The Affordable Care Act Turns 2: Help Tell the Story that #HealthCareWorks

This Friday, March 23rd marks the two-year anniversary of the Affordable Care Act. All across the country, advocacy groups will celebrate the law with educational events to help tell the story that #HealthCareWorks.

As the law heads to the Supreme Court on March 26th, we need to tell the stories of the millions of Illinois residents who are benefiting from the law. Taking away these benefits will have a disastrous impact – especially on seniors, women, young adults, children and small business owners.

Here in Illinois:

• More than 1.3 million Illinois seniors received free preventative care including mammograms and colonoscopies in 2011.Nearly 2.4 million Illinoisans with private health insurance gained coverage of free preventative medical care with no co-pays.
• 144,226 people on Medicare saved more than $96 million on prescription drugs because of the new law.
• 1,962 Illinoisans who were denied health insurance now have coverage through the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan.
• A growing number of small businesses offering health insurance are taking advantage of new tax credits allowed under the law.

This week, you can help spread the word that health care works and real people would suffer if the Affordable Care Act is scaled back or repealed. Use #HealthCareWorks on Twitter to share stories and statistics that demonstrate how the law has already helped provide better care and lower costs. Write a letter to the editor. Send a message to your representatives in Congress. We can’t afford to go backwards when it comes to better, more affordable health care.

Angela Benander
Know Your Care Illinois