Affordable Health Care Act upheld: A Nurse's Response
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Rebecca Tilley, Oregon Registered Nurse, shares her reaction to today's Supreme Court court ruling and the impact that the Affordable Health Care Act has had -- and will continue to have -- in improving the health and lives of Americans.
As a Registered Nurse at Grande Ronde Hospital in La Grande, I have seen first hand the dramatic impact that President Obama’s Affordable Health Care Act (ACA) has had on my patients. Before the ACA, insurance companies would kick young people off their parents’ plan when they graduated from high school or college, almost always before they had a good job with benefits. Some insurance companies would only cover students if they were in school full-time – so students who were working part-time to put themselves through school part-time would be locked out of the insurance market completely. 
The ACA changed all that. Since its passage two years ago, more young adults here in La Grande are covered by their parents' insurance, which means they are able to get preventative care or treatment for their illnesses before they become chronic and increasingly costly.
As a nurse, I know that young adults used to be the least likely to be insured and, as a result, young people were not getting the primary and preventative care they needed. Now, because of the ACA, I work with young patients every single day who are getting the treatment they need--treatment that allows them to stay in school, graduate from college and enter the workforce full-time.
Today’s Supreme Court ruling is a vindication of the Obama Administration’s bold approach to healthcare reform, and truly something to celebrate. This decision is a victory for each and every American, regardless of politics. I’m tremendously proud of the work that has been done to increase access to healthcare for every American and grateful that the ACA remains intact.
Thank you, President Obama, for giving me the opportunity to provide care to those who need it most, for giving me a chance to make a difference in the lives of my patients, and for helping making the future better for us all.
Rebecca Tilley, RN
La Grande, Oregon
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Comments
This is a turning point for all of us. We must let John Boehner know that pushing health care down the road is not what America wants now. It is called the Affordable Health Care law--affordable to all Americans.
When John Boehner says, " We will pull it out at the root," those of us who understand that managed health care must go forward must stomp on that hand that pulls. The Affordable Health Care Law will go forward. We need to dump those House Republicans that want to start over. Let's find them and let's root them out. For John Boehner's sake.
WELL SAID, Rebecca thank you! Sharon E.