[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 48 (Monday, March 20, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E350-E351]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     TESTIMONY OF DOMENIQUE THORNTON ON THE POSITIVE IMPACT OF THE 
                          AFFORDABLE CARE ACT

                                  _____
                                 

                          HON. ROSA L. DeLAURO

                             of connecticut

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 20, 2017

  Ms. DeLAURO. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I enter the 
powerful words of my constituent, Dominique Thornton, who supports the 
Affordable Care Act and the protections it provides our most vulnerable 
citizens.

       ``Thank you Congresswoman DeLauro for giving us this 
     opportunity to tell you how essential the Affordable Care Act 
     is in our lives and what a difference it has made for us not 
     to be denied insurance coverage because of preexisting 
     conditions. First of all I want to remind everyone that the 
     full name of the law is the Patient Protection and Affordable 
     Care Act. One of the most important protections it affords us 
     is the protection not to be denied health insurance coverage 
     due to preexisting conditions. Why would Members of Congress 
     who represent the people of their districts ever seek to 
     repeal patient protections?

[[Page E351]]

  I speak today as a mother of an adult daughter who wanted to be here 
personally to tell her story but could not be and gave me her 
permission to share her story. I have been an advocate for mental 
health for the last 10 years because I found out that my daughter 
suffers from PTSD, chronic anxiety and depression as well as other 
psychological conditions as a result of sexual assault and physical 
abuse. One in five women experience sexual assault in this country. One 
in four has experienced domestic violence. Incredibly being the victim 
of sexual assault or domestic violence and the resulting psychological 
disorders are considered preexisting conditions by insurance companies 
for which they will deny coverage and consequently needed treatment. If 
a woman is brave enough to report the trauma, she will be denied 
coverage and treatment for it the next time she changes insurance if 
the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is repealed. If a woman 
is struggling in the aftermath of trauma and seeks treatment she will 
be penalized by being denied coverage for the conditions she suffers as 
a result of trauma the next time she changes policies if the ACA is 
repealed. Her diagnosis will be a part of her permanent health record 
which insurance companies will use to determine what they will cover 
and what preexisting conditions will be denied.

       Another patient protection that specifically protects women 
     and which will also be eliminated if the ACA is repealed is 
     equal cost for men and women. If the ACA is repealed 
     insurance companies will again be able to charge woman more 
     money for the same coverage as polices sold to men. It is 
     discriminatory that women earn only 80% of what men earn at 
     most but it is worse that they will also be charged higher 
     premiums than men for the same coverage through no fault of 
     their own except the immutable characteristic that they were 
     born female.

  Women are thus pushed farther and farther into poverty and their only 
choice is to access the public health system in Medicaid. With State 
dollars stretched thin and the federal government considering further 
cuts to Medicaid women's health will be further adversely 
disproportionately impacted. The wealthy insurance companies who would 
be required to cover women regardless of preexisting conditions at the 
same cost will be off the hook and the taxpayers will have to cover the 
cost of care through our tax dollars. If we the taxpayers are already 
paying to care for the sick, why don't we have a public option and use 
the leverage of large numbers. There are 24 million people now covered 
by the ACA today which can negotiate the cost of health care and 
prescription drugs down to a more affordable cost. The answers are 
there to bring the costs of health care down. Will Congress have the 
courage to stand up for what is right and seek solutions that are fair 
and equitable for the American people? Do not repeal the Patient 
Protection and Affordable Care Act. Make changes for the better such as 
using the buying power of large numbers to reduce costs.''

                          ____________________