On the recordMarch 23, 2017
The GOP health repeal bill rips coverage from 24 million Americans. So I ask my colleagues: Can you imagine what it is like to gasp for air, your chest tightening and your lungs burning from asthma, worrying that you might black out because you cannot get enough oxygen? This week a constituent of mine from Fort Lauderdale told me: Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, I am finally able to breathe. The ACA dropped her asthma medicine costs from $600 per month to $10. Without the ACA, she cannot afford to breathe. Can you imagine your medication within reach but you can't afford to use it? If you take your medicine when you need it, if you help yourself breathe now, you can't afford it next month. As you jog up the Capitol steps for this vote today, as you take for granted every easy breath you take today, think about your constituents who rely on their health care for their next breath and vote ``no.'' ____________________
