Senator John Thune

Each month, I receive dozens of emails and phone calls from people all across South Dakota struggling under the weight of ObamaCare’s broken promises. From dropped coverage to higher premiums and deductibles, ObamaCare is placing a tremendous financial burden on South Dakota families.

For several months, I have been calling on South Dakotans to share their ObamaCare stories with me. If you have wondered if people around the state are actually being impacted by this disastrous law, look no further than the stories below. While I’ve received more than I could possibly put in this column, I wanted to share a few with you.

One couple from eastern South Dakota contacted me to let me know their premiums would be going up nearly 60 percent due to ObamaCare. Their new, more expensive coverage includes both maternity benefits and pediatric dental and vision care due to the new mandates placed on all health care plans that require these services be covered. This is especially frustrating because as a couple in their late 50s and early 60s they are not in need of these services and instead, have lost important services such as prescription drug benefits and office co-pays. They estimate that this new, “improved” coverage will cost their family an additional $5,000 per year.

Another family from eastern South Dakota wrote me to let me know that their monthly premiums would be jumping 232 percent. The young, healthy family has always chosen to purchase coverage with a sizeable deductible to keep the monthly premium at an affordable rate. They had been using the money that would otherwise be spent on premiums to save for a bigger house for their growing family. However, this spike in their monthly health care premium may prevent them from making that move to accommodate their family’s needs.

One woman from eastern South Dakota contacted me to let me know that her monthly insurance premium would be increasing by over 100 percent. This has left her in quite a bind, as the new cost of coverage amounts to nearly 45 percent of her monthly income.

Another man from western South Dakota wrote me because his monthly premium was rising $440.00 a month, a nearly 69 percent increase. What’s more, this same gentleman’s deductible will be rising more than $1,400.00 to $5,000.00. He wrote me, “I feel the federal government has stolen over $5,000.00 a year from me.”

Thank you to those who have shared their stories with me. I will continue to fight to repeal this broken law and replace it with common sense solutions that actually lower the cost of care and allow Americans to keep the insurance they like.