How will YOU be impacted by tRumpcare?

[Cal Carpenter]

5. I was without insurance for several years until the ACA kicked in

Thanks to the subsidies, we now can afford insurance. We've had to downgrade our plan twice due to rising costs, and if we had a real health problem/emergency we'd be fucked by our co-insurance and deductible, but at least we can afford basic wellness care now. Thank goodness we're healthy.

Without knowing the details of the bill, it's hard to say for sure, but given the numbers that have been thrown around about millions losing their insurance, I have to assume we'll be among them. Our income is very low and without significant subsidies or some major cost controls we can't afford it.

(This is not meant to be a sob story. My spouse and I have no kids and very low living expenses - used cars we own outright, a very short commute to work, etc. Aside from the healthcare issue, our basic needs are more than met. But the hundreds and hundreds of dollars a month a premium would cost without subsidies is impossible for us.)

What we need is single payer. The ACA has been helpful for some, but not for all, and not as much as it may seem on paper. It is unconscionable that the so-called wealthiest country in the world has the most expensive health care providing worse outcomes to fewer people than nearly any developed country in the world. The entire health care conversation is framed wrongly and is being treated as a ball in a sport being tossed around by the two parties at the expense of the health of our nation. (Diatribe over)