Six years to create a plan to replace the ACA and the Republicans have nothing, yet they are intent on repealing the program which though imperfect has been a lifesaver for so many. I have yet to hear one member of the GOP talk about the people who have been helped and what it will mean for them to lose coverage. Republican elected officials do not care about poor people, we know that. That the Affordable Care Act — despite all its (fixable) problems — is saving lives is an indisputable fact.
- 2.3 million young adults gained coverage from 2010 through the start of Open Enrollment in October 2013 due to the provision that allows people under age 26 to stay on their parents’ plan
- An additional 3.8 million young adults gained coverage between October 2013 and early 2016, a 46.5 percent drop in the number of uninsured young adults over that period.
Gains in coverage because of the Affordable Care Act were strong across all racial and ethnic groups between October 2013 and early 2016.
- The uninsured rate among Black non-Hispanics dropped by more than 50 percent (from 22.4 to 10 percent); corresponding to about 3 million adults gaining coverage.
- The uninsured rate among Hispanics dropped by more than 25 percent (from 41.8 to 30.5 percent), corresponding to about 4 million Hispanic adults gaining coverage.
- The uninsured rate among White non-Hispanics declined by more than 50 percent (from 14.3 to 7.0 percent), corresponding to about 8.9 million adults gaining coverage.
The Medicaid Expansion Program was specifically designed to help poor people. Who would object to a program crafted to help people with “annual incomes below 138 percent of the federal poverty level, or $26,347 for a family of three and $15,417 for an individual”? Why would anyone object to the Medicaid Expansion Program? What sort of heartless, soulless human beings would want to deny citizens of the richest country the ability to live lives free from unnecessary pain and suffering?
Kossack bkamr wrote about what the repeal of the ACA will do to her family:
Our son’s medication will be $760 a month without Obamacare. He works part-time while he’s in school, but his employer doesn’t offer health care for part timers. He’s 18 months away from graduating from his community college (no. no coverage available through school), so we’re looking at nearly $15,000 in drug costs. $15,000. That will fry the little retirement nest egg we worked so hard to save, and we’ll still have to borrow, if someone will lend to us.
Her story is not unique. Millions of people will die without the Affordable Care Act and we are not just saying that to scare you. Millions will be living in pain of one sort or the other. Hundreds of thousands more will become bankrupt, lose their homes and retirement savings if we allow the Ebenezer Scrooges of our time to succeed in their attempt to dismantle the program.
If 17,000 people die yearly due to 4.3 million having no insurance due to Republican governors, then
... (... does math ... ) …
17,000 deaths per year / 4,300,000 uninsured = .0039 deaths per year/uninsured
0.0039 deaths per year/uninsured x 20,000,000 uninsured = 78,000 deaths per year!
Therefore, for the 20+ million people who will not be able to afford insurance, there will be 78,000 deaths per year.
What do we do?
1. Write to your GOP Members of Congress
Submit a Letter to the Editor. Tweet at your Members of Congress. Spread the word.
Dear Senator _________,
I am a constituent with sound advice for you. In the next session of Congress, you will be asked to repeal Obamacare. If you do so, you will be responsible for the untimely deaths of millions of Americans. Now that might not give you pause, but I believe this should: Every time one of your constituents is,
1. Denied coverage;
2. Told that they have reached lifetime limits;
3. Forced to pay a larger co-pay;
4. Able to afford only the largest deductible;
5. Compelled to buy a separate policy for a college-age child;
6. Told that the specialist they need is "outside their network";
7. Faced with 25% or higher premium increases each year;
8. Unable to afford health insurance for their family;
9. Obliged to miss a rent, mortgage or car payment because of high insurance premiums;
10. Spending 48 hours to compare tricky insurance policies over multiple websites;
11. Doomed to watch a loved one struggle in pain from a treatable condition,
They will blame you.
Sincerely,
Members of our group have tweeted and mailed this letter directly to “Trump, as well as Senators McCain, Collins, Graham, Scott, Flake, and Sasse. (And it will be sent once per week until there is some resolution of the issue.).”
