Insurance Worries
Hester Hill Schnipper, LICSW, OSW-C Program Manager, Oncology Social Work
NOVEMBER 17, 2017
Just when we thought it was safe to stop worrying about the ACA/ObamaCare, we learn that it was a mistake to let down our guard. I try hard to keep this blog apolitical, but worries about medical insurance and our ability to pay for it cross any other political affiliations and opinions. Anyone who is reading this blog has concerns about medical insurance and likely believes that all cancer patients should have access to insurance, access to care, and (ideally) the freedom to focus on treatment and recovery and not on bills.
This article is from Living Beyond Breast Cancer, but any references to breast cancer are equally relevant to any other kind of cancer. Please call your Senators and ask them to remember us and not pass any piece of legislation that will strip some cancer patients of their insurance.
GOP Tax Bill Takes Aim at Affordable Care Act
Tax plan would end individual mandate, raise insurance premiums
BY: Eric Fitzsimmons, Copy Editor and Content Coordinator
Editor's Note: Living Beyond Breast Cancer has joined over 20 cancer advocacy organizations to oppose repealing the individual mandate. Let Congress know where you stand. Call or write your senator today.
Republicans in the Senate have reopened debate on the Patient Protection and Affordable Health Care Act, also known as the ACA and Obamacare, by including the repeal of a key part of the law in their proposed tax bill. The late addition to the bill could seriously affect health insurance markets across the country and the people who most need healthcare coverage.
The Senate tax bill would end the individual mandate, the part of the ACA that requires people to get healthcare coverage or pay a fine. Republicans have long targeted the individual mandate as an unpopular part of the law because it is seen as a burden, while many other parts of the ACA, such as patient protections or subsidies for insurance premiums, are seen as benefits. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas and others argue that repealing the individual mandate will be a relief to people who prefer not to get healthcare coverage.
The individual mandate is an important part of how the ACA is designed to provide coverage that is meaningful and affordable to everyone. Under the ACA, insurance companies are required to provide coverage to people who have existing and chronic conditions that may have high medical costs, without charging them more for premiums.