ObamaCare Continues To Hurt Missourians

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (Nev.) recently took to the Senate floor and said, "There's plenty of horror stories being told [about ObamaCare]. All of them are untrue. But they're being told all over America."

Every day, Missourians contact me to share their stories about the real impact of this flawed law. And almost every week, I have gone to the Senate floor to read directly from the hundreds of letters, emails, and calls that I've received from Missourians who continue to say ObamaCare is hurting them.

John from Farmington, Mo. said: "Our firm has a group health plan covering 100% of our staff, and members may also elect to include family members. Our broker has informed us that we will be facing a 50% increase in premiums when we renew in 2014... Our firm is profitable but this increase will make a substantial reduction in our bottom line. Our 2014 budget has no capital improvements planned due to this increased cost. I feel like we have always tried to be a good citizen and to be an employee and family friendly company. This attitude is one of the factors that has helped make our country great and our company and community successful. It seems that Obamacare is trying to punish this type of attitude and behavior."

Mary Ann from Scott City, Mo. told me: "I have had continuous health insurance coverage for over 36 years without any lapses. Now that I have cancer, my Missouri government has deemed it necessary to cancel my health care coverage effective 12/31/13. I am forced to go to the marketplace and pay more for coverage that doesn't allow me to use the doctors I have trusted for years."

And William from Desloge, Mo. wrote: "My wife had to have a pacemaker installed three years ago. She has been very dutiful to follow all the follow up procedures... she called to set up a follow up checkup on the pacemaker and we were told that the hospital no longer will provide those services. When she pressed them as to 'why' they were no longer going to provide the checkups, they finally stated that due to the budget constraints placed on them due to the Affordable Care Act, they had to stop a lot of their programs and the pacemaker follow up was one of those programs. Now instead of being able to keep her doctor and deal with people that she knows, we are going to have to choose some place in the St. Louis area. Instead of driving 10 miles, we are going to have to drive a minimum of 60 miles or more to someplace in St. Louis."

These and other Missourians are being hurt by President Obama's health care law. Does Leader Reid truly believe Missourians are making up these stories?

It's time for us to work together to repeal ObamaCare and replace it with common-sense health care solutions that put people in charge of their coverage -- not Washington officials like Leader Reid, who thinks these "horror stories" are all "untrue."