I wish people wouldn't be so rude to those who lose out under the ACA.

[cynannmarie]

323. very well said, Stray Cat. Thank you for your articulate post

especially the last paragraph with which I wholly agree. I do not understand the urge by many here to deny that some people have legitimate distress with discontinued plans that were not "junk" and are facing significantly higher premiums. They do not deserve to be called liars, trolls or ignorant of the details of their prior coverage. And, as you say, in doing so are not helping the cause of the long term success of the ACA by refusing to recognize some of its shortcomings so as to facilitate its improvement and wider acceptance. There is such a thing as constructive criticism and honest analysis.

Personally, I am very pleased with our prospective ACA plan since we qualify for a small subsidy and our premiums will be a little lower for an almost comparable (not quite) Silver plan than the 1000./mo that my husband and I were paying before (previous plan, now discontinued, had 2700. deductible/0 copays for any dr. visits and affordable copays for tests and hospitalizations). BUT, since we are 60+ preMedicare and make near the 63,000 subsidy cutoff, it shocked me to find that, if we went over the 63K income subsidy cutoff our premiums would be 1630./mo plus 2000. ea deductibles and more expensive copays for everything. With our mortgage, high property taxes, and a son in college, that would be completely unaffordable for us, as I am sure it is for many others in that age and income range, creating a real hardship situation.

I would very much resent anyone to tell me that our previous Kaiser plan was a "junk" plan, or that I did not know its actual coverage details well enough to accurately compare. In the past 3 years, following a cancer diagnosis, I have had 5 surgeries, dozens of imaging tests, countless blood and lab tests and 40+ Dr. visits, most to specialists. Last year my husband had 4 eye surgeries and extensive follow up. Our care has been top notch, and I defy anyone to claim that we have not examined or used every single aspect of our coverage--I know it intimately and in fine detail and have been more than satisfied with it.
Fortunately for us, we will make a smooth transition to a new exchange policy and retain Kaiser and our doctors, so we will have no negative impact in any way. But if we make just a little more income, the picture would change drastically, and not for the better.

If one believes in the goals of the ACA--to make health care more affordable, then one should support that its shortcomings need to be examined carefully and fairly to improve its access for everyone. Doing so requires rectifying the areas where some people are getting hurt by it, instead of denying that such gaps exist, and insulting those who are genuinely adversely affected.
Granted, there are many who are not comparing apples to apples in negatively assessing old and new plans, but that simplistic explanation does not apply in every situation.