facesoftheaca

[facesoftheaca]

The Artistic Activist. "Not to sound like I am bragging, but I currently have incredible healthcare. I am covered under my mother's healthcare which is normally for those in our military (she was a contracted physiologist). I don't have too much knowledge on my healthcare because of this, only know that thanks to Obama I can stay covered till I was 26. Now not only is this to be taken away from me, but the primary need for my healthcare at this moment, will be considered a pre-existing condition. "I have severe depression, which a couple years back I was hospitalized for. I don't know if a simple diagnosis of depression from a doctor will hold others back from healthcare, but I do know my time in Sheppard Pratt will stop future healthcare from covering my medicine and therapists that I desperately need."

[facesoftheaca]

Christa and Zia

"I had a hard time getting anything other than state insurance because pregnancy is considered a pre-existing condition. I got state insurance and it covered me throughout my pregnancy, but then I was dropped from it 30 days after Zia's birth. I wasn't even fully healed or allowed to work or even lift a basket of laundry on my own at that point. I didn't get post-partum depression, but between 4-6 weeks is when it usually kicks in, so luckily I wasn't uninsured dealing with that problem."

[facesoftheaca]

Welder.

"I have a plate in my neck from getting hit by a truck on the interstate while riding a motorcycle. 15% disabled due to non degenerative demyelination of my spinal cord. Without pre-existing condition coverage I will eventually be screwed- I have no idea how to afford care for this as I age and my body deteriorates. I work as a welder and although I am careful I only have so long doing this. [The accident] occurred as a result of getting rear ended on the interstate while riding a motorcycle. I was wearing all the gear but my neck hyperextended from the force of the hit and thus did the disc slip out."

[facesoftheaca]

Marco. "I consider myself pretty lucky in that I don’t have a daily struggle with physical health problems. I developed various anxiety issues when I was 18. I met with counselors and psychiatrists for awhile when I was still covered under my mother’s insurance plan. I was in the process of getting formally diagnosed. Some possible diagnoses were Panic Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder as well as Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. I don’t know for sure because I had to stop seeing doctors once I lost coverage. I’ve gotten really good at dealing with the anxiety on my own and it’s largely subsided to a manageable level. I rarely need medication, but there is one type of acute episode I will still experience. Every so often, maybe once or twice a year, it will become incredibly difficult to fall asleep. The worst episode I ever had kept me up for three days straight before I got treatment. Regular sleep medication does not work and can often make the problem worse. I work very long hours, often starting very early in the morning and for jobs from which I can’t call out sick, so it’s tough to get enough sleep as is. In order to stop it, I have to be prescribed a dosage of anxiety medication, which I take over the course of a few days to get my sleep cycle back to normal. With insurance, it’s a simple fix that only costs me a few dollars. Without insurance, it can be a crippling expense just to see a doctor, made worse by the hiked up cost of the medication. It’s scary to imagine a situation like using all of my funds to pay rent during a slow month of work, and then having an insomnia episode that won’t stop until my body breaks down.”

[facesoftheaca]

<p>Photo by me</p> <p>Editing by me</p>

<p>My mother, Allison.</p> <p>The Affordable Care Act has saved my life multiple times. It may not be perfect, but without it, I would not be alive today. I have systemic lupus, fibromyalgia, a serious heart condition with atrial fibrillation, severe hypertension, ruptured neck and back discs, and an aortic aneurysm that will need to be repaired soon. I suffered ill health for years until the ACA came along, and I was able to finally get health care. Last year, my heart suddenly went into atrial fibrillation and I was hospitalized for two weeks. During that time my heart rate was so erratic that at times even talking too much or sitting up in bed caused the nurses to come running into my room to tell me to stop talking, lay back down, increasing IV fluids and other measures to keep me from having a stroke of a heart attack. My blood pressure soared and I needed life saving measures by the rapid response team on multiple occasions. Finally they had to cardivert, to stop and restart my heart, to get it back into normal sinus rhythm. I am now on meds that keep my heart and blood pressure under control. If I were to lose my health insurance, I could not afford the meds, and without them, my doctors have assured me, I will die. I have also been told that the afib will probally return and I will be hospitalized again, it is just a matter of when. Without the ACA I will lose my life. Repealing the ACA without a viable replacement will cause the death of millions of people just like me.“

[facesoftheaca]

I've had asthma my entire life. I vividly remember my first trip to the ER when I was a child. My mother's panic face, as she leaned over me in the hospital bed, doctors and nurses hooking me up to a breathing machine, and the burning pain in my lungs, as though someone was holding them in a vice grip, are memories that I could not forget even if I tried. Sometimes my asthma is under control and manageable, and then at other times I've gone to the ER 7 or more times a year. Health insurance has always been a vital necessity to me. When I was in my twenties, I could no longer remain on my parent's health insurance. This was terrifying. I lived in a constant state of fear, wondering when my next asthma attack would strike, how bad it would be, and whether or not I'd live through it. Even with health insurance, my inhalers were upwards of $200. As a student working in the service industry, being able to pay for my own health coverage was out of the question. At times I was unable to afford life saving medication. Sometimes I would have to sit in my bathroom, shower turned on all the way to hot, hoping and praying that the steam would open my airways, and allow me to be able to breathe. Then Obamacare was created. Suddenly, not only could I afford doctor visits, but my medication went down from 200, to just $1. I could go to the ER again instead of trying to wait out an asthma attack at home, where I easily could have died. There is no doubt in my mind that the Affordable Care Act saved my life numerous times. Thanks Obama. <p>Photo by Marco Gonzalez

Edited by Me