Who got medical coverage under Obamacare? These people – and they couldn’t be happier

Lynn Bundy

“I used to go to a free clinic for some of my health care. But now that I’ve made my first payment under the Affordable Care Act, it makes me feel much safer. Now I can see a doctor when I need to and not have to make payments. There are health problems I can afford to take care of now, with my thyroid condition and treatment for arthritis in my knees and hip. I work part-time as a care-giver and am trying to get more education for a better job. Money that’s not spent on health care can go to my education.

Mary Touma

“Me and my brother both moved to the States in April 2001. In Syria, we had free health insurance, including for specialists. You can also choose to pay for your own doctors if you don’t want to use the State health care system. When I first came here, I heard horrible stories of people who had accidents or got sick and I got very scared. Here, an accident can destroy your life if you choose to try to get help without health insurance – any mistake and you can pay for the rest of your life. Here it is like walking alone in the dark. You don’t know where to go. You have no help.

My very first job, my first two weeks here, I was using a slicing machine and cut off part of my finger. A person from work took me to the emergency room and left me. When I had come to the States, I had exactly $500. I had paid $100 for school bills and had under $400 left. Then the emergency room bill came, it was for over $300. They told me that it was very important to pay the bill, that “you don’t play with the hospital.” I was scared. I paid the whole thing and had almost nothing left.

That was before I became a citizen, before I could speak English, before I married. Then I had children and those worries about my own health were also about my family, about how I would take care of them if I got sick. After my first child, I had a growth in my breast – it kept growing and I was so scared. I couldn’t sleep at night. But I knew I couldn’t afford the doctor bills if it was cancer, that the bills would wreck my family. Finally someone told me about a special clinic, the Adagio Clinic where they arranged for a free mammogram and I found it was fibrocysts – they are not dangerous. But after the Adagio closed there was nothing else like it available in Pittsburgh for me to go and find out such answers that would give me peace of mind. For five years, I went without health coverage.

The only concern that I have about the Affordable Care Act is that many people were confused about how tax credits worked – the website was confusing and very many thought that their share was more expensive than it really was, so they passed up the chance to be safe. But I’m very glad that I came in and found out more and got signed up. Now I can feel safe again for me and my family. Now I no longer feel like I am walking in the dark.”

Raphael Walton:

“Before, health care company pre-existing condition restrictions kept me from getting covered. I always had the worry in the back of my mind – now I have peace of mind. The Affordable Care Act allowed me to get a subsidy – it is very affordable compared to before.”

Robert and Priscialla Nixon

Priscialla: “I’m getting older and having more aches and pains. Instead of ignoring them, I can go see about them. I’ve been having trouble walking. I can’t not go to work.”

Robert: “I don’t have to wake up scared any more, wondering ‘What is it” What’s causing that pain? What happened from last night to right now.’ We can go find out.”

Vicki Stevenson

“I have chronic anemia and require regular IVs for iron treatment. But since I lost health insurance, I haven’t had treatment in two years. I also have sleep apnea, so along with the anemia, I get very tired, and find it very hard to do my job, but I can’t afford to miss work.  I have asthma and haven’t been able to afford medicine. During a car accident the air bag engaged and I inhaled the burst which has made my breathing problems much worse. And I have a heart condition – in February I had heart attack symptoms and had to go to the emergency room. The cost for that bill was insurmountable for me – over $18,000– with my limited income I find it difficult to even imagine how I’m going to begin to pay that. There’s no room for that bill when I’m still trying to pay off bills from other medical expenses.

I have a sick kid with Traumatic Brain Injury. She had lost her medical assistance due to an error in estimating my income and we were only just able to re-establish coverage through CHIP. My daughter, she is so concerned about my health. She has so much anxiety that I might have another heart attack.  She’s an only child, a teen-ager and she needs me to be able jump up and take care of her needs, rather than worrying about her mother.

Now, I can go start addressing my own medical needs. I can get a breathing machine for my sleep apnea. I can get medicine for my asthma and IVs for my anemia. And I can go for preventive care, like flu shots.”

Michael Cahill

Michael says that now he finally feels secure. “I’m not getting any younger.” In the past he had to have several surgeries without health insurance. It took him a couple of years to pay those bills. “Everybody doesn’t live in mansions like Governor Corbett. There should be equal opportunity access to health care across the board.”

Simone Hickey

“I have Sarcoidosis, which isn’t causing any pain yet, but attacks the organs. I never would have known about it at all, but it’s attacking my vision – I finally went in and they found it just behind my right eye. It’s also now in the early stages of affecting my lungs. Now, even before any of the treatments by doctors, I regularly have to have very expensive breathing tests, which add up to thousands each year. Last year, for my share I had to pay $400 for each test. Then I hurt my shoulder and the bill for that was about $400. I was charged $150 for an antibiotic, so I couldn’t pay and had to ask my doctor for something else that maybe didn’t work as good but I could afford it. My income is so low at $1400 a month that I could never get ahead.

Earlier in life I made choices to live more simply so that I could have more security as I got older. I chose a small, two bedroom home and was very careful with my money, even when I had a good job with health insurance. But it was only after I lost my health insurance that I developed such serious health problems which have now affected my ability to work – I still work two jobs, but not enough and sometimes I have been afraid I will lose my home too. Now that worry is over – I’m very grateful that the Affordable Care Act went through and that so many of us don’t have to worry so much.”

Tina Robinson

Tina has diabetes and high blood pressure. The cost for absolutely necessary treatment was so high that in the past she was unable to pay the bills and had her name turned over to collection agencies. Now she’ll be able to be assured of her basic health care needs being covered.

Tara Grace

Tara has asthma and could only afford partial treatment when she could afford it, and also couldn’t afford medication for her allergies. In combination with her asthma, she found it very difficult to function during the peak allergy season. Tara’s family has a history of breast cancer and lupus, so now she’ll be able to get checked out on a regular basis.

“I have a friend who is now out on the streets – he was diagnosed with colon cancer and because of the bills for his treatment he became homeless. So this issue – it really gets to me because it affected someone I care about. I’m very disappointed that Governor Corbett turned down federal funds for Medicaid expansion.”

Mary Ann Kapp

There’s a history of serious heart disease and cancer in Mary Ann’s family. Now she’ll be able to go for preventive check-ups. “Up until now, I’ve worked full-time my whole life and I couldn’t afford health care. Right now my son is looking for work and Medicaid turned him down.”