Anyone ElseTerrified about Repeal of ACA Bill
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There will be a stay granted by the Supreme Court, due to mass litigation. This will hold us all in limbo for a while, not good for breast cancer patients. As Busom said, no one is safe. Whether you are wealthy or poverty line, health insurance is vital to every, single person in this country. And, more to those who have a pre-existing condition. Not a time for celebrating, at all. Prayers for all my girls that have pre-existing conditions and need the protection of the ACA, may we find policies that do not discriminate and cover our medical procedures, tests and medications. Makes me think twice about any future surgeries and consults needed. Have to make a checklist and make sure I do everything I need to do, before our markets are out of control.
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Just wanted to hop on this older thread and remind everyone that our coverage is at stake once again, and to be sure to vote during the November 6th midterm elections - research how your House and Senate candidates voted last year so that you know where they stand on protections for people with pre-existing conditions!
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I think of it everyday. I was diagnosed in 2012 . I had been without insurance because I retired and my husband had to retire at 62 because of four abdominal surgeries. He worked in industry as a mechanic doing the same job he had done at 30. I knew I had a lump but had been turned down because of a preexisting condition. Watching tv one day -2011-I saw a commercial that said I would qualify for the ACA INSURANCE. Three weeks later -August-I had insurance and diagnosed in February of 2012with stage 2 BC. I still get looked at funny when I tell people that President Obama saved my life even though I didn't vote for him. I can only pray that all pre-existing condition people and their families vote for those of us that are sick to have a chance. Hugs Jo0
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I talked to a woman in my cancer center a while ago. She hadn't had health insurance for years because she couldn't afford it, and she did not get any mammograms or any regular checkups whatsoever.
When the ACA came out, she got insurance, and soon after was diagnosed with Stage IV breast cancer de novo.
When I talked to her she had been in and out of the hospital because of complications from chemo. She felt terrible. It made me sad. I still think of her occasionally. I wonder if she's still with us.
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This is so sad buttons. I’m sure not being able to have mammograms cost her cancer to spread. That is outrageous people have to decide between making ends meet and health insurance. We do have BC/BS but a very high deductible. When I was DX we reached our deductible in 2 months. Had it not been for that because we were at 100% we couldn’t have afforded for me to have 33 radiation treatments. We had to pay monthly for awhile for some of the lab work. We exhausted our flex plan too.
It’s heartbreaking the women who have had mammograms can’t afford the treatment that follows. What are they supposed to do?
There should be more focus on the financial drain for treatments if breast cancer. Early detection is good but what good is that if you can pay for the surgeries and treatments?
Where are all this so called spinoffs of the Susan B. Komen Foundation that are supposed to help those in financial need?
Diane
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Make sure that you VOTE!!!!!!
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DH and I have already early voted. Felt goooood! Now the anxious waiting until Nov. 6. We have excellent health care, but way too many don't.
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My original insurer, before Obamacare phased out under Obamacare. My second insurer, under Obamacare, did not let me keep my doctors. It went belly up in the second year. My third insurer also went belly up. My fourth insurer now tells me I don't need an annual breast sonogram. My physicians are appealing the decision because my breast cancer was missed during mammography and was found via sonogram.
The cost of my insurance is prohibitive. Way more than what I originally paid before Obamacare.
The mandate was a joke and a HUGE flaw in Obamacare that should have never been approved in the first place. Right here, I read how some sisters would rather pay the small penalty when they needed insurance rather than pay high premiums. Gee, would be nice to be able to buy flood insurance as a hurricane comes barreling in your direction, or perhaps after it strikes your home. But that is NOT how insurance works. At. All. Too many healthy people and young people did not buy into Obamacare and that's why the program failed.
For twenty years, I always bought individual or family health insurance. Pre existing illness was NEVER an issue because I had continuous coverage. I changed insurance carriers one month before my breast cancer diagnosis. All of my bills were subsequently paid. Having insurance makes having a pre existing illness moot.
Keep in mind that when Obamacare went into effect, many people found out that they qualified for Medicaid. Basically, Obamacare would apply to less than 10% of citizens. Soooooo, what Obamacare did for some 35 million people was....it took away our right to see what doctors we prefered, made us ultimately pay exhorbitant premiums AND caused start up insurance carriers to go belly up because not enough healthy people signed on.
Obamacare was broken from the start. It doesn't need a band aid. We need a better health care insurance plan that is affordable and fits all of our needs. Universal health coverage is an all together other issue. We can debate that issue endlessly.
Please understand how pre existing illnesses are attached to penalties. The penalty was a house of cards that caused Obamacare to implode. People weren't buying in until they got sick. That made Obamacare incurable.
Let's all vote. But then let us all work together to find a better way to make healthcare insurance affordable for all of us
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My ACA insurance is a joke. I pay $800 a month for essentially no coverage. Most primary care "providers" are nurse practitioners or a few "ghetto" clinics. I can only go to one undesirable hospital in the entire DFW area. I have $6000 deductible plus 30% copay. I could be on the hook for at least $20,000 a year out of pocket with premiums, so I would still be bankrupt in a couple of years.
