Why You Should Care About the Health Care

Colleen Mattingly
Jul 25, 2017 · 3 min read

The central issues that involve all of us in the health care debate, and what you can do.

Today, the Senate is voting on a new health care plan. This threatens to be the end of a very long and confusing road for the health care debate. Even the senators voting are not sure what they are voting on, or how they will vote, as the substance of the bill has changed almost daily. While this all sounds very stuffy and boring, it is important to understand because it affects every person in this country.

Through this confusing process, two things are clear. A few senators do not believe everyone deserves quality, affordable health care, and the majority of American people want quality, affordable health care for all.

The sooner the Senate realizes that all Americans have a right to quality, affordable health care, and want to enjoy the benefits of that right, the sooner they can work towards improving our health care system through a bipartisan effort.

As of now, it appears that senators will be voting whether or not to end the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, without putting a replacement health care plan in place. This will cause 17 million people to be uninsured by next year. By 2026, an additional 32 million people will be uninsured. This people included children, veterans, and seniors. This is unacceptable and fundamentally not what the American people want.

Not only will millions of poor people lose their insurance, repealing the ACA means all the insurance rules that were put in place will no longer be in effect. Employers will no longer have to offer insurance to workers, if they do, they can enforce lifetime coverage limits and limit the amount insurance will pay for out-of-pocket costs. So if you might get really sick and you’ve reached your lifetime limit, you will have to pay the difference. This was almost impossible under Obamacare.

Insurers will be able to charge older people more than three times what young people pay for the same coverage. This means people in their 60s could be charged five times as much, or more.

Today, young people can stay on their parents’ insurance until they are 26 in order to find a steady job before paying for their own plans. This provision could be removed by repealing Obamacare.

Finally, insurers would no longer be required to offer the same care, at a low cost to people with pre-existing conditions. Today, 53 percent of Americans have pre-existing conditions and receive equal treatment thanks to Obamacare. If insurers do offer that care, they would no longer be required to cover Essential Health Benefits, including simple things like hospitalization, ambulances, prescriptions, and more, you know, the reasons why people buy health insurance in the first place. These are just a few of the top issues.

“People who have money and health care are deciding the fate of millions who are the working and poor, who can’t afford health care any other way” said Tyheera, a caregiver to her mother, grandfather, and six siblings in Philadelphia, who also has to care for herself as she has a life-threatening blood clot disorder. The ACA has helped Tyheera, so she can help her family. Our Lives On The Line is telling the stories of the millions of Americans like Tyheera who would lose their much-needed health care if the ACA is repealed.

Yes, the Affordable Care Act needs changes. The biggest problem is high costs because of few insurers in the market. Knowing that, insurers reducing the coverage provided and charging more for that coverage doesn’t seem to answer the problem. When you cut Medicaid by $770 Billion, that is what will happen, less coverage, higher deductibles, and more out-of-pocket costs.

If any of these issues affect you, contact your senators now. Send a letter, a tweet, or give them a call. It takes two minutes and will help millions of people. Republican senators can oppose this vote and involve their Democratic colleagues in the process moving forward. Democratic senators need to oppose the vote and filibuster by amendment to ensure this process is properly reviewed.

Most of all, American people need to make their voices heard. It’s your vote and your voice. You don’t have to be a health care expert to understand that reducing health coverage and charging more for that coverage will impact our fellow Americans in a terrible way. Do not look back and wish you had spoken up.

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