From Bustling Cities to Rural Small Towns, the GOP Health Care Crisis Is Leaving No American Unscathed.
Time is running out: In less than two weeks, open enrollment begins. Because Donald Trump and Republicans ripped away health care tax credits from over 24 million Americans, come November 1st, hard-working people will now log onto the Affordable Care Act (ACA) marketplace, find that their health plans are more than double last year’s, and will be forced to make heart-wrenching decisions. Recent coverage highlights the toll on real people: A Georgia woman scrambled to schedule a surgery next week because she doesn’t know if she can even afford health insurance next year. In Arkansas, a couple is preparing to drop health insurance entirely, praying they won’t face a medical emergency that will wipe out all of their life savings.
Americans deserve to know exactly who is being screwed over by Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress, and Protect Our Care will continue to tell their stories. The harrowing accounts below come from everyday Americans that the GOP decided to put on the chopping block to fund tax breaks for their billionaire friends.
Jody Fieulleteau, 31, Atlanta, Georgia
- “She makes about $40,000 a year styling hair and providing behavioral therapy. She has yet to complete an application to see quotes for plans next year, but her monthly premium is likely to nearly double based on her age, income and zip code. Fieulleteau said she rushed to schedule a surgery next week for a problem related to menstruation because she’s concerned about having insurance.”
- “‘I’m feeling like I need to get everything done this year because I don’t know what next year is going to look like,’ she said in a phone interview.” [Washington Post]
Ginny Murray, Arkansas
- “Ginny Murray says she and her husband, Chaz, are out of options for health insurance. In January, their premiums are expected to rise higher than they’ve ever gone up before, putting the cost out of reach.”
- “‘Our plan is to keep putting the money we’re already paying towards health care in savings,’ said Murray, whose insurance is covered through the Affordable Care Act, ‘and really just hoping that we don’t have a stroke or we don’t have a heart attack.’” [NBC News]
Nance L. Schick, 56, Norfolk, New York
- “‘I’m quite frustrated — I’ve worked regularly since I was old enough to get a work permit,’ said Nance L. Schick, 56, a New York employment attorney and workplace mediator living in Norfolk who expects her business to generate about $60,000 this year. Without any Obamacare subsidy, she’d have to pay $12,000 a year for insurance, a substantial portion of her personal income. ‘I also have to have a place to live.’” [Washington Post]
Bill Gall, 61, Meridian, Idaho
- “Bill decided to retire early so the couple could enjoy nonworking years together while they’re still in relatively good health, they said. If they lose the enhanced subsidies and their financial load becomes too challenging, Bill could try to find part-time work, he said.”
- “‘If there are no subsidies, we’ll pay the difference. We’ll be out there paying the $1,700 a month,’ Bill said. ‘You do the math. It’s a lot.’” [CNBC]
Doug Butchart, 67, Eglin, Illinois
- “The Butcharts receive enhanced premium tax credits that cover $670 of the monthly premium, leaving them to pay $603.82 per month themselves. Without the premium tax credits, Doug Butchart said they cannot afford to pay the entire premium out of pocket each month.”
- “‘You work your entire life to make yourself comfortable and I’m sure there are things that we could do without but there’s not that much crazy spending to possibly have to cover $1,500 a month for insurance,’ he said. ‘That’s a lot of money. … You don’t realize how important insurance is until you need it.’” [ABC News]
Chrissy Meehan, 51, Upper Chichester, Pennsylvania
- “Chrissy Meehan, a hair stylist in Upper Chichester, Pennsylvania, has a neck condition that may require surgery. She says if ACA subsidies expire, she’ll further delay the procedure. The 51-year-old voted for Republican Donald Trump for president last year, something she said she’s almost embarrassed about now that the Republican-led government hasn’t renewed the subsidies that help her afford her coverage through the state marketplace.”
- “‘I work hard, and I’m trying to survive and do it the right way and pay my way,’ Meehan said. ‘I don’t want free. I just want affordable for my income.’” [AP News]
Leighanne Safford, Washington State
- “Leighanne Safford and her husband, Lorry, pay just $278 a month for health insurance. But starting Jan. 1, their monthly premium could jump to as much as $1,800.”
- “Safford said they can’t afford the $1,800 monthly premium — which only accounts for coverage for her and her husband — without cutting back on essentials like food or dental care.”
- “‘It would take away from our life’ if the subsidies aren’t extended,’ she told NBC News.” [NBC News]
Teresa Hussein, 50, Richmond, Virginia
- “Teresa Hussein, 50, is a technical writer from the Richmond area who works on contract and makes less than $55,000 a year. With the subsidy, she pays $350 a month for an Obamacare plan.”
- “‘I have to have insurance — it’s not an option for me,’ she said. ‘I’m a diabetic. I have to have meds or I die.’” [Washington Post]
Judith O’Gara, 56, Millis, Massachusetts
- “Judith O’Gara, a part-time editor at community newspapers, and her husband, a self-employed computer animator and mural artist, were notified this week that their monthly premium would increase by $435.”
