More Reasons to Say Thanks this November

By Julia Eisman, HHS New Media Communications Director. Crosspost from Healthcare.gov

Every day we receive letters, emails, tweets and Facebook messages from people around the country that have been touched by the health care law – like a parent whose child is no longer denied coverage due to a pre-existing condition or a senior who has received a 50% discount on prescription drugs.

There are a lot of ways that the law, signed 20 months ago, has provided significant relief to families throughout the country, easing worries and ensuring that focus is on health, not on fighting with insurance companies over the phone. Chances are, someone in your family is seeing new rights and benefits.

In the spirit of Thanksgiving, during the month of November on our Twitter and Facebook pages we’ll be highlighting these benefits and sharing some of the stories we’ve heard from people around the country who have been helped by the law. We also want to hear from you, so we encourage you to tell us your story about how you’ve been helped by benefits in the law. Share on Twitter with the hashtag #ThanksHCR. You can find us on Twitter at: @HealthCareGov.

To give you an idea, here are a few new benefits we have thanks to the health care law:

Thanks to health reform, insurers cannot deny coverage to children due to pre-existing conditions.

Thanks to health reform, preventive services will be available for millions for free.

Thanks to health reform, being a woman will soon no longer be considered a pre-existing condition.

Thanks to health reform, people with Medicare get discounts on prescription drugs and a free annual wellness visit, AKA more time with their doctor.

Thanks to health reform, young adults under 26 can stay on their parents’ health insurance.

Thanks to health reform, insurers can no longer raise rates with no accountability.

Thanks to health reform, insurers must spend most of your premium dollar towards your health care instead of on advertising or big CEO salaries. If they don’t, they must provide refunds to you.

And the list goes on…

Many of the items in the law are common-sense provisions that end the worst insurance company abuses. From new consumer rights like appealing denied insurance claims, to new benefits like prescription drug rebates for Seniors, there are a lot of reasons to be thankful.

Join us on Twitter this November in saying thanks and share your story.

Go to @HealthCareGov, and let’s get started!