Locally Hundreds of Thousands Have Pre-existing Conditions

Kudos to Sally Wilkey, who chronicled her personal battle with brain cancer in a letter to the editor published by TCPalm on July 31.

And kudos for asking the tough question of her neighbors and friends: Why would you want to to eliminate the very protections that keep her alive? The question goes to the heart of the national healthcare debate — and to our collective social conscience.

The Affordable Care Act prohibits health insurers from denying coverage to individuals because of to pre-existing conditions. The ACA also prohibits insurers from charging higher rates.

President Trump and Congressional Republicans, however, will not give up on their goal to adopt healthcare legislation that would remove or drastically alter these protections and make insurance premiums out of reach for the average American.

If you agree with the GOP’s plan, is it because you believe that Sally’s health issues are hers alone to cope with? That your premiums shouldn’t contribute to her extensive treatment protocol? Or is it that you think that you will never lose standard coverage because you are free from pre-existing medical conditions?

Think again, because you may be shocked by the following common medical conditions that qualify as pre-existing:

Diabetes, obesity, arthritis, cancer, pacemaker, pending surgery or hospitalization, pregnancy or expectant parent (includes men), stroke, sleep apnea, high cholesterol, Alzheimer’s/dementia, mental disorders (including anxiety and depression), congestive heart failure, coronary artery/heart disease, bypass surgery, kidney disease, renal failure,  cerebral palsy, Crohn’s disease, epilepsy, hemophilia, lupus, multiple sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, organ transplant, Parkinson’s disease, Lyme disease, migraines, seizures and ulcers…on and on.

Are you on the list? Are your loved ones? If so, you might find yourself in one of several high-risk insurance pools. Premiums could reach as high as $25,700 per year for people in high-risk pools, according to a report from AARP.

An exhaustive national study by the Center for American Progress documented the staggering number of non-elderly adults with pre-existing conditions nationally, and by Congressional district.

In Republican Rep. Bill Posey’s Congressional District (FL-8), 273,700  non-elderly residents have at least one pre-existing condition. That is 53 percent of non-elderly adults in Posey’s district who are are protected by the ACA. Rep. Posey, will you really throw them under the bus?

The same question applies to Republican Rep. Brian Mast’s District (F-18), where the numbers are 272,400 with pre-existing conditions, or 52 percent.

Nationally, 134 million of non-elderly citizens have one or more qualifying, pre-existing condition. That is one out every every two adults.

Conservatives dismiss the Center for American Progress as left-leaning. The organization is progressive, but its level of expertise and data-driven methodology are proven and meet the highest standards of analytics.

If you receive insurance through your employers, you may be safe for now — that is unless you lose your job. Medicare recipients may be protected, but what about your grandchildren?

Poll after poll shows that Americans oppose the Republican efforts. The most surprising results, even if totally unscientific, came on Fox & Friends, Aug. 1. The morning show’s hosts launched a Twitter poll asking viewers whether they would support Bernie Sander’s call for “Medicare for All” despite a price tag of $32 trillion. No way, right?

Wrong. 73 percent of the 32,000 respondents said Yes to Medicare for All! The hosts were caught off guard, and no further mention of the results were had.

We must protect the provisions of the Affordable Care Act that have saved an untold number of lives, lessened the suffering of the ill and prevented so many from financial ruin because of medical costs.

For the nation’s sake, for Sally’s sake, Democrats must retake control of healthcare.

Join us. Be part of the solution.

 

–Richard Leonard, Communications Committee