Do you fall into one of the following categories: employer, employee, child, senior, someone who has medical insurance and then gets sick. Some of the new medical insurance reforms that started Thursday include the following. Small business employers, you get a 35 percent tax credit when you provide your employees with health insurance and may qualify for additional tax credits to cover retirees who have not reached the Medicare age of 65. Employees, some of you have not been laid off because of these benefits being provided to small businesses. Children, you can no longer be denied health insurance for a preexisting condition and children can stay on their parent’s health insurance through 26. Seniors, most of you if not all, received $250 to cover part of the Medicare doughnut hole which will be completely phased out by 2020; you, along with people who have insurance will not have to pay co-pays, deductibles or other costs for preventive care. Adults who have been playing by the rules and paying for insurance, you cannot have your insurance taken away just because you get sick or made an innocent mistake when filling out your insurance registration form. Finally, lifetime limits will now be eliminated and annual limits will be phased out.

We can all thank the president, our Minnesota senators and 1st District Rep. Tim Walz for keeping their promise to reform insurance. More still needs to be done (like a Medicare-like insurance for all). Most Republicans have already promised to repeal “Obamacare” if they take over Congress in January. We can stop this repeal and others by voting a straight Democratic ballot on Nov. 2 and beyond.

Patti Kimble

Emmons