Political Quotes

“Mr. President, shown in this picture I have in the Chamber is Christina from Stratford, CT. She is a small business owner, and she has a story that is becoming pretty familiar all across the country. She left a job a couple of years ago that provided for employer-based health care, and she wanted to start her own business in Bridgeport, CT, right next to Stratford. So she stayed insured through COBRA for a period of time until it expired, and then she had to go out into the individual market. She recalls having to fill out a 15-page questionnaire when she was applying for individual coverage. She said it asked about ``anything that I had even remotely discussed with my doctor.'' Unfortunately for her, some of those things--preexisting conditions--meant that she was denied health care coverage. So she had to go into Connecticut's high-risk pool, which meant she was paying $1,200 per month. Anybody who has started up a small business from scratch knows that can be pretty prohibitive. Her salvation came through the Affordable Care Act. When it went into effect and Connecticut's exchange was established, she was able to find a plan that cost her $430 per month, which is frankly on the high end of plans but it was much more affordable than the one she had. She said: ``I'm thankful that there was a solution for me to be able to keep my business [and] have affordable health insurance'' that can't be taken away.…”