Eileen & Barry Spickler: The Affordable Care Act Has Made It Possible for Us to Survive

After 15 years working as a government contractor for the Food and Drug Administration, Barry Spickler retired in June 2024. The budget for his contract was cut, and worsening health issues convinced him that returning to the workforce full-time wasn’t realistic.

“I felt my health issues were going to become a performance problem,” Barry said.

His remote role had allowed him to relocate from Maryland to Kansas, but when the contract required a reduction in staff, Barry’s inability to report in person at least once a week marked him for layoff. Today, his time is filled by running a guitar booth at a local antique mall and hosting a weekly jam session in Ottawa, Kansas.

Barry and his partner, Eileen, have weathered financial strain in the wake of his retirement. “We don’t really have anything in savings,” Eileen said. After paying off vehicles, moving costs, and extensive medical bills, the couple faced an unexpected $6,000 expense to replace their HVAC and furnace systems.

“We had to buy a whole new system,” Eileen explained. “It was just stuff like that.”

With Eileen on Medicare Advantage and Barry no longer receiving employer health benefits, they turned to the Affordable Care Act for coverage. Barry recalled his experience before the ACA vividly.

“As a government contractor, I was paying $700 plus per month for the company’s health insurance plan,” he said. “It was a very big bite out of my income.”

In June 2024, with the help of a broker, Barry enrolled in an ACA plan through Sunflower Health Plan. Sunflower Health Plan offers Ambetter health insurance plans on the Health Insurance Marketplace in Kansas, which are compliant with the ACA.  Although the experience with the broker was rocky and involved incorrect policy information and unreturned calls, the plan itself provided essential coverage.

“It’s considerably more affordable,” Barry said. But not without challenges. For example, the insurer required 12 physical therapy sessions before approving imaging for Barry’s back but only authorized 10. “It was just a nightmare,” Eileen shared.

Barry had previously gone a full year without insurance while dealing with chronic health conditions, including diverticulosis, IBS, arthritis, and complications from a Chiari malformation that required skull surgery.

Since enrolling in ACA coverage, Barry has undergone treatment for two kidney stones, one of them life-threatening, and received numerous MRIs, CT scans, and x-rays. “I’ve been blessed to have good doctors, and they’ve been covered,” he said.

That access would not be possible without the Affordable Care Act’s premium tax credits. Barry and Eileen receive more than $1,100 a month in subsidies, a level of relief that has been critical to keeping Barry insured. “The reduction in my premiums has made it so that it hasn’t been as much of a hit,” he said. With Social Security as his only income, the tax credits are what make the coverage even remotely affordable. Without them, they say, Barry simply would not have insurance.

For Eileen, the security those subsidies bring is as vital as the insurance itself. “It’s literally saving his life and mine because I have peace of mind,” she said.

Even so, the coverage has limitations. Some prescriptions are not covered, and Barry’s plan lacks dental, vision, and hearing benefits. These are services Eileen receives through her Medicare Advantage plan.

Though the APTCs substantially lower their monthly premium, financial strain remains, and the couple falls just over the income threshold for further assistance. They now rely on food pantries, a new and humbling experience. “For the first time, we’re having to deal with waiting in line for the harvesters or food pantries,” Barry said.

Through it all, Barry remains grateful. “The Affordable Care Act has made it possible for us to survive on as little as we have right now,” he said. “I have no complaints about the ACA, and I’m very grateful that it’s there.”

Eileen, a cancer survivor and trained social worker, has become a fierce advocate for health care policy and social justice. She co-founded the Franklin Community Action Network in Ottawa and regularly testifies on state legislation. She draws on both her academic knowledge and personal experience fighting for Barry’s care. Despite facing obstacles, from insurance bureaucracy to legislative indifference, Eileen continues pushing for reform with energy and expertise.

For this couple, the Affordable Care Act doesn’t just provide coverage. It offers stability, preserves their dignity and gives them the chance to keep fighting for each other and for a more just health care system.