For a lot of people, the choice in Tuesday’s presidential election is more philosophical and ideological than practical, meaning that many of the issues they vote on don’t personally affect them.
Ideologically, it should be no secret to readers which side I prefer. I’m voting for Harris because I cannot fathom elevating someone to the office who incited an insurrection. I’m voting to protect whatever is left of bodily autonomy for women. I’m voting to save Ukraine from Russian conquest and block Putin’s efforts to reestablish the USSR and threaten our NATO allies. I’m voting for a bi-partisan agreement on immigration policy. I’m voting to end the slander and demonization of the LGBTQ community. I’m voting to prevent economic policies that would crater our economy (mass deportations and punitive tariffs).
But there is also one personal, overriding reason I am voting for Kamala Harris, a reason that likely applies to many of you as well.
In January of 2021, my wife, Tess, was driving home from a business trip when she suddenly became dizzy and light-headed. After pulling off the road for a while, she drove to an urgent care center and was told to go directly to the hospital emergency room.
Doctors there discovered a ruptured heart valve that had filled her lungs with blood. Left untreated, she would have died in a matter of days, she was told. She had a heart-valve replacement surgery and spent almost a month in the hospital as doctors worked to address other serious issues caused by the heart-valve rupture.
The heart valve will have to be replaced between now and 2031, she was told.
If Donald Trump and Republicans in Washington have their way, when that day comes that valve replacement won’t be covered by her health insurance.
One of the things the Affordable Care Act achieved, beyond providing health insurance for millions of people who could not afford private insurance or whose employers don’t provide them with health insurance coverage, is a requirement that forbids private health insurance companies to deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions. It also prohibits companies from making those with pre-existing conditions pay higher premiums.
Since 2021, Tess is one of those people, and she will be as long as she lives.
During the Trump administration, a Republican effort to end the ACA in 2017 failed by a single vote when John McCain broke ranks with his party.
Trump has targeted the ACA again, and House Speaker Mike Johnson said this week that Republicans will work with Trump to end the ACA if he is elected. Johnson said he’s worried about the effect of the ACA on “the job creators and entrepreneurs and risk takers.”
I’m worried about my wife’s health and our future.
Clearly, one of us has misplaced priorities.
Killing the ACA would mean that health insurance companies could – and most likely would – deny coverage to those with pre-existing medical conditions or jack up premiums that would make them prohibitively expensive.
That’s the way the free market that Trump and Johnson embrace works.
Tess and I are not wealthy people. Paying for the heart valve replacement surgery she will need, estimated to run between $80,000 and $200,000, would put us in a difficult financial position.
I suspect everyone reading this has a loved one who would be in the same boat.
So, in the simplest terms, I’m voting for Harris because I love my wife, care about her health and don’t want to be buried in medical bills we cannot afford to pay. As far as I’m concerned, “the job creators and entrepreneurs and risk takers” can pound sand if that’s what it comes to.
Presidential elections come and go and life goes on.
Not this time. Not for me and not for Tess. The stakes are far too high. This time, it’s personal.
Is it any less personal for you and your family?
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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