Editor, Gazette-Journal:

Six years ago I was a healthy adult, taking pretty good care of myself and enjoying athletic pursuits. Then I had a heart attack, followed by a chronic neurologic problem. As I already had a pre-existing condition—as defined by the insurance company due to a back injury long ago—I was pretty much stuck with whatever my present insurance company wanted to charge me, since changing policies was not an easy option in that circumstance.

Over time, my insurance policy increased in cost until I was paying over $1,300 per month, along with deductibles and co-pays on medical care and pharmaceuticals. Altogether, it was possible for my health insurance costs to be as high as $34,000 per year due to these charges. In my situation, it is easy to hit the maximum out-of-pocket expense for my insurance policy. Given that, I was definitely looking forward to the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

I was able to get online and compare policies ...