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Two years ago, Stephanie Olais ended up at the hospital where doctors told her she was experiencing a dangerously high sugar level. “They told me my your sugar level was 757,” she said. “I could’ve gotten into a diabetic coma.” Olais was immediately transferred to the Phoenix Children’s Hospital where she received treatment and was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, meaning her body does not produce insulin. From then on, she has had to take two types of insulin every day.  “The medicine is not cheap,” she said. “It’s like $3,000 a month, and my parents don’t make enough to pay for that.” The 19-year-old college student said she recently started working but doesn’t make enough money to pay for the insulin either. Thankfully, the health insurance she has through AHCCCS covers it. “Without this health insurance, I probably wouldn’t be alive,” she said. “I wouldn’t be able to afford the cost of my medication, and I really need it.” She said a day without insulin could cause her to have increased thirst, headaches, fatigue and blurred vision. She said she hopes lawmakers who are considering cutting funding to programs like AHCCCS will consider the impact that would have on people like her.

By the time Stacey Lihn’s daughter Zoe was 6 months old, she had already had two open-heart surgeries. The first one was at 15 hours old and the second was at 4 months old. Zoe was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a congenital heart defect.  Her surgeries and medical care were covered by a private insurance, which was provided through Stacey’s employer. But the insurance plan had a lifetime cap on coverage and Zoe was close to reaching it. “She was nearing her lifetime cap as an infant,” Stacey said. “When you have a cap of $1 million or even $5 million on a child who requires a heart surgery as an infant and then a lifetime of care to follow and potential transplant, it goes fast.” Then came the Affordable Care Act. Stacey said she felt a big relief when the law was approved because it got rid of lifetime caps. She said, “Having no more lifetime caps means Zoe will be able to have a lifetime of care and quality care, and we won’t go bankrupt.” Stacey shared how the Affordable Care Act impacted her daughter’s life in a speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2012. Joined on stage by her husband and Zoe, she praised the healthcare law for “saving my daughter’s life.” A few months after the speech, Zoe had her third open-heart surgery. Stacey said knowing there no longer was a lifetime cap on Zoe’s insurance coverage helped relieve some of the stress and anxiety she and her family faced when Zoe had her third open-heart surgery. Today, Zoe is a healthy 6-year-old. But Stacey faces a new concern. She’s afraid that changes to the Affordable Care Act by members of Congress could have an impact on her daughter’s healthcare coverage. “My message to members of Congress would be to try to put themselves in the shoes of patients and families and really think about it from a different perspective,” Stacey said. “If their daughter were Zoe, what would they like to see in the ACA replacement plan? Would they really want continuous coverage to be the end-all, be-all? Would they want their child to be in high-risk pools? I’m certain that they would have a very different answer if they had a dose of empathy.”

Corinne Bobbie and her husband knew their daughter Sophia would require extensive medical care even before she was born. Doctors told them she’d be born with complex congenital heart disease and heterotaxy syndrome.  Sophia spent her first two weeks of life in the pediatric intensive care unit and had surgery at 6 months old. She required additional medical procedures in her first few years of life, which were covered by the health insurance she had through AHCCCS.  “Without it, it would’ve been impossible to get the medical care she needed,” Corinne said, referring to the AHCCCS health insurance. “I don’t know that she’d be here today if we didn’t have insurance like we did throughout this entire time. We would’ve never been able to afford any of these things.” To keep Sophia’s healthcare coverage, the family had to make some sacrifices. Corinne said she couldn’t work and her husband had to take a pay cut at work so that they wouldn’t go over the income requirements to qualify for AHCCCS and later for KidsCare. That put a strain on their finances. “We got so far behind in our bills,” Corinne said. “We had to put things on credit cards. After that first year, we lost our house to foreclosure.” Corinne said even if they tried to get a private health insurance, they likely couldn’t get one because of Sophia’s pre-existing condition. Plus, they worried about the lifetime spending caps in private health insurance plans – Sophia reached her cap at 3 years old. But everything changed once the Affordable Care Act was in place. “When the Affordable Care Act rolled out, it was like the heavens had opened up and the angels sang,” Corinne said. “It was amazing because now, all of a sudden, we had a choice. We had never had a choice before. We had never been given any options.” “We could finally get Sophia her own health insurance without having to worry about a lifetime cap or a pre-existing condition, which are huge concerns for a child like her,” she added. Now, at 8 years old, Sophia has health insurance through the marketplace, which covers her doctor visits and medication. She’s the only one in the family who’s insured. The rest of the family, including Sophia’s 6-year-old brother, is not insured because the family can’t afford it.  Still, Corinne said she and her husband feel at ease knowing that their daughter, who requires the most medical care, has healthcare coverage.

