The msnbc community has debated Obamacare–or, as it is officially known, the Affordable Care Act–since we launched the new site. We have included some of the comments that stood out to us here, what has your experience with the law been?
%22I%20think%20what%20the%20government%20does%20not%20get%2C%5Bis%20that%5D%20there%20are%20still%20millions%20of%20Americans%2C%20in%20the%20lower%20middle-class%2C%20who%20are%20mainly%20single%20people%20who%20make%20too%20much%20money%20too%20qualify%20for%20free%20health%20care%20and%20don%27t%20make%20anywhere%20near%20enough%20too%20afford%20healthcare%21%21%21%20For%20instance%20I%20live%20on%20a%20bare%20bones%20budget%20like%20everyone%20else%20in%20this%20bracket%2C%20and%20in%20a%20month%20with%20a%20decent%20full%20time%20job%20I%20am%20still%20coming%20up%20short%20every%20month%20to%20pay%20necessary%20basic%20bills%21%21%20The%20government%20thinks%20by%20giving%20you%20tax%20credits%2C%20which%20you%20obviously%20DO%20NOT%20get%20until%20the%20end%20of%20the%20year%20are%20USELESS%20to%20the%20very%20tax%20bracket%20of%20people%20it%20was%20intended%20to%20help%21%21%21%21%20WE%20DO%20NOT%20HAVE%20the%20fifty%20dollars%20or%20the%20two%20or%20three%20hundred%20dollars%20to%20initially%20shell%20out%21%21%20WE%20JUST%20DON%27T%20HAVE%20IT%21%21%21%21%20And%20this%20what%20the%20government%20does%20not%20get%21%21%21%22′
%22My%20wife%20has%20a%20pre-existing%20condition.%20The%20company%20I%20work%20for%20does%20not%20offer%20health%20insurance.%20Last%20year%20the%20only%20way%20I%20could%20get%20my%20wife%20covered%20was%20to%20create%20my%20own%20one%20man%20company%20so%20that%20I%20could%20get%20group%20insurance%20at%20%242%2C986%20per%20month.%20With%20the%20new%20health%20care%2C%20I%20get%20better%20coverage%20for%20the%20same%20family%20%22group%22%20under%20an%20individual%20family%20plan%20for%20%241%2C820%20per%20month%20with%20a%20much%20lower%20deductible%20and%20out%20of%20pocket.%20Obamacare%20certainly%20worked%20for%20me.%22′
%22Last%20year%20I%20was%20covered%20under%20my%20work%20plan%2C%20but%20it%20was%20useless.%20The%20deductible%20and%20the%20premiums%20were%20roughly%20equal%20to%20my%20yearly%20salary.%20Medication%20had%20a%20separate%20own%20%24500%20deductible.%20My%20husband%2C%20who%20has%20COPD%2C%20could%20afford%20to%20see%20the%20doctor%20%28at%20%2440%20a%20pop%29%20because%20the%20dr%20visits%20were%20covered%20outside%20of%20the%20deductible%20but%20not%20get%20any%20of%20the%20tests%20the%20specialist%20needed%20to%20treat%20him.%20Under%20Obamacare%2C%20our%20plan%20has%20no%20deductible%2C%20a%20%243%20copay%20and%20a%2010%25%20coinsurance.%20I%20save%20about%20%2470%2Fmonth%20on%20the%20meds.%20We%20have%20insurance%20we%20can%20afford%20to%20use.%20Thank%20you%20President%20Obama%2C%20for%20believing%20we%20all%20have%20a%20right%20to%20good%2C%20affordable%20health%20care%21%21%22′
%22I%20am%20an%20employee%20of%20a%20technology%20consulting%20firm.%20I%20provide%20services%20to%20one%20of%20their%20pharmaceutical%20clients.%20I%20became%20a%20%22permatemp%22%20when%20my%20job%20along%20with%20others%20was%20sent%20to%20the%20Phillipines.%20When%20I%20started%204%20yrs%20ago%2C%20my%20health%20insurance%20was%20%24382.00%20per%20month%20just%20for%20me.%20The%20next%20year%20they%20changed%20providers%20and%20it%20went%20down%20to%20%24282.00.%20In%20Feb%20of%20this%20year%20they%20notified%20us%20of%20Obamacare%2C%20set%20up%20the%20annual%20open%20enrollment%20and%20they%20changed%20providers%20again%20-%20this%20time%20the%20same%20coverage%20was%20%24686.%20I%20dropped%20the%20coverage%20completely.%20I%20was%20already%20struggling%20trying%20to%20live%20on%20my%20salary%20%28%2445k%20after%20deductions%20and%20health%20insurance%29%20here%20in%20NJ.%20I%20went%20to%20the%20%22wonderful%22%20Obamacare%20site%20to%20obtain%20info%20on%20my%20options.%20There%20were%20none%20because%20I%27m%20not%20poor%20and%20my%20employer%20offers%20coverage.%20I%27ll%20pay%20the%20penalty%20during%20tax%20time%20and%20with%20continued%20effort%2C%20find%20a%20direct%20full-time%20job%20with%20an%20employer%20that%20is%20not%20a%20temp%20agency.%20In%20the%20meantime%2C%20I%20just%20look%20forward%20to%20President%20Obama%20leaving%20office.%20Having%20him%20in%20office%20has%20been%20far%20too%20painful%20for%20too%20many%20people%20in%20this%20country.%22′
