The Save My Care bus rolled into the Volunteer State this week to hear why Tennesseans are fighting to #SaveMyCare. In Tennessee, more than 526,000 people will lose their coverage if the Affordable Care Act is repealed.
On Monday morning, we headed to the Bluff City. Throughout our event in Memphis, one thing was clear: Tennesseans rely on the Affordable Care Act.
"If the ACA is repealed I will be kicked off of services that I depend on to live a complete life in our community."—Allison in Memphis pic.twitter.com/spRADc9obc
— Save My Care Bus (@savemycarebus) February 27, 2017
"We shouldn't be hidden from society. We're individuals who have a right to be part of our communities and be insured."—Sandy #SaveMyCare pic.twitter.com/pDIfKq9kXE
— Save My Care Bus (@savemycarebus) February 27, 2017
Tune in to watch the livestream from our stop in Memphis here.
We headed to Chattanooga on Tuesday morning—and despite the rainy day, folks came out to get a tour of the bus, share their stories, and fight back.
A little rain didn't stop folks in Chattanooga from coming out today to say #SaveMyCare. pic.twitter.com/VYrNOE131s
— Save My Care Bus (@savemycarebus) February 28, 2017
From there, we headed back north to Knoxville. We stopped at Scruffy City Hall to hear from teachers, health care professionals, and everyday Tennesseans. While we were there, we met Gray, a musician.
“I was born with an extremely rare skin disorder, which causes my skin to progressively tighten due to an overabundance of collagen.
Everyone has collagen—everyone needs collagen, but my body doesn’t know when to turn the collagen pump off. It’s like this body armor that is slowly, but surely taking away my mobility and drastically impacting my health. It reduces my circulation, impedes my lung functionality, and makes it painful for me to stand for long periods of time. There is no known treatment for my disease and eventually, I’ll suffocate to death from my own skin.
Before the Affordable Care Act was passed, I was deemed uninsurable. This law, specifically the provision that bans insurance companies from discriminating against people with pre-existing conditions, made it possible for me to get coverage. In January of 2014, I was able to get health insurance for the first time in my whole adult life.”
Watch our entire event in Knoxville here.