Toni Bannister is a two-time cancer survivor. She was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer in November 2001. A month later, she was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer.  “It was a hell of a Christmas that year,” she said. “I went through a lot of surgeries, a lot of chemotherapy and radiation.”  The treatment worked and she became cancer free. But then the construction industry went under in 2009. Toni had worked within the construction industry for more than 30 years. She was faced with a difficult decision: feed her children or pay for health insurance? She chose to drop her insurance. For three years, she went without coverage and without key cancer screenings. “I spent over three years of not knowing whether I had active cancer in my body or not,” she said.  That all changed when the Affordable Care Act rolled out in 2013. Toni immediately signed up for health insurance through the marketplace. “For me, the Affordable Care Act meant I was able to go back to seeing a doctor, seeing an oncologist, having my screenings and having my colonoscopies,” she said. “These tests are imperative to my survival.”

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In December 2011, Georgina Morineau woke up to the realization that her marriage of 30 years was over. Her children’s father, the main breadwinner at the time, was gone, leaving her to care for their then 14-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son alone. She only had $3 in her bank account and was unemployed. 

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With no money and no job, Georgina worried that she wouldn’t be able to provide for her children. But with the help of a community assister and several non-profit organizations, she was able to get the assistance she desperately needed. She and her children received food and housing assistance, as well as health insurance through AHCCCS. They used their health insurance for routine medical care and for family counseling, which Georgina said her children needed to cope with their father leaving.   Soon enough, the family started to get back on its feet. Georgina got a full-time job, and her children began to improve their grades in school. When Georgina’s income increased, her children no longer qualified for health insurance through AHCCCS but they did through KidsCare. Fast forward five years, Georgina can now afford health insurance on her own. “AHCCCS and KidsCare were the foundation of our healing,” she said. “It brought us back to where we needed to be. My children are happy, they’re healthy and they’re doing great in school. I have a job that I love. I’m able to support myself and contribute to my community. And I’m very fortunate that I’m in a job where I’m able to pay it forward.”

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Natalia Beltran's four children have gone without health insurance for two years. But that’s about to change. She recently enrolled her children for KidsCare at an event hosted by Cover Arizona in December. She said getting approved for KidsCare means that she and her husband will be able to take their children to get medical care. She said ever since her children's coverage through AHCCCS was dropped two years ago, she has been hesitant about taking her children to see a doctor because of the high costs. "Now that my children will be able to have health insurance again, I won't have to think twice about taking them to see a doctor," she said.

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Angie Garcia is a single mother of three children. She works for Adelante Healthcare helping families determine if they’re eligible for assistance programs. She works full-time but can’t afford health insurance. The good new is that her children have free healthcare coverage through AHCCCS, which she describes as “a blessing.” She uses the healthcare coverage to take her children for doctor check-ups and dentist visits. She said it makes her feel at ease to know that her children have health insurance. “It’s awesome to know that my children are insured,” she said. “I don’t have to worry about what I would do or where I would take them if they got sick.”

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Angelica Espinoza has four children, three of which have health insurance through AHCCCS. Her youngest daughter, age 4, has a heart murmur that causes her to have rapid heart rate. She also has scoliosis. Thanks to the AHCCCHS health insurance, Espinoza’s daughter has been able to get treatment and therapy to help with her conditions. “If we didn’t have this health insurance, it would affect us a lot,” she said. “My husband doesn’t have a steady job. My son doesn’t make a lot of money, so we wouldn’t be able to afford health insurance. My daughter has a lot of needs that we wouldn’t be able to pay for if we didn’t have health insurance.”

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Gabriela Parra is a single mother of two boys with special needs. Her 15-year-old son, Pablo, has free health insurance through the state’s long-term care system because he has autism. Though her 11-year-old son, Javier, also has autism and ADHD, he hasn’t qualified for long-term care. As a result, Gabriela had to pay for her youngest son to have a private insurance. However, Javier recently got qualified for free health insurance through AHCCCS, which Gabriela said was a big relief because she had been struggling to pay the insurance co-pays.

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“With AHCCCS, I’m not having to worry about whether or not I’m going to have enough money to pay for medical bills,” she said. “I’m a single parent. I’m the sole provider for my boys, so this takes a lot of stress off my shoulders.”

