Colleen Tommins Leard, a 58-year-old living in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, understands the health care system from both sides. She trained as a surgical technician and spent years working in the operating room. Today, she works as a consultant in educational settings, helping hospitals partner with schools and contributing to legislative efforts related to health care. But […]
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Nancy Weaver, North Carolina
Nancy Weaver lives in Ashe County, North Carolina, in the far corner of the state where Tennessee and Virginia meet. She is a fiber artist and weaver who has spent her career making shawls and dish towels, and she has spent much of her adult life navigating the health care system without insurance. In 2008, […]
Andy Keith, Kansas
Andy Keith is a 26-year-old resident of Wichita, Kansas who depends on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace to manage her complex medical conditions. As a teenager, she was diagnosed with two autoimmune diseases, Graves and Hashimoto’s, and a thyroid imbalance. Up until last year, Andy was covered by her parents’ private plan. Now, she […]
Anne Marie Schneider, North Carolina
Anne Marie Schneider lives in Durham, North Carolina, and has spent more than three decades working across nearly every corner of the health care system. She is an occupational therapist with a hand specialty certification and has worked in hospital systems, private clinics and now her own clinic. Over the past 35 years, she has […]
Renee Arnold, Pennsylvania
Renee Arnold, a 56-year-old Pennsylvanian, has spent her entire career supporting people with disabilities. She began her work with children with special needs and now supports adults in a group home. Renee also lives with cerebral palsy, a condition she has navigated since birth. Her husband, Matthew, is also disabled. As she describes, he is […]
Amy Barley, Maryland
Amy Barley lives in Maryland and works as a digital marketing professional for the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange, where her work directly intersects with her personal experience. Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age 10, Amy has spent more than three decades managing a chronic condition that requires constant vigilance. Her journey with diabetes has […]
Steve Ramirez, South Carolina
Steve Ramirez describes himself as a nomad. Born in Nebraska, he spent his life moving from state to state for work, living in Texas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, and even Beijing before finally settling with his family in South Carolina. Trained as a mechanical engineer and later working as a product manager, Steve built a […]
Lori Lay, North Carolina
Lori Lay and her husband have lived in Pittsboro, North Carolina, where they have spent 30 years in this community raising three children and running two small businesses. Lori owns a childcare center, and her husband runs a landscaping company. Like millions of self-employed families, they rely on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplace for […]
Jen S., Arizona
Jen S., a former teacher in Arizona, has always prioritized staying insured and maintaining her health. She grew up with a mother who was a nurse, and for most of her life she had stable employer-sponsored coverage through her teaching job. That stability began to unravel after she left the classroom. Jen had taught in […]
Wayne Riley, Colorado
For two years, Wayne, a 56-year-old living in Colorado with his wife, relied on marketplace insurance to protect their health, and their finances. Their monthly premium of $690 was high but manageable. That all changed when Wayne, a self-employed commercial cleaner, contacted his insurance agent to ask about the upcoming year. Wayne had heard rumors […]