Joe Dodson

WASHINGTON (CN) — When Virginia-based small business owner Laura Packard was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer, she relied on the Affordable Care Act marketplace to pay for her chemotherapy.

“The Affordable Care Act saved my life,” Packard said during a press conference Monday. “I am one of the millions of Americans that is terrified of opening the mailbox and getting the sheet of paper that will say what my premiums will be next year.”

Virginia congressional Democrats Bobby Scott, Jennifer McClellan, Don Beyer, Suhas Subramanyam and newly elected James Walkinshaw joined Packard in advocating for a permanent extension of enhanced premium tax credits.

“As a cancer survivor, I have to pay it. I cannot go without health insurance,” Packard said. “Lives are at stake.”

Congress expa

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