Tour rallies Affordable Care Act supporters in Las Cruces

Feb. 15--LAS CRUCES -- Mary Nuñez says she owes her life to the Affordable Care Act.

Born with a congenital heart disease, Nuñez told a group gathered Wednesday in the parking lot of Thomas Branigan Memorial Library that she was able to undergo a live-saving, open-heart surgery in 2015 because of the ACA, the federal health care law enacted in 2010 that President Trump and congressional Republicans have vowed to swiftly repeal.

"The ACA literally saved me," said Nuñez, a massage therapist who lives in Las Cruces.

When she was told she needed surgery, she wonder how she would pay for it.

"Thankfully, the Affordable Care Act took care of that," she said, noting that the cost of the procedure, including tests, came out to about $120,000. And she'll likely need additional surgeries in the future, she said.

Her message to lawmakers on Wednesday was "repair" the health care law, not repeal it.

"This law has given me a second chance at life," she said.

Nuñez was among a group of about 20 people who gathered in support of the ACA. The gathering was part of the nationwide "Save My Care" bus tour.

The two-month, 12-state tour began last month in Washington, D.C., according to organizers. The tour made two stops in New Mexico on Wednesday, beginning in Las Cruces. It then headed to Albuquerque for an afternoon rally.

"Save My Care" estimates that 30 million Americans are at risk of losing health insurance if the ACA is repealed. The Rev. Warren Robinson, of the African Methodist Episcopal Church in Alamogordo, said an estimated 266,000 New Mexicans would lose health coverage, citing data from the Urban Institute.

"That's just wrong," he said during the Las Cruces rally

Robinson also called on lawmakers to improve the law.

"It's not perfect -- none of us are perfect," he said. "But to throw it out -- the baby with the bathwater -- makes no sense. We should come together, and take time and take some thought, to repair what's wrong and increase what we already have."

Other speakers included District 1 City Councilor Kasandra Gandara, Lucas Herdon of ProgressNow New Mexico and representatives for U.S. Sens. Tom Udall and Martin Heinrich, both D-N.M.

Udall's statement, read by Melanie Goodman, noted that congressional Republicans have not put forth an alternate plan to replace the ACA. "The threat of repeal with no replacement has created enormous uncertainty for Americans in the marketplace and in state legislatures," Udall's statement said.

"My office has received hundreds of calls and emails from New Mexicans who are scared, really scared they will lose their health insurance," Udall's statement continued. "They are frightened that need medical care will be taken away from them, their children, their grandchildren and their elderly parents."

In his statement, Heinrich said an ACA repeal would limit health care access in rural areas of New Mexico and have damning impacts on the state's fragile economy.

"Not only would it have dramatic effects on health coverage, it would also shake our state's economy to its core," Heinrich said in the statement, which was read by Cynthia Hull. "Health care jobs were one of the only bright economic spots in New Mexico over the past few years, particularly in rural communities."

Speaking after the rally, Nuñez urged others who support the ACA to reach out their representatives. "Share your story, you count," she said. "The government and Congress works for you, and we deserve better."

On his website, U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., said he is "working to reverse the government takeover of health care."

"Finding affordable health care is a major concern for families in Southern New Mexico," Pearce's website statement reads. "But a massive government-run health care system is not the solution. Repealing the current government takeover of medicine is only one step -- more work is still needed. I want to see careful, specific legislation that will fix individual problems with health care."

Carlos Andres López can be reached 575-541-5453, carlopez@lcsun-news.com or @carlopez_los on Twitter.

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