- “‘It’s not great to be presented with rising costs and $200 to $400 a month at the same time the cost of food is rising, the cost of oil is rising, the cost of electricity is rising,’ O’Gara, 56, of Millis, said.” [Boston Globe]
D’nelle Dowis, Denver, Colorado
- “D’nelle Dowis, of Denver, knows how quickly an unexpected medical expense can add up. She recalls how her father’s appendectomy in the 1990s was a huge financial burden for her family. ‘It was a big thing for our family having to deal with that,’ Dowis said. Still, Dowis and her husband, Christopher, plan to drop their ACA coverage for next year and put that money into a high-yield savings account. Keeping their coverage would mean cutting back on care for their two aging dogs, both of whom have cancer, as well as putting less money toward their retirement savings and holiday travel to visit family.” [NBC News]
Lidia Pruente, 35, Dorchester, Massachusetts
- “Her premiums would increase by $70 a month in 2026, she said. The increase comes as she also faces higher costs for compression leggings and shorts and bandages she needs to manage swelling in her legs and abdomen caused by lymphoedema, a chronic condition that causes fluid to build up in parts of her body, she said.”
- “‘$70 plus a ton more in durable medical equipment, that would be a challenge,’ said Pruente. ‘It’s very stressful to know this is what health insurance costs.’” [Boston Globe]
Nancy Murphy, 60, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
- “Every month, her premium is $1,019 and the enhanced premium tax credits cover the total cost, she told ABC News. If there is no deal made before the Nov. 1 open enrollment deadline or the tax credits expire at the end of the year, she’s concerned about being able to cover the cost.”
- “She continued, ‘These things to me are so upsetting. We are American citizens. We should be able to access our tax dollars for our health care needs.’” [ABC News]
Celia Monreal, 47, Tyler, Texas
- “Monreal, 47, and her husband, Jorge, 57, rely on the Affordable Care Act marketplace for health coverage. If Congress doesn’t extend certain ACA tax credits set to expire at the end of the year, their fully subsidized plan will increase in cost, putting it out of reach. Without insurance, they won’t be able to afford his expected knee replacement surgeries, much less the treatment they need for other issues, like her chronic high blood pressure and his high cholesterol. ‘It worries me sometimes, because if you’re not healthy, then you’re not here for your kids,’ Monreal said. ‘It’s a difficult decision, because, OK, do I spend $500 on a doctor’s visit or do I buy groceries?’” [AP News]
Erin Jackson-Hill, 56, Anchorage, Alaska
- “The executive director of two nonprofits, who also cares for her 89-year-old father full time, already pays nearly $500 a month for her premiums. If the subsidies disappear, she plans to forgo health insurance and pay for her asthma and allergy medications out of pocket. Jackson-Hill said she worries about what will happen if her hip worsens and she can’t make it up the stairs in her father’s two-story home without treatment.”
- “‘I will have to go to the emergency room, or I’ll have to go bankrupt in order to pay for it,’ she said.” [AP News]
Francis Wright, 47, Richmond, Virginia
- “‘It’s a money thing,’ said Francis Wright, 47, a forklift operator at a paper plate factory near Richmond where he has worked for 17 years. He makes $21 an hour and pays $104 a month for health care coverage, a small fraction of what it would cost without the current federal subsidy. ‘The politicians want to put the money in their own pocket.’” [Washington Post]
Stan Clawson, 49, Salt Lake City, Utah
- “Another ACA enrollee, Salt Lake City freelance filmmaker and adjunct professor Stan Clawson, said he’ll find a way to pay for health insurance next year — even if it means he must buy cheaper groceries or get a new job that provides it. He also has to buy catheters to use every time he urinates — a cost he said would add up to around $1,400 a month without insurance.”
- “‘I don’t think a lot of people realize how expensive it is to have a disability,’ Clawson said, adding that trying to live without health insurance would be ‘financially devastating.’” [AP News]
Ashleigh Tucker, Durango, Colorado
- “Ashleigh Tucker is managing partner of 4Corners Riversports, a shop that sells kayaks and runs a paddle school in Durango, Colorado. It employs between 15 and 40 people depending on the season, and all of them are on Obamacare, she said. Tucker was one of scores of small-business owners who wrote a letter to Congress asking that they extend the increased subsidies.”
- “‘It’s already really expensive to live here, and having a premium that doubles is just not going to be doable for a lot of people,’ she said. ‘They just won’t have insurance.’” [Washington Post]
Claire Esparros, 34, New York City, New York
- “Esparros, a New York City-based freelance photographer, has no major health problems and mostly uses her coverage for the basics — annual physicals and the occasional sick visit.”
- “Next year, though, she’s planning to let it go. Her monthly premium could triple, from about $300 to $900 — and she said she can no longer justify the cost.” [NBC News]