Rep. Harris is a no-show for Affordable Care Act town hall at Harford Community College
"You work for us, we pay your salary, if that opportunity is afforded to you and your family members, why is that it's not afforded to us and our family members?"
The meeting, which was held in a Darlington Hall lecture hall that seats 180 people, was organized by
The congressman, whose
A card with the words "reserved for
Lewis noted Harris had a recent town hall where constituents could ask questions by conference call -- he called the
The audience was standing-room only in the lecture hall, and more people were outside the room in the hallway. The forum lasted approximately three hours.
More than 4,500 people participated in the Teletown Hall, plus Harris has hosted more than 60 in-person town halls during his time in office,
The congressman plans to host more town halls once a replacement to the ACA is before
"Unlike what happened in 2010 when the ACA was written behind closed doors, when its replacement is ready to come before
An audio recording of the Teletown Hall is available online at https://vekeo.com/event/congressmanharris-30966.
The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, which was championed by former President
The act includes a requirement for Americans to purchase health insurance, if they do not get it through an employer or other federally-subsidized programs such as
"Coverage prevents the burden of financially devastating medical care," said panelist
Ehlenberger works for Seedco, a "connector entity" for Maryland Health Connection that serves residents of
She stressed later that she was not speaking as a representative of Maryland Health Connection or Seedco, but as a private citizen "sharing my knowledge."
Other panelists included
He spoke about the deadly epidemic of heroin and opioid addiction that has gripped
He praised the former patients who have become passionate donors, but he also noted the ACA has made it possible for people of lesser means to get treatment for addictions.
"There are people in every community, young adults who are dying every day, and they need help," he said. "Things will only become worse if the ACA is repealed or replaced with something less."
According to the
Callan talked about her clients who fear losing coverage for mental health treatment, which is available under the ACA.
"The current policies putting the ACA at risk will impact mental health across the country and across
Sciabarra said about half a million Marylanders have coverage through Obamacare, that the cost of providing hospital care to people without insurance declined by
She acknowledged complaints that many Americans have about Obamacare's shortcomings.
"There are plenty of things that can be done to make markets more stable, make premiums more affordable across the board," she said.
The audience also heard from two people who have coverage for themselves and their children through Obamacare.
"The ACA saved my life, and it continues to provide my children and myself with health care that dramatically increases our quality of life," she said.
"This program has helped small businesses, it's helped families, it's helped young women, and I'm not going to get an answer out of our congressman as to what's going to be done to maintain that," she said.
Caption Bryan and
Bryan and
Bryan and
Caption Residents speak out at Affordable Care Act town hall meeting
About 200 people came out to
About 200 people came out to
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