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My son is almost 11 years old and is an only child. We adopted him when he was 19 days old, still in the intensive care unit at the hospital, waiting for any family to adopt him. It wasn't until 3 months later that we were told that he has severe brain loss--might never sit up, talk, walk, etc.  In terms of his medical needs, he requires a wheelchair, and other equipment to assist with walking, standing, showering; hearing aids; diapers probably for life; weekly therapies for speech, fine and gross motor skills. He sees specialists for orthopedic and neurological deficits. He requires periodic surgeries to correct muscle and bone atrophies that happen to children with cerebral palsy. Read More

Health insurance under AHCCCS has had a big impact in the lives of Paulina Serna’s three children. Her 8-year-old son, Luis, was born with spina bifida and has been able to get all his medical needs covered under the AHCCCS program for long-term care patients. Paulina’s two daughters also benefit from health insurance under AHCCCS. They were approved for coverage in September. As a result, Paulina and her husband were able to take their 8-year-old daughter, Luis’ twin, to get tested for kidney reflux, a kidney disease she was born with. Paulina’s daughter was due for a test three years ago. But because Paulina and her husband didn’t have the money at the time to cover the cost of the test, they skipped it. The recent test results showed Paulina’s daughter suffers from high blood pressure and doctors are now testing for possible kidney ailment.  -Paulina Serna

Camilla Parker and her husband are the adoptive parents of three children. The family has private insurance, but it doesn’t cover all of their children’s medical needs, including their 14-year-old son’s behavioral health needs. Camilla’s children also have health insurance through AHCCCS. It covers what the private insurance doesn't. That includes doctor check-ups, dentist appointments and medication. Camilla said that without AHCCCS, her son's ability to get behavioral health coverage would be limited. “I may not have been able to adopt my son if these services weren’t available, because our private insurance doesn’t cover everything that we need for his behavioral health needs,” she said.

For Jaclyn Larson, caring for her son became a primary focus after he suffered a traumatic brain injury during a car accident several years ago. He was 2 years old at the time. The injury left him cognitively and physically disabled. He’s now 8 years old and is very medically-involved. He sees numerous specialists throughout the year. Jaclyn is able to cover her son’s medical needs thanks to the health insurance he has through the Children Rehabilitative Services program, which is offered through AHCCCS and is designed for children with complex healthcare needs. “It would be devastating if we didn’t have this health insurance, which also covers for him to get rehabilitative services, like therapy, and he’s doing so much better because of it,” she said.

Ray Cruz is a healthy 21-year-old studying at Arizona State University. But a few years ago, he realized how important it is to have health insurance even for healthy, young adults like him. He was 19 when he got sick and had to go the emergency room. He was given medication and then sent home.  Three weeks later , he got a $12,000 bill in the mail. Cruz was shocked because he didn’t think he’d be charged for the emergency room visit.  Read More

Martha Garcia finds comfort in knowing that her 10-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son have health insurance through AHCCCS. She uses the insurance to cover their vision, hearing and dental screenings. Martha said she wouldn’t be able to afford those visits if she didn’t have health insurance and had to pay out of pocket. She’s a single mother who works cleaning houses. “Not having health insurance through AHCCCS would be very difficult for me,” she said. “I would have to find a private insurance, and with the money I currently make, I don’t think I would have enough to pay for it.”

Hiloon Subillie is a pastor of a Marshallese church in Tucson. He and his wife recently got health insurance through the marketplace, while his children got coverage through AHCCCS. His church held an event in January to help its members apply for health insurance. Hiloon said having health insurance will be beneficial for his church members, especially those whose health was affected by the nuclear tests that the U.S. government did in the Marshal Islands between 1946 and 1958. “This is something that is really important for the Marshallese, because most of the sicknesses that most Marshallese have are coming from the testing that [the U.S. government] did in our islands,” Hiloon said.

David Bautista just met the deadline to sign up his 19-year-old son, who has cerebral palsy, for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace this year. He signed up on January 31, giving him a sense of relief to know that his son’s medical appointments and prescriptions will be covered. Bautista was able to sign up for health insurance through the marketplace with the help of an assister from Keogh Health Connection. “I feel at ease to know that if my son gets sick, I can take him to see a doctor,” he said.

