25-Year-Old on Obamacare Repeal: 'I Will Die. That Is Not Hyperbole. I Will Die.'
Americans aren't letting the Republican party repeal the Affordable Care Act without a fight.
At a town hall meeting Wednesday night, Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton—one of Obamacare's biggest foes—faced tough questioning from his constituents about what will happen to the health care law. Katy McFarland, a 25-year-old from the Ozarks, gave a stirring defense of the ACA, saying if it were to be repealed, she would die.
McFarland has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, a disorder that, before the law was passed, would have precluded her from coverage as a pre-existing condition. She said,
Without the coverage for pre-existing conditions, I will die. That is not hyperbole. I will die. Without the protections against lifetime coverage caps, I will die. Without the Obamacare exchange health care plan that I have elected to continue after my Cobra that is going to kick in after I turn 26 this coming Sunday, I will die.
McFarland asked Cotton if there would be a plan in place to avoid coverage gaps "the second the repeal goes through."
Cotton responded, "I'm committed to, after repealing Obamacare, to health care reform." He then tried to change the narrative, saying, "everyone in this room has been hurt, or helped, by Obamacare," after which he was booed by the crowd. McFarland responded that she had "only been helped."
Another woman told Cotton that her husband has dementia and relies on Medicare. “I’ve got a husband dying. And let me tell you something. If you can get us better coverage than this, go for it," she said.
This latest impassioned testimony to hit the web follows Senate Leader Mitch McConnell and Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley facing tough questions this week and earlier this month, Tennessee Rep. Diane Black got an earful from a constituent.