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Dr. Rob Davidson MD, MPH@DrRobDavidson · Oct 31, 2024

As an ER doctor for 2 decades, I have seen the #ACA transform the lives of my patients. This week, one week before the…

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Summary

An ER doctor with 20 years of experience describes how the Affordable Care Act (ACA/Obamacare) has transformed patient care by enabling coverage for pre-existing conditions, expanding Medicaid to 20+ million people, and preventing medical bankruptcies, warning that Republican plans to eliminate it would put 50 million Americans at risk of losing affordable healthcare access.

Summarized by ThreadOut AI from the full thread. May miss nuance — read the thread below.

  1. #1

    As an ER doctor for 2 decades, I have seen the #ACA transform the lives of my patients. This week, one week before the election, @SpeakerJohnson told us that he and @realDonaldTrump will “deregulate” healthcare and that there will be “No Obamacare.” What does this mean? 🧵 1/10

    Headquarters@HQNewsNow · Oct 30, 2024

    Mike Johnson says one of Trump’s top priorities will be to repeal the Affordable Care Act and rip away health care from tens of millions of Americans: “No Obamacare”

  2. #2

    Before Obamacare insurance companies denied coverage to people with pre-existing conditions. Diabetic patients would come to the ER in crisis because they could not see a PCP. One man waited 5 days having chest pain during a heart attack and ended up in heart failure. 2/10

  3. #3

    I routinely saw patients who couldn’t afford insulin come in with diabetic ketoacidosis and diabetic coma. People with high blood pressure that was never treated had a higher risk of having a stroke and some ended up in kidney failure after years of a lack of care. 3/10

  4. #4

    Diseases that could be managed with a primary care doctor in the office became life threatening emergencies. People were treated like second class citizens based upon their health status, and the consequences were deadly. 4/10

  5. #5

    Before the ACA, once a kid left high school or college, they were kicked off of their parents’ insurance. If they became sick or required surgery, they would have to spend their life savings or go into crushing debt just to stay alive. 5/10

  6. #6

    With Obamacare, expanded #Medicaid covers over 20 million individuals and saved over 27,000 lives between 2010 and 2022. Nearly 20 million people get subsidies to buy insurance on the ACA Marketplace. Overall, nearly 50 million Americans have insurance under the ACA.  6/10

  7. #7

    Young adults are able to stay on their parents’ insurance to age 26. These individuals can focus on figuring out their career path rather than taking the first job available that offers health insurance. They do not have to worry about a health crisis causing financial ruin. 7/10

  8. #8

    With the ACA, there are no lifetime or annual limits on coverage for essential health benefits. Preventive health services, such as vaccinations, cancer screenings, and birth control, are required to be covered without cost sharing. 8/10

  9. #9

    So when Speaker Johnson tells us that they intend to “deregulate” healthcare and that there will be “No Obamacare,” these are what he intends to eliminate. 50 million Americans will be at risk of losing access to affordable healthcare. 9/10

  10. #10

    To Trump and Johnson, their agenda is intended to erase the legacy of President Obama and enrich the insurance companies that line their campaign coffers. To me and my patients, their agenda is the difference between life and death. /END