Two years ago, Stephanie Olais ended up at the hospital where doctors told her she was experiencing a dangerously high sugar level. “They told me my your sugar level was 757,” she said. “I could’ve gotten into a diabetic coma.” Olais was immediately transferred to the Phoenix Children’s Hospital where she received treatment and was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, meaning her body does not produce insulin. From then on, she has had to take two types of insulin every day.  “The medicine is not cheap,” she said. “It’s like $3,000 a month, and my parents don’t make enough to pay for that.” The 19-year-old college student said she recently started working but doesn’t make enough money to pay for the insulin either. Thankfully, the health insurance she has through AHCCCS covers it. “Without this health insurance, I probably wouldn’t be alive,” she said. “I wouldn’t be able to afford the cost of my medication, and I really need it.” She said a day without insulin could cause her to have increased thirst, headaches, fatigue and blurred vision. She said she hopes lawmakers who are considering cutting funding to programs like AHCCCS will consider the impact that would have on people like her.

Esther

Melissa

Paulina's Story

Makayla

Henry

Michael

By the time Stacey Lihn’s daughter Zoe was 6 months old, she had already had two open-heart surgeries. The first one was at 15 hours old and the second was at 4 months old. Zoe was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a congenital heart defect.  Her surgeries and medical care were covered by a private insurance, which was provided through Stacey’s employer. But the insurance plan had a lifetime cap on coverage and Zoe was close to reaching it. “She was nearing her lifetime cap as an infant,” Stacey said. “When you have a cap of $1 million or even $5 million on a child who requires a heart surgery as an infant and then a lifetime of care to follow and potential transplant, it goes fast.” Then came the Affordable Care Act. Stacey said she felt a big relief when the law was approved because it got rid of lifetime caps. She said, “Having no more lifetime caps means Zoe will be able to have a lifetime of care and quality care, and we won’t go bankrupt.” Stacey shared how the Affordable Care Act impacted her daughter’s life in a speech at the Democratic National Convention in 2012. Joined on stage by her husband and Zoe, she praised the healthcare law for “saving my daughter’s life.” A few months after the speech, Zoe had her third open-heart surgery. Stacey said knowing there no longer was a lifetime cap on Zoe’s insurance coverage helped relieve some of the stress and anxiety she and her family faced when Zoe had her third open-heart surgery. Today, Zoe is a healthy 6-year-old. But Stacey faces a new concern. She’s afraid that changes to the Affordable Care Act by members of Congress could have an impact on her daughter’s healthcare coverage. “My message to members of Congress would be to try to put themselves in the shoes of patients and families and really think about it from a different perspective,” Stacey said. “If their daughter were Zoe, what would they like to see in the ACA replacement plan? Would they really want continuous coverage to be the end-all, be-all? Would they want their child to be in high-risk pools? I’m certain that they would have a very different answer if they had a dose of empathy.”

Corinne Bobbie and her husband knew their daughter Sophia would require extensive medical care even before she was born. Doctors told them she’d be born with complex congenital heart disease and heterotaxy syndrome.  Sophia spent her first two weeks of life in the pediatric intensive care unit and had surgery at 6 months old. She required additional medical procedures in her first few years of life, which were covered by the health insurance she had through AHCCCS.  “Without it, it would’ve been impossible to get the medical care she needed,” Corinne said, referring to the AHCCCS health insurance. “I don’t know that she’d be here today if we didn’t have insurance like we did throughout this entire time. We would’ve never been able to afford any of these things.” To keep Sophia’s healthcare coverage, the family had to make some sacrifices. Corinne said she couldn’t work and her husband had to take a pay cut at work so that they wouldn’t go over the income requirements to qualify for AHCCCS and later for KidsCare. That put a strain on their finances. “We got so far behind in our bills,” Corinne said. “We had to put things on credit cards. After that first year, we lost our house to foreclosure.” Corinne said even if they tried to get a private health insurance, they likely couldn’t get one because of Sophia’s pre-existing condition. Plus, they worried about the lifetime spending caps in private health insurance plans – Sophia reached her cap at 3 years old. But everything changed once the Affordable Care Act was in place. “When the Affordable Care Act rolled out, it was like the heavens had opened up and the angels sang,” Corinne said. “It was amazing because now, all of a sudden, we had a choice. We had never had a choice before. We had never been given any options.” “We could finally get Sophia her own health insurance without having to worry about a lifetime cap or a pre-existing condition, which are huge concerns for a child like her,” she added. Now, at 8 years old, Sophia has health insurance through the marketplace, which covers her doctor visits and medication. She’s the only one in the family who’s insured. The rest of the family, including Sophia’s 6-year-old brother, is not insured because the family can’t afford it.  Still, Corinne said she and her husband feel at ease knowing that their daughter, who requires the most medical care, has healthcare coverage.

