Congressman Al Green Recognizes the Sixth Anniversary of the Affordable Care Act

(Washington, DC)—On Wednesday, March 23, 2016, Congressman Al Green recognized the sixth anniversary of the historic passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, approximately 20 million previously uninsured Americans have gained health insurance coverage since the enactment of the Affordable Care Act.

Congressman Al Green attended a press event organized by the House Democratic Caucus where individuals helped by the Affordable Care Act spoke at length about their experiences before and after the enactment of the life-saving legislation. Congressman Al Green was particularly touched by the story of one individual, attorney Stephanie Burton, a single mother of four.

“I could not afford health insurance so I was uninsured throughout school. Upon graduating in 2010, like many of my classmates, I was unable to find work. I was forced to hang my own shingle immediately after passing the bar. Starting my own legal practice meant that I still had no health insurance. As the single mother of four young children, that was devastating.  My diabetes went untreated for five years. When my health got so bad I could not tough it out, I was forced to seek medical care in the emergency room only. As a mother, I felt I had let my children down. I had done everything that seemed right by furthering my education, yet I couldn’t even afford a routine doctor’s visit. Something was terribly wrong with this picture,” Stephanie Burton said. “The Affordable Care Act changed all of that. On January 1, 2014, I enrolled in a health care plan that I purchased through the marketplace for less than a $100 a month thanks to my subsidy. Now I don’t have to decide between paying my mortgage and going to the doctor. I can manage my diabetes and get the medications I need to stay healthy for my children and my clients. It is a huge load off my mind. I have been covered through the marketplace plans since the beginning of the first open enrollment period and I have found the coverage affordable and easy to use.”

Congressman Al Green concluded by discussing the importance of the Affordable Care Act.

“The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 is one of the great achievements of the Obama Administration because, among other things, it has provided medical coverage to approximately 20 million Americans who did not have it. Additionally, our nation has reached a record-low uninsured rate of 9.1%, on the decline since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, giving millions of families more financial certainty. The families and individuals helped by this important legislation are not nameless or faceless, they are people like Stephanie Burton, who are working hard every day in pursuit of the American Dream. Congress did the right thing when it passed the bill in 2010, and fighting to keep it is the right thing to do today. Six years later, the Affordable Care Act is continuing to work for Americans before and after an illness, and it will work even better when we put people above politics.”