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melissa....built into our premium payments is the cost for all of those late come-ers....basically, we are being penalized for getting the insurance ahead of any illness....
Flood insurance is also foul. My community was slammed by Sandy. Our local marina disappeared in the storm. Now, there are townhouses built at the location. That area should have never been developed. So now, I have to assume the risk of all of those people who buy into that property. A.Real. Big. Mess. Seems like common sense is missing....
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voracious, I worked in health insurance undewriting for many years. Anyone who knows anything about insurance knew this wouldn't work. THE VERY DEFINITION of insurance is that you pay based on the risk you present and that you cannot ANTISELECT against the insurer. We can't bitch that/when: the premiums are too expensive when preexisting conditions are covered and people can wait to get coverage until after they are already sick. Do you think that the young people are going to pay to subsidize this? They are not
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I've always prioretized having health insurance and consider myself fortunate that I could do so. My premiums started out just over $100 and are now almost $700 and Obamacare had nothing to do with it. It's a for profit company and they raised the prices because they could, not because they had to. It terrifies me to think that I would die if Iost my health insurance right now and it sickens me to know that people have died and still do die in this country due to lack of access to medical care.
Maybe the ACA does have flaws which makes it non viable in the long term. I haven't really looked in to it. But many first world nations have universal health care that works just fine, or at least no worse than what we put up with here already with some of the HMOs. I really don't understand what the objection is to adopting one of their systems.
How can we call this a great country when people die from even infections because they can't afford antibiotics? People like to victim blame the poor but the reality is that even affluent individuals can quickly see their resources wiped out due to a single medical emergency. That's not great at all, and it doesn't have to happen.
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I'm sure this post will be offensive too many and I'm sorry for that.
This discussion is more about our world view or the personal philosophy or faith that informs what we believe or how we respond to humanity.
This will be my last post on this thread since no amount of discussion or fact will change minds.
I'm beginning to read some of the talking points that promised to doom Obamacare from the first day it was passed. So sad . I too worked for an insurance agency.
Keep in mind that health insurance is not concerned about our health, if we can pay a premium, or even if we have coverage. It is strictly for profit and to maximize that profit. If they sale junk policies that don't afford an individual real coverage that is part of the scam of insurance.
We are sold a bill of goods by Congressional lobbyists for insurance companies that assure us that Obamacare or single payer is awful. That is true in one sense. The private company could no longer make obscene profits to return to investors on the stock market at the expense of the sick and dying. They could no longer deliberately sabotage medicare, medicade, Obamacare or any other program -though flawed but fixable.
A house left to the elements, uninhabited will soon fall down. Since these programs haven't been repealed, the only way to kill it is to starve it. The down side is that we are included in the starvation.
The insurance company is an entity with no thought, no heart , no compassion. Commercials are worded to make us feel warm and secure because they care, but they can't care. Only human beings can care and make a difference. ((: -(( Jo0 -
In my opinion, the corruption across our political spectrum has prevented Americans from being able to access/afford healthcare. No one has adequately addressed this problem.
The US already spends more on healthcare than most other countries, and yet coverage is very expensive and patchy. It doesn't need to be this way.
In our current political discourse we are continually drawn into a false debate. The false debate is essentially this: How do we pay for the broken system we currently have?
In reality the whole conversation surrounding healthcare needs to change. We actually need a NEW system.
Just my two cents.
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I've posted this study elsewhere, but I'll post it here too because I think it's important.
Nearly half of us will totally deplete our assets paying for cancer treatment within two years, and average losses were around $92,000. Importantly, the study notes that "large financial burdens have been found to adversely affect access to care and outcomes among cancer patients."
https://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343%2818%2930509-6/fulltext
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Nobody should be denied life saving health care because they might go bankrupt. I say this as someone who was completely taken care of through my husband's university health care system. We paid next to nothing for my treatments. But I am not one of those who says: 'I got mine, screw you.'
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I currently have excellent healthcare through my employer ( teacher in California) but I would never begrudge others the right to health care. Our current system is not only untenable, but inhumane.
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ex....come to New York and visit upper Manhattan....in Harlem and Washington Heights we have two of the best hospitals in the world.....Mt Sinai and Columbia Presbyterian ....besides treating, Kings, Queens and Presidents (most recently bill clinton), these hospitals treat the poorest of the poor.
We have two things at stake...the delivery of affordable care, while also providing the best care AND being a beacon for the best researchers and clinicians. I don’t know how to sort out these two dividing issues without affecting one or the other. There are no simple answers.
And sadly, I don’t think voting is going to make a damn of a difference...
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I'm a pretty cynical person, but voting WILL make a difference, depending on your location. States that are very red or blue are unlucky to change anything, but there are many swing states and districts currently, where the balance of power depends on votes (in the last election, certain races were decided by like 9 votes!). Midterms have historically lower turnouts, but they are really a chance at changing the legislative branch of government, which is where health care policy is shaped.