Colleen

Toni Bannister is a two-time cancer survivor. She was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer in November 2001. A month later, she was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer.  “It was a hell of a Christmas that year,” she said. “I went through a lot of surgeries, a lot of chemotherapy and radiation.”  The treatment worked and she became cancer free. But then the construction industry went under in 2009. Toni had worked within the construction industry for more than 30 years. She was faced with a difficult decision: feed her children or pay for health insurance? She chose to drop her insurance. For three years, she went without coverage and without key cancer screenings. “I spent over three years of not knowing whether I had active cancer in my body or not,” she said.  That all changed when the Affordable Care Act rolled out in 2013. Toni immediately signed up for health insurance through the marketplace. “For me, the Affordable Care Act meant I was able to go back to seeing a doctor, seeing an oncologist, having my screenings and having my colonoscopies,” she said. “These tests are imperative to my survival.”

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In December 2011, Georgina Morineau woke up to the realization that her marriage of 30 years was over. Her children’s father, the main breadwinner at the time, was gone, leaving her to care for their then 14-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son alone. She only had $3 in her bank account and was unemployed. 

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With no money and no job, Georgina worried that she wouldn’t be able to provide for her children. But with the help of a community assister and several non-profit organizations, she was able to get the assistance she desperately needed. She and her children received food and housing assistance, as well as health insurance through AHCCCS. They used their health insurance for routine medical care and for family counseling, which Georgina said her children needed to cope with their father leaving.   Soon enough, the family started to get back on its feet. Georgina got a full-time job, and her children began to improve their grades in school. When Georgina’s income increased, her children no longer qualified for health insurance through AHCCCS but they did through KidsCare. Fast forward five years, Georgina can now afford health insurance on her own. “AHCCCS and KidsCare were the foundation of our healing,” she said. “It brought us back to where we needed to be. My children are happy, they’re healthy and they’re doing great in school. I have a job that I love. I’m able to support myself and contribute to my community. And I’m very fortunate that I’m in a job where I’m able to pay it forward.”

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Natalia Beltran's four children have gone without health insurance for two years. But that’s about to change. She recently enrolled her children for KidsCare at an event hosted by Cover Arizona in December. She said getting approved for KidsCare means that she and her husband will be able to take their children to get medical care. She said ever since her children's coverage through AHCCCS was dropped two years ago, she has been hesitant about taking her children to see a doctor because of the high costs. "Now that my children will be able to have health insurance again, I won't have to think twice about taking them to see a doctor," she said.

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Angie Garcia is a single mother of three children. She works for Adelante Healthcare helping families determine if they’re eligible for assistance programs. She works full-time but can’t afford health insurance. The good new is that her children have free healthcare coverage through AHCCCS, which she describes as “a blessing.” She uses the healthcare coverage to take her children for doctor check-ups and dentist visits. She said it makes her feel at ease to know that her children have health insurance. “It’s awesome to know that my children are insured,” she said. “I don’t have to worry about what I would do or where I would take them if they got sick.”

Vanessa's story

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Angelica Espinoza has four children, three of which have health insurance through AHCCCS. Her youngest daughter, age 4, has a heart murmur that causes her to have rapid heart rate. She also has scoliosis. Thanks to the AHCCCHS health insurance, Espinoza’s daughter has been able to get treatment and therapy to help with her conditions. “If we didn’t have this health insurance, it would affect us a lot,” she said. “My husband doesn’t have a steady job. My son doesn’t make a lot of money, so we wouldn’t be able to afford health insurance. My daughter has a lot of needs that we wouldn’t be able to pay for if we didn’t have health insurance.”

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Gabriela Parra is a single mother of two boys with special needs. Her 15-year-old son, Pablo, has free health insurance through the state’s long-term care system because he has autism. Though her 11-year-old son, Javier, also has autism and ADHD, he hasn’t qualified for long-term care. As a result, Gabriela had to pay for her youngest son to have a private insurance. However, Javier recently got qualified for free health insurance through AHCCCS, which Gabriela said was a big relief because she had been struggling to pay the insurance co-pays.

