Lay out replacement first

I’ve had a cough for over two weeks. I bought over-the-counter medications and a humidifier to try to treat it at home, because, with the holidays, the wait times at urgent care were three-plus hours.

After a week, I finally went to urgent care, was diagnosed with bronchitis and given a prescription for a cough suppressant. Except it didn’t work. So, two days later, back to urgent care I go for an inhaler and an antibiotic.

I work for a small nonprofit, and my employer does not offer health insurance. If it wasn’t for the ACA and subsidies, I would not be able to afford coverage. Without insurance, there’s no way I could have afforded my urgent care visits and prescriptions.

I’m lucky. I understand insurance plans enough to be able to choose a good one when purchasing on the marketplace. I can afford to buy OTC medicines. I can afford the co-pays for my urgent care visits and prescriptions.

The ACA isn’t perfect. But repealing it now with just a promise to come up with something better later isn’t the solution. A real replacement plan needs to be put forward before there are any repeal votes.

Tara McAloon

Spokane