How Thousands of Us Benefited from Obamacare Before he was Sworn In
In January 2009, before Obama had even been sworn in as President of the United States, he saved me. He passed a health care legislation clause that is so sparsely detailed online that I’m having trouble finding a single source. But trust me, friends, this is real news. It really happened.
Let me take you back… Remember hope? We had just elected a president that came from humble beginnings, had a legitimate education, was a solid family man, liked sports and dogs… seemed like a really good guy? He had a funny name but we let that slide. Barack Obama.
That version of Obama that saved me. After his final State of the Union address on January 12, 2016, I finally wrote (emailed via whitehouse.gov) him a thank you card. Seven years later.
And he wrote me back. Via White House letterhead.
Here’s my email. Note that the second paragraph references the opening of “Dreams from My Father,” Obama’s 2007 memoir.
Dear Mr. President,
I have been wanting to write this letter for over six years. It is the story of how you directly impacted my life, and is something that I look back on with a great impression.
2008 started off amazing for me. I was a 28 year old guy living on the upper east side, just south of that unnamed, shifting border between East Harlem and the rest of Manhattan. My Giants had just beat the undefeated Patriots in the Super Bowl, and I started my new job working for Wenner Media. I would become intimately familiar with your face gracing several Rolling Stone covers. It was a great year… until signs of the recession took hold.
2009 started off much worse. My first day back to work would be my last day with a full time job for the next eighteen months. My rent was $1600 a month and New York State unemployment paid just about the same amount.
And then there was my health care. I will never forget HR telling me in my exit interview the following words: “COBRA is typically around $480 a month, but President Obama passed a law saying that anyone laid off during the recession will pay only $180 a month.” I almost didn’t believe it. I just didn’t understand how the very day that I got knocked on my ass, you were there the soften the fall. You weren’t even inaugurated yet! And throughout 2009 and into 2010, you continued to renew the law, and I continued to reap the benefits.
Since then, I’ve read hundreds of politics articles, commentary etc. and seen you fight off an astounding number of foes, both domestic and foreign. But not once have I read you boasting in any way about the actions you took with COBRA for those affected by the recession. And maybe that’s what makes you such an exceptional president.
I cannot thank you enough for being there for me. I still live on the upper east side too, and if you have a chance next time you’re in town, It would be great to grab a beer. Although to be honest there are likely much more deserving people in our military, something that I am eternally grateful for (could not leave that thought out!).
I wish you best of luck in the future…
Thanks,
Joe Esposito
Here’s Obama’s response, less than three weeks later:
I’m trying really hard to not juxtapose this whole interaction with our current administration (update: I wrote this during #45). Just the tone of this letter and the knowledge that this is how Obama really is… no words. I went through a lot of hardships while ‘campaigning’ for a new job all over NYC. If you’ve been through it, you can probably empathize.
Need a little Obama nostalgia? Here’s the preview to his 2016 SOTU:
About the author — Hi there, I’m more of a long form writer. Specifically screenplays for films and TV. None of which are on Netflix, Amazon, Hulu — ahem, they’re actually nowhere other than in PDF form. Check out my screenwriting profile here if you’re interested.
-Joe Espo
