LETTER: Affordable Care Act best for everyone

Talk about it

To the Editor:

There have been a couple of letters to the editor recently explaining some of the benefits of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or, as it is referred to, Obamacare. Dr. Tom Dean, Wessington Springs, is the latest.

One place that I have gotten a good explanation is the Center for Rural Affairs, Lyons, Neb., which is an advocacy organization that monitors laws, pending legislation and regulations that are important to rural America (cfra.org).

Another place was an article in the April 5, 2010, issue of Time magazine. It took eight pages to explain the plan’s major benefits.

The Congressional Budget Office calculated the ACA is expected to cut the federal deficit by $124 million in the next 10 years, even though it will spend at least that much on subsidies to low and middle income Americans to purchase insurance. It sure makes sense to provide insurance for these lower income people rather than have them either forego care or go to the highest priced caregivers, such as the ER. If people who are uninsured need and get care and can’t pay, we all pay in the end.

One of the early benefits of the plan is to close the “doughnut hole” for seniors and provide free preventive services for them. Another benefit is that small businesses can receive tax credits to purchase coverage for their employees. Children can remain on a group or individual plan until age 26. Those with pre-existing conditions have immediate access to coverage and cannot be denied when a person gets sick. One section prohibits group plans and insurers offering group or individual health coverage from establishing “lifetime limits” or unreasonable annual limits on the dollar value of benefits.

If Sen. Thune and Rep. Noem want to repeal this act that will benefit many, many South Dakotans and other Americans, then it’s time to replace them with people who will do what’s best for us.

Tags: opinion, updates, letters, obamacare