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The Faces of Health Care: Regina M.

Summary: 
Before the Affordable Care Act, Regina was paying almost $700 a month for her insurance. After the law was passed, she found that her insurance would only cost her $318 a month.

"I remember breaking down in tears because no longer was I going to be punished for a disease I never asked for."


By the time she was 25, Regina -- a social worker from Philadelphia -- had already battled cancer twice and had undergone numerous surgeries. Before the Affordable Care Act, she was paying almost $700 a month for her health insurance. She was working multiple jobs, delaying getting her master’s degree, and put off her wedding with her fiancé because of the exorbitant insurance costs.

After the law was passed, however, Regina was able to find insurance with prescription coverage for only $318 a month.

“Because of you and your bravery to fix a broken system,” she wrote in a letter to the President, “I am finally able to breathe and relax for the first time since 2009.”

Now, Regina is considering going back to pursue her master’s degree, and is finally planning her wedding.

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