%22I%20have%20been%20self%20employed%20most%20of%20my%20life%20.%20I%20was%20independently%20in%20Blue%20Cross%20for%2035%20years%20and%20about%20three%20years%20ago%20developed%20blood%20clots%20in%20my%20right%20calf.%20which%20were%20successfully%20cleared.%20Not%20long%20after%20that%20I%20got%20dumped%20by%20Blue%20Cross%20which%20claimed%20I%20asked%20to%20be%20removed.%20Like%20a%20fool%20I%20did%20not%20protest%20that%20thinking%20I%20could%20do%20better%20elsewhere.%20Elsewhere%20led%20me%20to%20two%20years%20in%20the%20wilderness%20with%20a%20high%20risk%20pool%20that%20did%20little%20but%20cost%20a%20lot.%0D%0A%20Late%20last%20fall%2C%20I%20got%20my%20family%20enrolled%20in%20the%20ACA.%20I%27m%20now%20on%20Anthem%20and%20had%20a%20wellness%20check%20some%20weeks%20back%20at%20which%20it%20was%20caught%20that%20I%20now%20am%20in%20Atrial%20Fibrillation.%20That%20in%20turn%20led%20me%20to%20a%20heart%20echo%20which%20in%20turn%20is%20leading%20me%20to%20a%20cardiologist%2C%20a%20rariety%20in%20the%20rural%20northeast.%0D%0AWithout%20the%20ACA%2C%20this%20would%20never%20have%20happened.%20I%20was%20asymptomatic%20and%20remain%20so%20but%20my%20heart%20rate%20is%20under%20control%20with%20meds%20while%20the%20docs%20discuss%20electrical%20conversion.%20%20If%20there%20was%20ever%20a%20death%20panel%2C%20it%20existed%20in%20the%20form%20of%20bad%20insurance%20being%20sold%20for%20high%20prices%20that%20give%20one%20a%20false%20sense%20of%20security%20with%20next%20to%20no%20real%20coverage.%20%20I%20think%20I%27ll%20live%20a%20while%2C%20maybe%20not%20as%20long%20as%20I%20had%20hoped%20but%20that%27s%20really%20my%20fault.%20The%20ACA%20has%20done%20a%20lot%20of%20good%20for%20me%20so%20far%20and%20it%20is%20watching%20over%20my%20family%20as%20well.%22′
%22I%20know%20of%20two%20people%20who%20decided%20to%20enroll%20in%20the%20ACA.%20One%20had%20symptoms%20of%20possible%20colon%20cancer%20but%20could%20not%20afford%20the%20colonoscopy%20to%20determine.%20My%20son%20told%20him%20to%20enroll%20in%20the%20ACA%2C%20He%20was%20then%20able%20to%20see%20a%20doctor%2C%20have%20the%20colonoscopy%20and%20get%20on%20the%20road%20to%20better%20health.%20Another%20friend%20of%20my%20son%27s%20enrolled%20and%20on%20January%202nd%20went%20to%20a%20doctor%20for%20the%20first%20time%20and%20was%20diagnosed%20with%20a%20medical%20which%20prior%20to%20the%20ACA%20may%20have%20cost%20him%20his%20life.%0D%0AMy%20sister%20died%20at%20age%2042%20due%20to%20recurrent%20breast%20cancer.%20Her%20ex-husband%20had%20taken%20her%20off%20of%20insurance%2C%20despite%20her%20cancer%20history.%20I%20tried%20to%20get%20insurance%20for%20her%20but%20couldn%27t%20because%20of%20her%20pre-existing%20conditions.%20I%20would%20have%20emptied%20all%20of%20my%20savings%20to%20get%20insurance%20for%20her%20but%20couldn%27t%20afford%20the%20medical%20treatments%20she%20needed.%20Had%20the%20ACA%20been%20in%20place%2011%20years%20ago%2C%20my%20sister%20might%20be%20alive%20today.%22′
%22The%20main%20thing%20for%20me%20was%20that%20being%20a%20woman%20was%20no%20longer%20going%20to%20be%20a%20pre-existing%20condition%20for%20me.%20The%20fact%20that%20I%E2%80%99m%20a%20woman%20shouldn%E2%80%99t%20affect%20whether%20or%20not%20I%20pay%20more%20for%20insurance%2C%20which%20is%20just%20ridiculous.%22′
%22As%20you%27re%20aging%2C%20I%27m%2058%2C%20I%20think%20advancing%20years%20plus%20pre-existing%20conditions%20made%20me%20not%20very%20attractive.%20This%20turned%20out%20to%20be%20a%20boom%20for%20me.%22′
Gabriela Resto-Montero