Washington, D.C. — As the Trump administration continues to threaten the Affordable Care Act (ACA) in the federal courts, the Center for American Progress Action Fund is releasing a new video in a social media campaign to educate Americans on what is at stake for the millions of Americans who have access to health care under the law.
The campaign is telling stories of Americans such as Toni Danchik, a music teacher from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania, whose 10-year-old daughter Christine has Down syndrome. Danchick worries that if the Trump administration is successful in its efforts to dismantle the ACA, she will no longer be able to afford health care coverage for Christine’s medically complex needs. As Danchick says in the video, President Trump’s ongoing efforts reveal a clear disconnect between the administration’s agenda and the priorities and needs of everyday Americans.
“I would love for Trump to live one day in our shoes—to see what it is like to have a child with Down syndrome,” Danchick said. “I would like him to realize that a typical American household, we need the Affordable Care Act to stay secure, to live our lives.”
Last year, after making dozens of failed attempts to repeal the law, the Trump administration backed a 20-state lawsuit seeking to overturn the entire ACA in the courts. Despite these facts, President Trump has continued to falsely claim that his administration is taking steps to protect Americans’ access to health care. The Trump administration even announced late last year that it would propose a change to benefit eligibility requirements for the Social Security disability insurance program, which would jeopardize benefits for children with disabilities such as Christine.
According to The Washington Post, the administration has stalled on all plans to write an alternative to the ACA should it be successfully repealed or struck down. Danchick said that President Trump seems preoccupied with his own interests rather than the interests of the 20 million Americans who would lose health care coverage and the 135 million others who could lose protections for preexisting conditions if the ACA is repealed.
“I think he’s interested in more money, more love, more attention … He should have values and be willing to help regular people,” she said. “I try to live day to day but you can’t help but to think what could happen to health care and what could happen to her. I hope the ACA is here to stay because she really does need it.”
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