Jonathan M. Metzl Profile picture
Director, Medicine Health and Society @VanderbiltU; Author https://t.co/j4Db72xTDj, @RFKHumanRights Award; #WhatWeveBecome @wwnorton @Nytimes editors pick

Sep 21, 2020, 15 tweets

The fact of the matter is this: it is incredibly expensive for insurance companies to pay for pre-existing conditions. It’s much cheaper to let you die. ACA *remarkably* made that illegal, against all odds.

For people who have been critiquing the ACA for the past eight years for not going far enough....try getting that back after we lose it.

The ACA also remarkably closed health insurance inequities

google.com/amp/s/www.usne…

Which before the ACA - were literally deadly for black and brown populations

Again, for everyone who has been not standing by the ACA for the past eight years for not going far enough, try getting that part back when we lose it

The ACA particularly protected middle and low income populations in blue states - which are about to get decimated because large segments of the population will lose health insurance

Again, try getting that back when we lose it

The ACA also lowered prescription drug costs and protected against medical bankruptcies. Now - there will literally be no one negotiating on your behalf

For everyone who did not stand by the ACA, now it’s your turn to tell us how we get that back when we lose it

Too many ppl on all sides - have been willing to let the ACA fail rather than building on these essential and existential protections.

So now the trick is, what’s your plan? I personally would suggest fighting tooth and nail to save the ACA

Because what comes next —— will make it highly cost effective and LEGAL To not cover you when you get sick or help you pay for your medications

And if you think that’s going to be enough to get everyone to rally to the side of demanding healthcare...well, i’ve got a book I think you might want to read

Before #ACA #SCOTUS, uninsurance rates were 33% for Latinx, 32% for Native Americans, 20% for Black Americans. A remarkable 46.5 million people lacked basic health care coverage – nearly 18% of the entire nonelderly population of the country @USNewsHealth usnews.com/news/healthies…

Meanwhile *we are in a pandemic**. Florida reported 2,521 new #COVID cases on Sunday, according to the Florida Department of Health. Since the pandemic began, 13,296 Florida residents have died from the virus cnn.com/world/live-new…

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