I realize that there are many non-surgery scoliosis kids out there. I had the surgery by a Dr. James almost 30 years ago and have not had one problem yet. My daughter also is going to have surgery in june. We have studied scoliosis for a long time understanding lots o pros and cons on the subject of correction. This is my conclusion. It is mostly inherited and most always wind up in surgery some time in life. After doing the brace thing I am convinced that that doesn't work and all you are hoping to do is prolong the inevitable. As far as the money goes there are many free services. Childrens Hospital, Shriners. The best care and the finest surgens in the country. They perform hundreds ot these surgerys every year. Thats where I will put my faith.