When my husbands company suddenly fired thousands of it’s most senior workers one fine day in January 2017 we were left with 3 DAYS of health insurance. Altho our MD worked with us to get all the meds we could before this time ended we still had ZERO coverage. We both have prexisting conditions. I am diabetic. I have lost a leg and toes to this. My husband has severe asthma.
I had been walking—well, gimping—on a broken prosthetic leg since the prior September. Since I had a need for a new insulin pump I did not get into a pie fight over getting this fixed. When we were kicked off our health care plan we were offered COBRA which woujld have been MORE than a months prior salary! So I called NY State within the first few minutes of hearing he had been let go. We managed to get NY Medicaid within a few weeks, I set out to get the prosthetic fixed; however because it was so out of whack I ended up with an entirely NEW fake leg. No cost to me. I DID have to “jump” thru a few hoops—I had to pass a “test” to determine my levels of useage to gauge what kind of leg and foot I would need; this was easy and took about an hour. I have also been able to have a kidney ultrasound and CT scan after a frightening kidney stone episode a few years ago I have been able to KEEP my doctors—ALL of them—and my beloved Leg Guy.
My husband was rushed to the ER last year after coughing himself into heart stoppage. Yes—this is a “thing” Who knew? This happened twice. Extremely frightening! So we were worried—what if this happens AGAIN? We were still paying off the FIRST ambulance ride! When he had some symptoms after he got the Medicaid he went to the doctors office who took one look; ran an EKG and shipped him off to the ER. She thought he was having a heart attack. Fortunately he was not; he had an extreme anxiety attack coupled with a very bad asthma issue. We did not have to pay for THAT either.
We are very very grateful FOR this care. We know that we paid into it. We know every one ELSE did also. We don’t expect to be able to keep this forever. What happens now? We have worked it out to have officially retired. But! What do we do NOW for health care? We are too young for Medicare—at 59 and 61 we have a ways to go even IF Medicare still exists then. Surely under this new meaner “DontCare” die quick plan we will not be able to afford any insurance on any “exchange” if THOSE still exist. A new prosthetic leg can cost--now—around $16,000 US dollars. An asthma inhaler can cost hundreds now. An ER visit? Where everyone with the sniffles or a coronary is heading? What will THAT cost now? Our “credit” was ruined years ago when I lost my leg and our iinsurance failed to pay for a lot of care. I had to refuse PT after the amputation because I was threatend with having to pay the ENTIRE inpatient cost if I could not “Keep up” with the hours a day I was told would be needed—when I had not walked for a year and had no toes TO walk on on the OTHER foot!
The ACA has already saved my husbands life. Not only thru the care he was able to get; but by relieving him of some of the crushing anxiety he suffered when he was “terminated” after 19 years with a company that suddenly decided it did not want to PAY their workers insurance and salarys. They are now a company running on part time workers with zero experiance; their share prices are dropping; their customers are leaving because there are no longer workers to help them find that plumbing part or perfect shade of paint. You have heard NOTHING about this! Why? Well it;s not like these jobs went to Mexico, right?
We NEED a single payer health care system so NO American will have to go without care. So NO American has to worry about losing their house or their minds by not being able to take care of their families. We don’t DESERVE the utter contempt we are going to be subject to if this HateCare Bill passes. How is it that these few men are able to decide OUR future—the future of MILLIONS? How are WE allowing this? How is the COUNTRY allowing this? Time to RISE UP.