2. Contact Paul Ryan’s Office
From our friend 2thanks:
Paul Ryan's office is conducting a survey hoping to show a popular mandate to repeal the ACA (Obamacare). I just took it. It's automated and quick. Here's what to do:
1) Call (202) 225 - 3031 2) **WAIT through 40 seconds of pure dead silence suggesting you have called the Death Star. (Seriously. Don't hang up. There's no hold music. It's a little odd.)
3) You will get prompted by the survey
4) Press 2 to participate 5) Press 1 to register your support for the ACA
This was remarkably easy to do — less than two minutes for me.
3. Contact your Democratic Representatives
Let them know that we are counting on them to fight for Obamacare. That we demand that they use every congressional tool available to thwart the evil intentions of the GOP. Our own Angela Marx advises that we call them and keep calling. According to Angela:
REMEMBER it’s crucial you call your own state Senator. As CONSTITUENTS your voices carry far more weight and in fact, most Senators will discount messaging from non-constituents.
Contact information for Democratic Senators:
California
Barbara Boxer Local Offices
Kamala Harris will be replacing the retiring Barbara Boxer, please ask her to convey your message to her.
Diana Feinstein Local Offices
Colorado
Michael Bennett Local Offices
Connecticut
Richard Blumenthal Local Offices
Christopher Murphy local offices
Delaware
Tom Carper Local Offices
Chris Coons Local Offices
Florida
Bill Nelson Local Offices
Hawaii
Mazie Hirono Local Offices
Brian Schatz Local Offices
Illinois
Richard (Dick) Durbin Local Offices
Tammy Duckworth will be replacing (R) Mark Kirk in January, but she is currently serving in the U.S. House. Please call her House Local Offices
Indiana
Joe Donnelly Local Offices
Maryland
Benjamin (Ben) Cardin Local Offices
Barbara Mikulski Local Offices
Newly elected Chris Van Hollen is replacing retiring Barbara Mikulski, please contact him at his U.S. House Local Offices
Massachusetts
Edward Markey Local Offices
Elizabeth Warren Local Offices
Michigan
Gary Peters Local Offices
Debbie Stabenow Local Offices
Minnesota
Al Franken Local Offices
Amy Klobuchar Local Offices
Missouri
Claire McCaskill Local Offices
Montana
John Tester Local Offices
Nevada
Harry Reid Local Offices
Harry Reid will be replaced by Catherine Cortez Masto in January.
Please mention you want Senator Reid to convey this message to her.
New Hampshire
Current Governor Maggie Hassan will be replacing Kelly Ayotte in January, please contact her at the New Hampshire Governor’s office
Jeanne Shaheen Local Offices
New Jersey
Cory Booker Local Offices
Robert Menendez Local Offices
New Mexico
Martin Heinrich Local Offices
Tom Udall Local Offices
New York
Kirsten Gillibrand Local Offices
Chuck Schumer Local Offices
INCOMING Minority Leader Call him if you have NO Democratic Senator
North Dakota
Heidi Heitkamp Local Offices
Ohio
Sherrod Brown Local Offices
Oregon
Jeff Merkley Local Offices
Ron Wyden Local Offices
Pennsylvania
Robert (Bob) Casey Local Offices
Rhode Island
Jack Reed Local Offices
Sheldon Whitehouse Local Offices
Virginia
Tim Kaine Local Offices
Mark Warner Local Offices
Vermont
Patrick (Pat) Leahy Local Offices
Bernard (Bernie) Sanders Local Offices
Washington
Maria Cantwell Local Offices
Patty Murray Local Offices
Wisconsin
Tammy Baldwin Local Offices
West Virginia
Joe Manchin Local Offices
We welcome your questions and suggestions. Tell us about your tweets and letters about the ACA.
This is a weekly community diary. Please join and support us every Friday at 8 p.m. ET.