For those who think the ACA didn't help THEM (i.e., some of your friends, probably) . . .
They frequently mention in media reports that it is unknown how many people now insured under the ACA already had insurance -- as if those people who already had individual or small group insurance somehow don't count. The fact is, they've benefited almost as much as people who didn't have any insurance until now. They're not throwing their money away on insurance that will let them down when they needed it the most -- i.e., when they develop an expensive condition.
Besides the fact that they are now guaranteed all the "essential benefits," (they weren't before),
they are no longer subject to annual limits on benefits
they are no longer subject to lifetime limits on benefits
they can't, after they develop a potentially expensive condition, be dropped from their policy, or have a rider added to their policy excluding a "preexisting condition." The insurer also can't "look back" over your medical history and decide not to pay you for your current costs because you somehow failed to give them information five years ago.
For example, before the ACA, a woman would have to pay for a screening mammogram. If it found something suspicious, she might need a biopsy. Even if she turned out to be perfectly fine -- the "lump" was just some fibrous tissue or a benign tumor -- the insurance company could then add a rider to her policy excluding her from breast cancer coverage in the future, on the basis of a pre-existing condition. Then she'd regret ever getting that screening mammogram, wouldn't she?
Another example: if you had colon polyps discovered in a routine colonoscopy, the insurance company could add a rider excluding you from colon cancer coverage. OR, if one of the removed polyps was cancerous, they could look back in your medical history and decide you had something five years ago that wasn't properly disclosed (even if you knew nothing about it) -- and refuse to pay for your CURRENT treatment. Or maybe they didn't even bother to look back; with some insurance companies, it was just a racket. They denied everything they could as a "preexisting condition."
Here's a story from a DUer a few years ago that shows what we were up against and how important the ACA was -- for anyone who is too young for Medicare.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x1203488
I recently had some problems which may have been a warning sign of colon cancer. I saw my doctor immediately. I am under the age of 50, fit none of the risk factors for colon cancer, and have no colon cancer in my family. Still, she recommended I have a colonoscopy as a "precaution".
I had the colonoscopy and they found 2 polyps, one was cancerous, the other precancerous. Both were removed during that procedure. My prognosis is very good and I need no further treatment other than annual screenings.
Then my health insurance company, Assurant Health (a subsidiary of Time Insurance formerly known as Fortis) started digging through my medical history, apparently looking for a reason to deny payment. They bombarded me and every doctor I have seen in the past 5 years for information. After more than 3 months of of what basically amounts to harassment, they denied my claim stating that it was a "preexisting condition".
I was furious. I had never had any symptoms and or treatment for anything that could have been connected to colon cancer. I did some research on this company and found out that they routinely deny payment for any type of cancer treatment or other catastrophic illness. Very little had been written in the press about this company's track record of malfeasance, but I did find some damning information, mostly thanks to the Attorney General of the state of Connecticut.
