Millions will lose access to health care if Republicans repeal
the Affordable Care Act.
I’m one of the 27 percent of Americans with a pre-existing
medical condition.
Pre-existing conditions range from life-threatening illnesses
like cancer or multiple sclerosis to chronic conditions like diabetes or
cerebral palsy. They can also include life events like pregnancy or having
broken bones.
Before the Affordable Care Act — aka Obamacare — pre-existing
medical conditions made it incredibly expensive to get health insurance, or
even impossible. Yet Republicans are dead set on repealing it.
That’s why people have been voicing their concerns at town halls with members of Congress across the country. Millions depend on the ACA for access to life-saving
care, and they’re not holding back.
During one particularly heated town hall with Arkansas Senator
Tom Cotton, a woman stood up and told him her husband was dying of cancer.
The
low premiums they’d been able to get under the ACA were the only premiums they
could afford. “What kind of insurance do you have?” she asked Cotton, who
enjoys taxpayer-subsidized care.
For my part, I was diagnosed at the ripe old age of 22 with
rheumatoid arthritis.
After a leg injury, I spent months limping around in constant pain, barely able to walk, much less climb stairs. Doctors performed a battery of tests, including blood work and x-rays. But even after treatment, I could barely stand. I saw a rheumatologist, who diagnosed me with arthritis and put me on hydroxychloroquine.
Without coverage, my doctors’ visits could have set me back
thousands of dollars. As a recent college graduate working part-time back then,
I couldn’t have afforded it.
Instead, I paid $3.65 to fill the first month of my
prescription. That’s the maximum amount anyone has to pay if they have
insurance through the Affordable Care Act, which guarantees the right to
affordable health care options for everyone — including low-income people and
those of us with pre-existing conditions.
These days, you can hardly tell that I have arthritis — but if
not for hydroxychloroquine, I’d have to walk with a cane. If I had to pay
out of pocket each month for medication, I wouldn’t be able to pay my rent and
my bills. I’d have to choose between eating and walking.
For some of my friends — including several with cancer — that
choice would be even starker.
Imagine coughing up tens of thousands of dollars
for chemotherapy, antiretroviral drugs, or insulin.
Today I have insurance through my employer, but I’ll forever be
grateful to the ACA for giving me my life back without breaking my bank
account.
While many countries around the world guarantee free or low-cost
access to healthcare, Americans are literally dying to get access to care. The
ACA levels the playing field for over 20 million of us.
If Congress and Donald Trump succeed in repealing the law, even
people like me who have employer-sponsored health insurance will see their
premiums and co-pays go up. Premiums will double by 2026 and 32 million
people will be left uninsured, the Congressional Budget Office estimates.
And without a replacement, young people on HealthCare.gov plans
could see their premiums skyrocket by an average of $725.
If you don’t think you know anyone who relies on Obamacare, ask
around. There are millions of us — and even those of us who don’t have health
insurance through the low-cost exchanges still benefit daily from protections
under the law.
I’m going to stand up for universal health care. Because it’s
thanks to the Affordable Care Act that I can stand at all.
Olivia
Alperstein is the Communications and Policy Associate of Progressive
Congress. Distributed by OtherWords.org.