These are the states where it matters most: TN, NV, MT, AZ, TX, FL, ND, MO. Also parts of California.
Health policy is going to be completely reshaped over the next several years because it has reached a crisis point. If you want a say in how it turns out, researching your candidates carefully - and then voting - is the best way to do it! Once candidates are elected, you can always lobby them to change their position, but that is much more difficult. Right now, as the election approaches, is the real moment to seize.
All of us will be impacted by this.
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elise...my vote in New York is meaningless. Now, with respect to the legislative branch, if the Democrats win the House, they will obstruct the President. Trump had a chance to overhall Obamacare, but Senator McCain squashed that.
With respect to healthcare, nothing worthy will come out of these midterm elections. Just sayin
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Mitch McConnell is on record of late saying that after mid-terms if the Houses remain republican majority, that repeal of ACA will be re-addressed and future funding for Medicare will have to be adjusted to pay for deficit caused by recent tax law. I am 2 yrs shy of eligibility for Medicare and scared to death age eligibility is going to be raised. Heaven forbid I need more treatment. Oh yeah, I'm voting....
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McConnell also said that it would unlikely happen unless there was bi-partisan support.
https://www.businessinsider.com/mitch-mcconnell-medicare-social-security-medicaid-cuts-trump-2018-10
In other words....not happening
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Majority of Voters say Obama not Trump Responsible for State of Healthcare
It appears that Democrat politicians are doing their best to scare voters that pre existing condition protection will be taken away. This is simply not the case, at, all
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Why do Republicans object to everyone having health care? I really don't understand this mind set.
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Repealing the ACA without a viable replacement is both shortsighted and irresponsible in my opinion. I stayed up late one night in July 2017 and watched John McCain give a thumbs down to "Skinny Repeal" and I was both relieved and grateful. No one believes that the ACA is a perfect solution to our healthcare problems, but lawmakers need to work in a bi-partisan manner to find workable solutions.
Unfortunately, both sides of the aisle look to elect people who are on the furthest edges of their constituency which makes bi-partisanship highly unlikely in the near future. I am not as certain as you are voraciousreader that those of us with pre existing conditions will be protected by a Republican House, a Republican Senate and a Republican President. My husband and I have taken advantage of early voting, and voted accordingly. My husband and I are registered voters of two different parties, but we are united in our vote this midterm. We both now consider ourselves as Independents.
We are all entitled to our own opinion and this is mine.
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Member elise24601 has kindly offered to share her research on all the candidates' true (actual) positions as to affordable health care with protections for those having pre-existing conditions.
https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/110/topics/867862?page=1#top
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pup....i don’t object to people having healthcare. Under Obamacare, I lost three policies and the right to use my doctors and I am paying way, way, way more than I did BEFORE Obamacare. I NEED AFORDABLE healthcare and Obamacare has been a failure.
I will not be intimidated by politicians. I take little stock in anything that any of them say...especially weeks and days before elections. Democrats and Republicans have seen the handwriting on the wall and KNEW Obamacare was on a death knell for YEARS! I am FURIOUS that it hasn’t been fixed
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I was able to switch to a better Health Care Insurance plan. The costs (to us) run higher and run up (towards our out-of-pocket maximum) faster, but I can choose my own Health Care Providers.
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I understand people having issues with the ACA but I don't fully understand the objection to adopting a universal health care system. I don't understand why someone would not want the security of knowing they and their family will always have access to healthcare and it won't destroy them financially.
It really perplexes me.
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WC.....I have a very busy day ahead and cannot get into a long answer right now....but here are some points to ponder...
Innovation. Here in the United States while insurance companies are the drivers and we are the lowly patients, our system does not depend on the government telling us what treatments we may have and when we might have them. In the U.S., clinicians and researchers drive the government’s guidelines. Huge difference when it comes to care.
My maternal family is Canadian. They all wish they had my healthcare insurance.....except for one member and we have very interesting conversations. Our last conversation involved my most recent hip replacement surgery. My cousin’s friend had one as well....a month before me. The surgery cost him nothing. It coat me a whopping $1k. In Canada, a patient is supposed to have a hip replaced within 6 months of needing it. Today in Montreal, the wait is 8 months. But, what that number doesn’t include is how long it takes for a patient to see an orthopedist in the first place. It took my cousin’s friend 3 months for the initial appointment. So it took him close to one year to get a hip replaced.
Start to finish from the time I saw the orthopedist, 4 weeks. While I paid $1k, I would gladly do it again because I could never imagine myself taking ADDITIONAL pain meds for close to a month....never mind a year. I was in horrific pain from my hip which made all of my other pains from my Ehlers Danlos worse!
Innovation is a deeper issue to get into...at a later time unless you want to research it yourself.
And government? Look up the British Charlie Gard debacle....I am familiar with the case because my husband also has a genetic metabolic disorder and we knew of the players in that controversy. I can also explain the differences of how the US would have handled it. Quite a complex issue....
Gotta run now
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