Government Healthcare Policy, Business and Technology

Trump's Vow to Repeal Health Law Revives Talk of High-Risk Pools

The New York Times: Joanne Fitzgerald was getting divorced and was stressed out. When stomach pain kicked in, she saw a doctor to have it checked out.

That was her mistake.

The doctor diagnosed a mild form of gastritis, an inflammation of the stomach lining, and recommended some over-the-counter medicine. But when the divorce became final, in 2008, she lost health coverage from her husband’s employer, and insurer after insurer refused to cover her because of the condition. She was finally offered a policy that excluded coverage for anything related to her gastrointestinal tract.

“I thought I was being smart in going to the doctor and getting checked out,” Ms. Fitzgerald, 55, who currently lives in Washington, D.C., said recently. “Then I tried to go get insurance and everyone denied me.”

Her fortunes changed under the Affordable Care Act, the major health law signed by President Barack Obama that required insurers to cover pre-existing medical conditions. She was one of the millions of people who jumped at the opportunity and bought a policy available under the new law.

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