Without the ACA, Razan Azzarkani would never have been able to access the mental health services she needed and, in an op-ed for US News and World Report, she argues that the Better Care Reconciliation would take away that access.
Repeal of the ACA would leave Ms. Azzarkani without insurance, but she also points to other aspects of the BCRA that could diminish access to mental health services. The bill's proposed roll back of Medicaid coverage would take away access to these services for many Americans, and the bill's allowance for states to back out of the essential health benefits of the ACA means insurers would no longer be mandated to cover services or treatments related to mental illness.
"I never reached out for help, partly because of the stigma surrounding mental health issues, but mainly because when I was finally ready to take the big step into therapy, I couldn't: I didn't have health insurance, " Ms. Azzarkani said. "In a time where mental illness is already stigmatized, access to healthcare should become easier, not more difficult."
This was pre-ACA? Did the article specify what mental health condition she has, or was there any more information about why she will be uninsured under BCRA? Those dots aren’t really connecting for me by what’s here.
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