Upon watching the “Sick Around America” and “Sick Around the World” videos and reading more about the current healthcare system in the United States, it is obvious that the healthcare system in the United States is broken. I definitely think there is a lot we can learn from other countries, such as Japan, and the ACA is certainly a step in the right direction and in the next several years, we can see the results of it.

First, I’ll start with a personal anecdote. I am very fortunate that as someone under the age of 26 I can still remain on my mom’s health insurance plan, which is through her employer. Similar to the story that Dr. Palmiter shared in her blog, my mother’s price for health insurance for my family increased this year. Because my mom is still paying for her own student loans from getting her doctoral degree, she is still paying a mortgage on her home as well as a car payment, and the increased cost of healthcare for my dad who has Parkinson’s disease, it is not easy for her to pay more for our health coverage. Upon reading Your Health Plan Changing? Employers, Insurers Largely to Blame, I had a little more perspective on the reasons why this happened. Just as Dr. P said in her post, I am going to have to wait and see if anything changes in the next few years until I make my judgment on the ACA’s cost to my family. And though it may not seem beneficial to me as an individual at this moment, I know that many other people are really benefitting from its implementation. I also know that if I am unable to find a job that offers health benefits after I turn 26, I will be thankful for having more affordable health coverage available to me if needed.

In thinking of my own story, the profile of the 23-year old in “Sick Around America” stood out to me. He would have benefitted from the change in law that allows young adults to remain on their parents’ health insurance until the age of 26 instead of ending coverage at the time they graduate college. As jobs are difficult to find for someone fresh out of undergrad, particularly jobs that offer health benefits, this policy change was incredibly needed. This guy may have been able to pursue a career in something he was passionate about and not had to settle for his current job in order to have health benefits.

One of the stories from “Sick Around America” that will certainly be changed by the Affordable Care Act is Paul Stephens, the man who lost his job and was left without health insurance. Due to his pre-existing conditions such as heart problems and diabetes, the private insurance turned him down for coverage. Under the ACA, no one can be denied coverage due to any pre-existing conditions (Healthcare.gov). His story is one that I found very frustrating and devastating. It is crazy that the cost of healthcare is so high that someone would have to sell all of their belongings, file for bankruptcy, and relocate their lives due to their medial bills. According to the “Sick Around America” documentary, around 700,000 Americans go bankrupt due to medical bills every year. This number is staggering and a huge red flag for the cost of health care as well as the number of Americans uninsured or underinsured.

Though I am convinced that the Affordable Care Act is going to do more good than harm, I still have a lot of questions. For example, I am hearing from friends and acquaintances that it is going to be hard for them to afford the mandated health coverage. Some of them are deciding to pay the penalty and remain uninsured because they claim the cost will be lower than paying for the costly insurance. Of course, it leads me to wonder how they will pay for medical bills if they were to have a medical emergency. Will they end up like Paul Stephens who was forced to file for bankruptcy due to hospital bills?  I definitely think that the ACA will become clearer once the “kinks” are worked out and we can see the changes over time and people’s doubts may turn into hopefulness.