Garrett Mitchell

The Republic | azcentral.com

Medical professionals and Affordable Care Act supporters lined the sidewalk along Camelback Road near the offices of U.S. Sens. John McCain and Jeff Flake on Saturday afternoon to express their disbelief and disappointment in federal efforts to repeal the health-insurance measure.

Supporters said the possibility of losing insurance granted through the ACA, widely referred to as "Obamacare," is a matter of life or death.

Carrying homemade signs and chanting to passing motorists, about 85 people, including doctors, registered nurses and ACA participants, gathered to share stories of how the program has shaped their lives. Dressed in scrubs and white lab coats, several health-care professionals shared their take on what the ACA means for their patients and the future of medicine.

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"This is something that affects everybody. In the end, the vast majority of the population is in favor of the Affordable Care Act and what it's done," said organizer Dr. Quinn Snyder. "As an emergency physician, having more insured patients means better outcomes for our patients and potentially in the long run, fewer emergency-room visits."

Phoenix's Healthcare Professionals Protest was part of more than a dozen similar events held around the country Saturday. The national effort was aimed at health-service workers advocating for the retention of the act.

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President Donald Trump and numerous Republican members of Congress have vowed to overturn the 2010 federal health-care law, saying it is not effective. Trump and others have promised it will be replaced with a better program but have so far provided no details.

Earlier this week, USA Today reported a Kaiser Family Foundation survey indicated Obamacare is more popular than ever. Supporters on Saturday said the program is vital and they hope to convince Arizona's senators of that.

"We'd like them to take action against the repeal of the Affordable Care Act, which, if repealed, will result in the loss of 43,000 people annually," Snyder said. "People need to realize what the ACA has done for this population."

Fellow organizer Julie Pace, a registered nurse, said it feels like a "stab to the heart" when she hears about efforts to dismantle the program.

"Why don't we save our health care, keep it and improve it, instead of wasting money and destroying people's lives?" Pace said. "(Health care) is a right. It is a need to survive."

She said lawmakers should listen to people who wouldn't have insurance without the ACA, including those with pre-existing medical conditions.

'Please don't kill my sister'

Patricia Cox stood at the edge of the curb clutching her sign, "Please don't kill my sister. Save the ACA!" Dressed in all black, Cox's heartfelt approach drew attention from passing cars who honked in support.

Cox spoke of the immense amount of stress her sister, who has ovarian cancer, faces with the uncertain future of the ACA. Cox said she's frightened by the possibility that her sister, a freelance writer, will be unable to find private insurance due to her pre-existing condition and the amount insurance has already paid out for her care.

"I spent Election Night at her house and just watched her get more and more terrified as she saw the results coming in," Cox said. "People who have cancer don't need this kind of stress to worry about how they're going to pay for their treatment."

Cox said it is literally a matter of life and death for many.

"A lot of people don't seem to realize that," she said. "If you take Obamacare away, my sister will be dead in a year."

Nearby, retired nurse Yvonne McLellan held an American flag and a sign stating, "I am not a paid protester." The sign was in reference to recent allegations from Trump and some Republican Congress members that individuals were being paid to show up and protest. Arizona state lawmakers repeated the rumor this week as the Senate passed legislation to toughen state laws against protesters.

McLellan called the ACA a starting point that should be improved upon, not something to be discarded and replaced.

"I was so pleased and happy when we had Obamacare, and it's just an important part of my life, my family's life, and probably all Americans'," she said. "People don't realize they have no idea what they're doing if they're supporting the repeal of the ACA. It is so needed in this country. People will be dying without their health care."