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MADISON, Wis. – In a new op-ed, Julie Buckholt – a Wisconsinite with pre-existing conditions who relies on the Affordable Care Act – blasted Ron Johnson for his repeated attacks against the legislation that provides her health care.
While President Biden and Democrats have been working to lower costs for working families and expand access to health care, Republicans are running on an agenda that would raise taxes on 32% of Wisconsin families and gut protections for folks living with pre-existing conditions.
Read the full op-ed here, or see key excerpts below:
Milwaukee Courier: 12 Years After ACA, Johnson Is Still Attacking My Health Care
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29 years ago, my entire life changed when I was diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis, an autoimmune disease that impacts my ability to control my voluntary muscles. When I was first diagnosed, a million questions ran through my mind – Will I be ok? What will my life look like? Can I afford treatment?
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Before the ACA, we would have hit our insurance cap in no time, meaning we would be forced to pay for every doctor’s bill, medication, and specialist out of pocket. There is no doubt we would have gone bankrupt trying to figure out how to treat our condition. I was sometimes seeing three specialists a week and paying an out-of-pocket copay that was eating away at my savings. We couldn’t afford every visit, and I had to choose between doctor’s appointments for myself and for my daughters – it was a nightmare.
On top of the doctor’s appointments, the treatment I rely on, part of the reason I’m able to be writing this letter today, could cost up to $16,000 a week. I rely on this treatment weekly, while my daughters need it monthly. Between the three of us, this critical treatment would cost us over $1 million dollars for just one year.
But then the ACA passed and gave us a second chance at life. Going to the doctor was no longer a question because I knew we could afford it – receiving simple things like medicine was no longer a question because I knew we could afford it.
12 years later, I still celebrate the ACA every day. It seems like common sense: I deserve affordable health care just as much as my peers. Unfortunately, Senator Ron Johnson doesn’t see it that way. Just this month, Ron Johnson reaffirmed his pledge to repeal the ACA, saying that if the Republican Party regains control of the government they should make repealing the ACA a priority.
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We’ve watched for too long as Johnson has prioritized his self-serving agenda of trying to take away our health care, all while doing nothing to lower costs. He doesn’t care that his actions make us live in fear every day that we will lose our care, go bankrupt, and who knows what else. He doesn’t care that if he is successful he will raise health care costs for families like mine all across the country. Johnson doesn’t care about my family, and after everything he’s done and everything he’s trying to do, how could anyone believe that he cares about theirs?
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