Monday, January 16, 2017

Office of the Speaker

H-232 The Capitol
Washington, D.C. 20515
Dear Speaker Ryan:
I am compelled to write you because, although I have been a loyal member of the Republican
Party for nearly a decade, my confidence in the Partyspecifically, the uncertainty regarding its
stance on the future of healthcare in the United Statesis wavering. Like so many Americans, I
believe the Affordable Care Act is fundamentally flawed and is a disservice to the constituencies
represented by the men and women elected to office. This is, of course, not entirely the fault of
the Republican Party. The Affordable Care Act is primarily a vehicle of the Democratic Party
and I am hopeful that this underwhelming legislation will be improved upon in the near future.
In the interim, however, I am incredibly troubled by the Republican Partys unmethodical
approach to repealing the Affordable Care Act without any genuine semblance of resolution for
the ramifications of such a repeal. I am fortunate to begin law school at Indiana University
beginning later this year. I only mention this because I was diagnosed with Relapsing-Remitting
Multiple Sclerosis in February 2016, and prior to my diagnosis and subsequent treatment, I
would have been unable to aspire to such a lofty goal. Without the Affordable Care Acts preexisting condition provision, I could be subject to losing my access to treatment for this disease.
If I am no longer able to receive treatment, I will be much more susceptible to relapses and will
likely not be able to reach the goals I have set for myself. More importantly, not receiving
treatment will shorten my life expectancy significantly.
The Center for Disease Control estimates that one out of two Americans has an illness that
qualifies as a pre-existing condition. I am sure many of these people are your constituents and,
like myself, I am sure they would be incredibly interested in learning of a health care plan that
doesnt involve imprecise sound bites and canned speeches. Without a concise plan to replace
the Affordable Care Act and protect people like myself and many others, the Republican Party
may not be pulling the proverbial trigger on its electorate, but it is certainly buying the gun.
I hope that by the time this letter reaches you, a replacement for the Affordable Care Act will
already be implemented and necessary protections will remain in place. If such a replacement
does not occur and existing safeguards are no longer in place, however, I am confident the
Republican Party will witness an exodus within its base and will struggle to maintain its
stronghold in Washington.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and I am hopeful you will guide the House of
Representatives in a way that benefits those whom elected you into your position. You are in a
position to achieve a nearly limitless amount of success for the United States, and it is my hope
that you avoid using that power to strip away provisions that protect my quality of life and the
quality of life of a majority of Americans.
Sincerely,

Matthew Buck