Zoom and Facebook Live conference with Virginia Organizing leaders who will be harmed by SCOTUS overturning the ACA
What: Media conference on Trump SCOTUS pick and the ACA
When: Tuesday, September 29 at 12 p.m. (noon)
Where: Zoom meeting and Facebook (contact us for more information)
Richmond, Va. — Virginia Organizing will hold a media conference tomorrow, September 29, at 12 p.m. via Zoom to hear personal stories of what the Affordable Care Act (ACA) means for Virginians. President Trump’s efforts to rush a new anti-ACA justice to the Supreme Court in the wake of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s death, during a pandemic, puts the health of millions of Americans at risk.
SCOTUS hears California vs. Texas, the lawsuit to end the ACA, on November 10. Nominee Amy Coney Barrett criticized Chief Justice Roberts for his 2012 decision to uphold the law, saying he “pushed the Affordable Care Act beyond its plausible meaning to save the statute.” There is every reason to assume she will vote to overturn the law.
State Governing Board member Ebony B. Guy of Danville will lead the conference. Virginia Organizing members who have benefited from the ACA will speak about what will happen to them if it is overturned. The loss of all the provisions of the ACA could result in 741,000 Virginians losing their health care coverage.
“People in my situation who would lose Medicaid Expansion are going to die,” said Terry White, a member of the Norfolk Chapter. “Without the ACA, we wouldn’t have access to getting medical treatment or medications that we need. I’ve been working on healthcare issues for 10 years. This issue impacts me personally. The new Supreme Court justice could undermine everything I’ve worked for, especially with preexisting conditions and being on a fixed income. If I have to pay out of pocket for prescriptions, it would cost at least $3,000 a month.”
Liz Zavala of Harrisonburg has also received health care coverage because of the ACA. “I am 21 and because of the Affordable Care Act I can stay on my parent’s health insurance five more years. The ACA means peace of mind while I’m trying to get through college,” Zavala said.
Donna Marie Emmert of Abingdon also spoke of her pre-existing conditions that would make it difficult to get insurance without the ACA. “I am a 61 year old woman, underemployed and uninsured for YEARS until Obama made ACA available for Americans like me. I have asthma/bronchitis and inhalers make the difference between being able to live a relatively normal life or staying home and not breathing very well. If the ACA bites the dust, then so do I. I am more than sick and tired of this administration trying to snatch this away from me and people who are a helluva lot sicker than I am. We need national health care!”
Tim Jost, a member of the Harrisonburg Chapter of Virginia Organizing and nationally recognized health care expert, will also be present to answer questions about the history and importance of the ACA. Jost commented, “The ACA is not just the preexisting condition ban. It is integral to our entire health care system.”
To interview a spokesperson about this event, contact Rosemary Gould at 434-962-7261 or rosemary@virginia-organizing.org.
