Torri of Nashville, TN

Torri of Nashville, TN writes:

I have three children, and my husband is a small business owner. We started our business in 2004, a construction company called Sunago Builders. Prior to the Affordable Care Act, we used to have to pick and choose between health care or eating, between health care or bills. We would pray that her children didn’t get sick. My oldest son has autism. Before the ACA, I paid a high premium for him, because autism is considered a pre-existing condition, and some insurance companies wouldn’t even cover him at all. When the ACA passed, it gave me room to breathe.Our business has its ups and downs from month to month. One benefit to the ACA is just being able to plan, knowing the money our family needs to survive will be there at the start of the next one. My husband had a vision when he began: he hoped to bring other contractors together for the greater good. He’s been able to hire more people.

And that means feeding more families. He’s even hired interns to come and learn the business. He is a big believer in giving back to the community. That’s what he’s most proud of.

Since the ACA passed, me  and my family can now go to a doctor first, instead of waiting until someone is too sick and ending up in the ER. ER visits are expensive, and drive up costs for everyone else. Because the ACA helped my family save money, we had additional financial resources for my autistic son’s speech and occupational therapy. I am thrilled that I can carry him on my insurance until he is 26.
Health care is important because it affects everything, from school to work to simply being a productive member of society. Through my personal story with the ACA, I have been able to change minds of coworkers on both sides of the aisle. 

I recommend that business owners who think it hurts small business, like my husband’s, look at the numbers: it helps your business more when you have people who are working, who aren’t sick.

For my family, much is on the line if the ACA is repealed. It would mean going back to making those hard decisions of picking and choosing what to keep and what to let go. It would mean crossing fingers and hoping that my family doesn’t get sick… praying, “please, not the ER.”

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