My mother is having such a difficult time getting the quality care that she deserves at affordable rates, I need to see reform within the next couple years!

I have been suffering from a chronic illness since age 11. I am doing fine but mainly because of the constant care I receive from many specialist and medications, on a routine basis. This year they have doubled our co-pays for appointments and the cost of medicine is on the rise all of the time. Now I am expecting my second child in July and I have to go to the doctor every week and pay $40.00 co-pays for sonograms. Which I did not have to pay for with my first child. Because my husband's company is trying to cut costs we pay more for a plan... (more)

My daughter works very hard in a factory that assembles wires and circuitboards for the military and auto industry. She works very hard and at the moment needs eyeglasses and a trip to the dentist, however she does not receive any health insurance benefits from her employer. She is forced to let the problems worsen as a result. I've been there myself in past employment situations and have always failed to be self-employed because of the cost of health insurance. The bottom line is I'm disgusted by the fact that health insurance costs alone... (more)

i am a 47 year old single mother. i have not been to the doctor in 16 years. i am a floral designer working in small buisnesses health care is not offered. it was more important to make sure my children had what they needed. i made to much money to recieve medicaid but no where near enough to buy medical insurance.

Dear President Obama, I support your health care reform because I have a son who graduated college and due to the recession has not been able to find a job in his degree field. My son is without health insurance because we cannot afford the cobra premiums to keep him covered under my husband's health insurance policy. I pray that your health care reform passes so that my son and other individuals can have health care protection. Thank you for reading my response. Sincerely, Theresa Losani

I am tired of annual premium increases with declining benefits and getting less in return for my higher premium. As in doubling copays for specialists and xrays, especially when I my wife is living with several chronic diseases. I am priviledged to have insurance provided through my employer b/c I know many Americans have no insurance, but every year it feels less like a priveledge and more like a burden.

I HAVE A FAMILY MEMBER WITH A MENTAL ILLNESS AND IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO GET QUALITY CARE FOR HIM. ONE TIME HE WENT OFF HIS MEDICATION DUE TO THE EXPENSE AND IT TOOK ANOTHER TWO YEARS BEFORE WE COULD GET HIM TO TAKE HIS MEDICATION AGAIN. IN THE MEAN TIME HE AND THE WHOLE FAMILY SUFFERED WITH HIS ILLNESS NOT BEING MANAGED. UNDER MEDICATION HE IS A VERY PRODUCTIVE CITIZEN. HE JUST RECEIVED HIS SECOND ASSOCIATE DEGREE (CUM LAUDE)FROM OUR COMMUNITY COLLEGE. WHEN HE GOES OFF HIS MEDS HE REGRESSES SO BAD THAT HE HAS TO BE HOSPITALIZED WHICH IN... (more)

I was born and raised in England. After having my first child, I had serious complications and was in hospital for a month. When I came out, a nurse visited me every day at home to check up on me and my baby for weeks. How much did this cost us? NOTHING! There are problems with the National Health Service but at least no one lets a simple UTI, for example, become a more serious infection because being bankrupted by doctors' bills seems the worse of two evils. My daughter had no health care. She was a student and too old to be under my... (more)

i stand with the president

My healthy 29 year old son recently came down with pneumonia. He does not make enough money to afford the health insurance offered by his employer. This is a large bill that he also cannot afford. Please make health insurance affordable and available to all.

both my fiance and i are unemployed. we could not afford cobra coverage offered after our separation from our employer. it has been 6 months since we have had insurance. both of us have had to go without basic care and fore go prescriptions due to our lack of coverage. no one should have to sacrifice their health due to finances. the Canadians have managed to get universal coverage. their lifestyle is not so different from ours. why cant we????

I am a relatively healthy individual, but I rue the day a devastating or catastrophic puts me in the poor house. I currently have COBRA coverage and am paying astronomical rates just to maintain minimal high deductible coverage. I don't want to go to the doctor because I am unemployed and can barely afford it. If something is discovered to be wrong with me, the condition could be held against me as I try to land another job. Our current system is so terribly broken and has needed to be fixed more than 20 years ago. I am pleased to see a... (more)

I am a partner in a small business (9 employees) in Central New York. Recently, two employees resigned as we were unable to offer economic incentives to retain there employment (i.e. health insurance) due to the cost involved. The current premium under our family plan is $1202 per month and most of us have families. This cost has risen over the past 5 years so dramatically we no longer can afford to provide the full benefit to our employees. We are also forced to search for high deductible plans for ourselves due to the premium cost. My... (more)

I have a 25 year old son who works and yet cannot afford health insurance so he does not go to a doctor for anything. My 38 year old son just purchased insurance for himself and his wife but it only pays in the event something catastrphic happens. He is self employed and has three small children and one more on the way in November. Help would be wonderful for them.

Hi...I am 53yrs.old and had health insurance through my husbands company for 24yrs. I was a stay at home Mom with very little job stills. Then after 24yrs of marriage my husband left me and I lost my health care coverage. I do get the COBRA insurance for 18 months but the monthly cost for that is making me choose between the health care and food, so since I need my medications I have to pay the high priced COBRA. When the COBRA is finished I have no way to pay to go to my doctors and no way to obtain my subscriptions because of not being... (more)

Close friends of mine had a child whose was diagnosed with a very rare genetic disorder shortly after birth. The child's father is forced to stay in jobs that aren't right for him because they offer health insurance. Even with health insurance, the family has to come with over $30,000 a year for additional medical expenses. The family has had to move sell their home and move to a different state offering better medical services for their child. My husband and I have a two year old boy and a four month old boy. I thank God they are both... (more)

I have no personal story but believe affordable healthcare is a vitally important aspect of all our lives.

My friend Kath is a vibrant, very smart woman whose entire life has been altered by our inadequate and byzantine so-called "health care" system. She (and I) understand first hand why a single-payer universal health care system is not pie-in-the-sky -- it must be our ultimate goal if we are serious about health care reform. She has health insurance, yet it took every ounce of her fading energy to avoid filing personal bankruptcy. She was forced to move away from her beloved rural community to a city 120 miles away because of the lack... (more)

I feel that more privatization of health care is needed. The government should not be involved.

It has been a great disappointment. No mention of universal, one payer, health care, the least expensive and best coverage. Beyond that, I find it very difficult to find a way to let you and your folks know what we are thinking. We held three health care meetings in Auburn. All three voted unanimously for one payer health care. Our frustration is growing. Ken Mochel