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“With AHCCCS, I’m not having to worry about whether or not I’m going to have enough money to pay for medical bills,” she said. “I’m a single parent. I’m the sole provider for my boys, so this takes a lot of stress off my shoulders.”

Graciela's story

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My son is almost 11 years old and is an only child. We adopted him when he was 19 days old, still in the intensive care unit at the hospital, waiting for any family to adopt him. It wasn't until 3 months later that we were told that he has severe brain loss--might never sit up, talk, walk, etc.  In terms of his medical needs, he requires a wheelchair, and other equipment to assist with walking, standing, showering; hearing aids; diapers probably for life; weekly therapies for speech, fine and gross motor skills. He sees specialists for orthopedic and neurological deficits. He requires periodic surgeries to correct muscle and bone atrophies that happen to children with cerebral palsy. Read More

Health insurance under AHCCCS has had a big impact in the lives of Paulina Serna’s three children. Her 8-year-old son, Luis, was born with spina bifida and has been able to get all his medical needs covered under the AHCCCS program for long-term care patients. Paulina’s two daughters also benefit from health insurance under AHCCCS. They were approved for coverage in September. As a result, Paulina and her husband were able to take their 8-year-old daughter, Luis’ twin, to get tested for kidney reflux, a kidney disease she was born with. Paulina’s daughter was due for a test three years ago. But because Paulina and her husband didn’t have the money at the time to cover the cost of the test, they skipped it. The recent test results showed Paulina’s daughter suffers from high blood pressure and doctors are now testing for possible kidney ailment.  -Paulina Serna

Camilla Parker and her husband are the adoptive parents of three children. The family has private insurance, but it doesn’t cover all of their children’s medical needs, including their 14-year-old son’s behavioral health needs. Camilla’s children also have health insurance through AHCCCS. It covers what the private insurance doesn't. That includes doctor check-ups, dentist appointments and medication. Camilla said that without AHCCCS, her son's ability to get behavioral health coverage would be limited. “I may not have been able to adopt my son if these services weren’t available, because our private insurance doesn’t cover everything that we need for his behavioral health needs,” she said.

For Jaclyn Larson, caring for her son became a primary focus after he suffered a traumatic brain injury during a car accident several years ago. He was 2 years old at the time. The injury left him cognitively and physically disabled. He’s now 8 years old and is very medically-involved. He sees numerous specialists throughout the year. Jaclyn is able to cover her son’s medical needs thanks to the health insurance he has through the Children Rehabilitative Services program, which is offered through AHCCCS and is designed for children with complex healthcare needs. “It would be devastating if we didn’t have this health insurance, which also covers for him to get rehabilitative services, like therapy, and he’s doing so much better because of it,” she said.

Ray Cruz is a healthy 21-year-old studying at Arizona State University. But a few years ago, he realized how important it is to have health insurance even for healthy, young adults like him. He was 19 when he got sick and had to go the emergency room. He was given medication and then sent home.  Three weeks later , he got a $12,000 bill in the mail. Cruz was shocked because he didn’t think he’d be charged for the emergency room visit.  Read More

Martha Garcia finds comfort in knowing that her 10-year-old daughter and 9-year-old son have health insurance through AHCCCS. She uses the insurance to cover their vision, hearing and dental screenings. Martha said she wouldn’t be able to afford those visits if she didn’t have health insurance and had to pay out of pocket. She’s a single mother who works cleaning houses. “Not having health insurance through AHCCCS would be very difficult for me,” she said. “I would have to find a private insurance, and with the money I currently make, I don’t think I would have enough to pay for it.”

Hiloon Subillie is a pastor of a Marshallese church in Tucson. He and his wife recently got health insurance through the marketplace, while his children got coverage through AHCCCS. His church held an event in January to help its members apply for health insurance. Hiloon said having health insurance will be beneficial for his church members, especially those whose health was affected by the nuclear tests that the U.S. government did in the Marshal Islands between 1946 and 1958. “This is something that is really important for the Marshallese, because most of the sicknesses that most Marshallese have are coming from the testing that [the U.S. government] did in our islands,” Hiloon said.

David Bautista just met the deadline to sign up his 19-year-old son, who has cerebral palsy, for health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace this year. He signed up on January 31, giving him a sense of relief to know that his son’s medical appointments and prescriptions will be covered. Bautista was able to sign up for health insurance through the marketplace with the help of an assister from Keogh Health Connection. “I feel at ease to know that if my son gets sick, I can take him to see a doctor,” he said.

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