How President Obama's Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Affects Me

I have been following coverage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act closely because it directly affects me. I suffer from a lack of smell (anosmia) and an altered sense of taste (dysgeusia) caused by using over the counter Zicam nasal solutions. Without the ability to smell or taste properly I get food poisoning often. This requires a lot of necessary and urgent trips to Emergency Rooms. Emergency Rooms are the most uncomfortable and expensive hotels you can find. Last year I was grateful to only require one trip to the ER, but it still ended up costing $400+ the aftercare medication. Since I am so often sick I need medical insurance, or I would go broke quickly. This being the case I fear leaving my employer because I may be unable to get coverage for my existing conditions of anosmia and dysgeusia. I also know I cannot afford coverage outside my employer.

I currently have Aetna PPO through my employer, and they to not exclude me for any conditions. I worked as a Customer Service Rep (yes those bastards you talk to when you need to know your coverage) for Wellpoint's Lumenos Brand of consumer driven healthcare. I know how coverage varies from one employer to the next even under exactly the same plan. Now as a 25 year old with plenty of time ahead of me I don't need to worry about medical coverage when seeking employment. If I even wanted to quit my job and become a full time freelance writer I could be covered under the government plan.

I even have the choice, thanks to the Sec. 2301, to go back under my parents insurance until I was 26 years old. I could save a lot of the money I'm spending below or pay off the debt I have from college. Sec. 2301 extends the prohibition of lifetime limits and prohibits pre-existing condition exclusions so I can work where ever I please. I often thought about my lifetime limit and as a Customer Service Rep I saw many normal people hit their limit due to accidents, unforeseeable conditions, or simply a lot of bad luck. You just simply don't have insurance after a preset amount often much less than $2,000,000.

My body is also covered in benign tumors of fatty tissue called lipomas. I've had them for years, but now many of them are growing large and painful. Also just the cosmetic considerations that go into have large lumps all over your body you can imagine I want them removed. I have not had enough money because of all my other illnesses to do so.

Here is a complete breakdown of my medical costs for 2009. I want you to keep in mind that this was a good year for me. Also all medical costs required payment at time of service. I needed an MRI and had to put it on my credit card and just recently finished paying for it.

2009 Insurance Costs

Aetna PPO Monthly- 59.14 x 12 = 709.86

Aetna Dental PPO Monthly- 10.97 x 12 = 131.64

VSP Vision Monthly- 4.39 x 12 = 52.68

So before I even got sick in a year it cost me 894.18 to be ensured with medical, dental, and vision.

2009 Healthcare Spending Out of Pocket

Doctors (including Co-pay) - 1006.11

Dental - 65.10

Vision - 20.00

Pharmacy (Not including over the counter) - 285.00

Over the Counter Medication (Guestimation) - 150

So my total out of pocket cost was 1526.21 for 2009. Bring my total healthcare costs to 2420.39, which isn't a great deal of money, but again this was a good year. I would like to see these costs go down under the new Act, but really I just want choices and regulation.