Obamacare, As Seen from the Diabetes Trenches
Longtime type 1 Jacob Padilla could be a case study on how healthcare reform is a two-sided coin with pros and cons, but how I think it's more of a benefit to people with diabetes. This 38-year-old in New Mexico had his wallet out and was ready to buy. Diagnosed at age 12, he's lived his entire adult life without health insurance... until now. Thanks to the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) and the abolishment of the practice of pre-existing conditions historically leading to automatic coverage denials, Jacob is now able to purchase his first health insurance plan. While the plans he could choose from were breathtakingly more expensive than he was led to believe they'd be, he was philosophical about it. He was not only willing and able to pay the steep premium, he was eager to do so. "I was just happy there was going to be options, you know, regardless of cost. I was happy to be able to have something, just to have the opportunity to have health cove...