

What were some of your notable roles?

Rachael Lillis is known for several notable roles in animation. Some of her most notable roles include:

• Pokémon: Rachael’s most famous work would be in Pokémonwhere he voiced Ash’s traveling companion Misty, Team Rocket member Jessie, as well as several Pokémon such as Jigglypuff, Goldeen, and Poliwag (he also voiced Pikachu in the early episodes when the Japanese audio track could not be saved). ).
• my little pony: Rachael would voice the younger versions of Applejack and Granny Smith in flashbacks of my little pony.
• Assassins: Rachael would voice Hilda in the different Assassins anime productions.

The beginning of your nightmare

In May 2024, Rachael’s sister, Laurie Orr, created a GoFundMe and announced that Rachael had developed breast cancer at an earlier date and needed help receiving the proper care she needed. While the need to start a GoFundMe page is a sensitive topic in itself, behind the scenes Misty and Jessie’s voice was suffering their own personal hell at the mercy of something Americans have to deal with every day: the insurance companies.

For most Americans, insurance will determine which doctors are available, which patients can be accepted for priority care, and what is available to the patient in terms of treatment options. Rachael found himself in such a situation, where he was the victim of being a sick person who didn’t have the right kind of insurance.

The one who flew over the Cokuu nest hospital

While most would agree that hospitals are generally not a fun place, some hospitals will put the fear of God in even the most dedicated atheist due to the poor conditions of the building. This is what happened to Rachael, who found herself in such a hospital. As his sister noted:

By the way, the nursing home was similar to scenes from the movie “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest”!! My sister and I thought it was really horrible, even though the nurses there were doing their best to care for so many people. The screams from the hallway, the noisy roommate… how could anyone heal or rest in that environment?!

It’s a horrifying revelation to find out that the voice actor for some of our most cherished childhood memories was once in a situation like that, but it begs the question of how she ended up in a place like that in the first place (and what it took to get her out. thence).

Insurance, Insurance, Insurance…

Rachael ended up in (what her sister described) ‘Cuckoo’s Nest Hospital’ as a result of her insurance putting her under the care of a very specific doctor when she was admitted to the hospital to treat her medical conditions. During her stay, Rachael was placed in a nursing home because she could barely walk enough to care for herself. Not only did this placement not do what it was intended (her horrible living conditions likely contributed to this), but at one point her doctor abruptly stopped her treatment without explanation.

Now, Rachael found herself in a situation where she was alone, not knowing what to do when it came to treating this horrible disease, and her family was far away (although she did receive a visit from a friend she met during her anime career). . . It wasn’t until later that family members went to see her and explored what arrangements could be made. The main goal of these arrangements was to place her in a healthier environment, where she could have adequate medical supervision, the medications she would need, and healthier foods that would contribute to the recovery process (the conditions at the previous facility were so bad that the family considered filing a complaint. medical malpractice lawsuit). The question was how were they going to pay for all this? Contrary to popular belief, most voice actors are not rich. They are much like independent contractors: they go from job to job in a very competitive field.

Insurance wasn’t going to help, but as a voice actress, Rachael had something that many Americans didn’t: fans. With this knowledge, on Mother’s Day, Laurie Orr started the GoFundMe campaign. She had never done anything like this before, so navigating the app was difficult. Once she launched the campaign, word spread very quickly. Buddy Pokémon Actors Eric Stuart and Veronica Taylor were some of the first to share the campaign, and news sites like Anime News Network and Comic Book Resources also reported on it.

The GoFundMe campaign

In a very short time, the campaign had raised over $67,000 and plans were made to not only provide her with better care, but also to get her into rehab to help her regain the muscle she lost while in the original nursing facility due to neglect. that he experienced. Unfortunately, this story would not have a happy ending, as shortly after moving out of the facility, Rachael would unexpectedly take a turn for the worse and pass away. Her sister was not there for her and the entire family was heartbroken and she announced that the funds would be used for a memorial (and that the remaining funds would be donated to cancer research).

Fans bring joy in the last days

Despite how everything ended, one positive point was that Pokémon The fans, those who grew up with Rachael’s wonderful work, stepped up to help her. In the end, they donated over $100,000 for her to receive the care she needed, and her outpouring of support was more than anyone had expected. While Rachael did not make any public statements, she told her sister Laurie that she felt like George Bailey in It’s a wonderful lifethe Frank Capra classic in which a man glimpses what life would be like without him there, and the memorable finale in which the town comes together to help him in his time of need.

The kindness of the fans cannot be underestimated in this story. While Rachael may have lost the battle too soon, her fans reminded her that what she did meant something to a lot of people, and these people came out in droves when she needed help. Rachael would also be honored by many major news and media organizations (although who knows how she would feel about that, as she always felt that voice actors should be heard and not seen). While it’s encouraging that this situation fuels discussions about how voice actors are paid and our failed medical system, the happy ending is that fans stepped up when our institutions didn’t and Rachael’s wonderful work will live on. forever.

Source: Personal correspondence with Laurie Orr