From today's LA Times comes an Op-Ed by Spike Dolomite Ward, a woman who had become disenchanted with Obama, especially over the issue of health care reform, until, having no health insurance, she discovered that the ACA's Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan saved the day.
Her Op-Ed begins:
I want to apologize to President Obama. But first, some background.
She then describes how, working for a small non-profit, while her husband had a small computer business, it was very tight providing health insurance for a family of four. Eventually, the costs of getting insurance for her family became too much of a financial burden. It became a choice between paying their mortgage and paying for health insurance. They chose to take the risk of going without insurance and hoping that no major illnesses would ensue over the virtual certainty of losing their house if they could not keep up with the payments.
Three weeks ago, they lost they wager. Ms. Ward was diagnosed with Stage III Breast Cancer. She details her frantic efforts to secure care without breaking the bank.
Fortunately for me, I've been saved by the federal government's Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan, something I had never heard of before needing it. It's part of President Obama's healthcare plan, one of the things that has already kicked in, and it guarantees access to insurance for U.S. citizens with preexisting conditions who have been uninsured for at least six months. The application was short, the premiums are affordable, and I have found the people who work in the administration office to be quite compassionate (nothing like the people I have dealt with over the years at other insurance companies.) It's not perfect, of course, and it still leaves many people in need out in the cold. But it's a start, and for me it's been a lifesaver — perhaps literally.
And then comes the mea culpa
Which brings me to my apology. I was pretty mad at Obama before I learned about this new insurance plan. I had changed my registration from Democrat to Independent, and I had blacked out the top of the "h" on my Obama bumper sticker, so that it read, "Got nope" instead of "got hope." I felt like he had let down the struggling middle class. My son and I had campaigned for him, but since he took office, we felt he had let us down.
So this is my public apology. I'm sorry I didn't do enough of my own research to find out what promises the president has made good on. I'm sorry I didn't realize that he really has stood up for me and my family, and for so many others like us. I'm getting a new bumper sticker to cover the one that says "Got nope." It will say "ObamaCares."
I urge you all to read the full article linked at the top.