Health care reform is needed now more than ever

I am lucky to have been on my parents’ health insurance my whole life. I would be able to do so until age 26, but my entire family will lose coverage in August.

Both my parents lost their jobs because of COVID-19. My mom was given a generous severance package that included a year of health care, which my family has been on for the past seven months. However, despite extensive searching, neither of my parents have found new employment, which means we will soon be uninsured.

As someone without a single full-time employer, my health care options are limited. My family does not qualify for Medicaid, and since I am currently taking time off school, I am not eligible for my university’s health insurance. Additionally, the added expense of health care on top of already exorbitant tuition fees can be crippling.

Unfortunately, I know I am not alone in this situation.

With many of my friends’ parents having lost their jobs the past year, and therefore, their health care, I am surrounded by individuals who are all stuck between the risky choice of remaining uninsured or the financial challenge of buying private or university-sponsored health care.

The health care system in the United States is broken, and its cracks have only been widened by the pandemic.

I am urging you to support better health care funding so that my family and thousands of families like mine will not be left uninsured during a time when health insurance is more important than ever.

Zoe Barley, Boulder