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One mother's view of the ACA

As the process to repeal the Affordable Care Act begins, I wanted to share with you what the ACA has meant to our family personally.

I write not as a Democrat, Republican, liberal or conservative but as one mother to another, one human to another in the hopes that I can show you this controversial topic through the prism of my family's experience.

My daughter Leksa was diagnosed with Type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetes at the age of 25. This came as a complete shock to us as she had previously been an extremely healthy person. Leksa purchases her insurance through the ACA exchange; she has an excellent top-tier plan that allows her to manage her diabetes quite well, thereby minimizing the chances for complications.

Not a day goes by that I don't feel thankful for the insurance that she is able to have. Now we are faced with this repeal and I am so afraid for her. I can't sleep at night and my stomach is constantly in a knot. Even a gap of a month or two in coverage would be financially devastating to her.

As a parent, fear of the unknown compounded with the stress of your child having a chronic illness is almost indescribable. The consequences of a repeal without a plan are very real for us. This is not political rhetoric; this is my daughter's life.

Please think carefully that every single one of us is at risk; no one is immune to the possibility of job loss, illness, accident or God-forbid the death of the primary breadwinner. Without the protection of the ACA, you would find yourself in the unenviable position of having to purchase your health insurance on the open market. A repeal of the ACA means that if you or any of your children have a health condition such as diabetes, asthma, seizure disorder, cancer etc., you will not be covered. A repeal means that your twenty-something child will not be protected if they are unable to get a job immediately out of college; that's fine if they are healthy but as Leksa can personally attest, illness has a funny way of arriving unannounced.

Sasha Pravdic

Downers Grove

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