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This Halloween, what's really getting Americans' skin to crawl?

Clowns, climate change, and nuclear war are all drumming up fears in the hearts of Americans — but apparently not as much as the prospect of losing health insurance.

Halloween masks of Donald Trump. Photo by Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP/Getty Images.

An annual survey by Chapman University found that many respondents considered "Trumpcare" to be some truly spooky legislation.

According to the study, which gauged how fearful respondents were on 80 different topics — ranging from crime and the environment, to personal anxieties and technology — Trumpcare was the second most-feared item on the list, behind only "corrupt government officials."

Out of the 1,207 adults polled across the U.S., 55.3% of Americans reported being either "afraid" or "very afraid" of the GOP's attempts to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare).

That's more than double the percentage of those who reported being fearful of sharks, public speaking, and even death itself.

Graphic courtesy of Chapman University.

Obamacare also made an appearance in the survey, although it's much further down the list. The current law of the land (which has helped provide health insurance to roughly 20 million people) still sends a chill down the spines of 33.9% of Americans. That figure marks a significant drop from last year — before Trump took office — when Obamacare was the 10th most feared item. Now, it's #29.

"The 2017 list of fears clearly reflects political unrest and uncertainty in the wake of Donald Trump’s election as president," the university noted, pointing to increased anxieties shared by many Americans on health care, nuclear war with North Korea, and the consequences of climate change.

What's so scary about Trumpcare?

The survey didn't ask respondents about why, exactly, any specific item gave them goosebumps. But it's not too surprising Trumpcare gives Americans the heebie-jeebies.

A jack-o-lantern carved into the face of Trump. Photo by Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images.

There've been multiple (failed) versions of health care legislation drafted by Senate Republicans — all vaguely falling under the term "Trumpcare" — with each one involving massive cuts to Medicaid and overhauling many of the protective provisions guaranteed through the Affordable Care Act. Every bill proposed would have resulted in tens of millions of Americans losing their health care coverage one way or another, CBO estimates found.

Frustrated with a flailing Congress, however, Trump is determined to dismantle the Affordable Care Act on his own. Earlier this month, the White House announced it was scrapping subsidies for health care companies that help provide insurance to low-income Americans. Without the federal government's help, premiums will likely spike, hitting poorer Americans hardest. The Trump administration is also hellbent on ensuring Obamacare enrollment drops, slashing budgets for advertising that notifies people in need of health care when they can sign up for Obamacare exchanges. Now that's spooky.

Clowns and sharks may fuel nightmares, but losing health care is what is really keeping Americans up at night.

Family

Julia Louis-Dreyfus shares her breast cancer diagnosis with a heartfelt call to action.

The 'Veep' star has an important message for her fans.

On Thursday, actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus announced via Twitter that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer.

Just 11 days after accepting her sixth straight Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series, the "Veep" star shared her diagnosis with the world.

— (@)

"1 in 8 women get breast cancer. Today, I'm the one," she wrote.

"The good news is that I have the most glorious group of supportive and caring family and friends, and fantastic insurance through my union," she added. "The bad news is that not all women are so lucky, so let's fight all cancers and make universal health care a reality."

Each year, an estimated 231,840 U.S. women will be diagnosed with breast cancer, and more than 40,000 will die. Early detection plays a huge role in reducing that number.

Breast cancer accounts for the second-most cancer-related deaths in U.S. women behind only lung cancer, according to the American Cancer Society. Regular screenings — self-checks and with a doctor — can aid in catching the cancer at its most treatable point, early on.

In her call to action, Louis-Dreyfus sounds optimistic, urging her followers to keep fighting so that others have access to the same care she'll be able to receive. While recent efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act have fallen flat, we are far from having "universal health care." 11% of women ages 19 to 64 in the U.S. don't have any form of health insurance. While that number has fallen since the ACA's implementation, it still means that millions of women are unable to access preventive care.

Thanks to a number of health centers around the country, such as Planned Parenthood, low-income and uninsured women aren't left completely out in the cold. Unfortunately, these groups are frequently under attack from political opponents.

Louis-Dreyfus's decision to share her diagnosis with her fans serves as a reminder that any of us can be hit by illness at any time — making the fight for universal care that much more important.

It's never a bad time to call your members of Congress and let them know that you want to live in a world where everybody has access to the same care she has.

We wish Louis-Dreyfus the absolute best of luck going forward.

Louis-Dreyfus accepts the Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series on Sept. 17, 2017. Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images.

An all-too-familiar scenario played out after the failed Trumpcare vote.

Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) tried to pull a fast one on America, putting crucial health care legislation up for a vote in the early hours of July 28. Unfortunately for McConnell and other supporters of the so-called "Skinny Repeal" bill, it was struck down in a dramatic moment with 51 senators voting against it.

"Trumpcare," at least in its current form, was dead.

Joining 48 Democratic and Independent "no" votes were three Republicans: Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Susan Collins (Maine), and in a dramatic last minute pivot, John McCain (Arizona).

From left, Murkowski, McCain, and Collins. Photos by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images.

Though Murkowski and Collins have maintained their opposition to the bill from the start, McCain has been getting what miiiiiiight be seen as a disproportionate amount of credit for killing it.

For example:

— (@)

Watching a man getting more credit than women for the same amount of work seemed a bit familiar to many Twitter users, who were quick to make sure Murkowski and Collins get the place in history they deserve.

After all, it was McCain's "yes" vote earlier in the week that led the Senate to the precipice in the first place while Collins and Murkowski were steadfast in their opposition. Collins and Murkowski spent the days in between the two votes getting threats from members within their own party while McCain received praise from the president himself.

McCain's decisive "no" vote on Friday places him solidly on the right side of history, protecting health care for millions of Americans, but watching him place his two votes was a bit like watching someone light a house on fire, help others put it out, and then get all the credit.

— (@)

In many ways, Collins and Murkowski's votes were tougher than McCain's. While Collins isn't up for re-election until 2020 and Murkowski until 2022, it's likely that they'll both seek it, meaning that this vote could come to define them for better or for worse. Additionally, President Donald Trump threatened to retaliate against Murkowski if she voted against the bill. McCain, on the other hand, now 80 years old and recently diagnosed with brain cancer, has probably run his last campaign.

Add in the fact that separate House Republicans appear to have half-jokingly threatened Murkowski and Collins in the past week, and it's clear that the senators won't exactly be seen as popular with certain segments of the party moving forward.

Beyond McCain, Collins, Murkowski, and the other 48 "no" votes, it's important to remember the real heroes of the health care fight: regular people doing extraordinary things.

Activists played a huge role in shutting down the effort to gut the Affordable Care Act that shouldn't go overlooked.

— (@)

The ACLU shared some stunning numbers from its push to stop the bill, noting that 89,000 supporters e-mailed members of Congress, made nearly 19,000 phone calls, and attended hundreds of in-person events.

— (@)

And organizations like disability rights activists ADAPT kept sustained pressure on senators of all stripes to do the right thing.

Three of our tough women leaders of Atlantis ADAPT (Denver, CO) in DC at the Senate healthcare vigil at the US Capitol....
Posted by National ADAPT on Thursday, July 27, 2017

— (@)

In the end, blocking Trumpcare was a group effort. Senators, representatives, and ordinary everyday Americans came together in the name of what's right.

6-year-old Timmy Morrison knows where to get the best frozen yogurt and popcorn on Capitol Hill.

He's had time to do his research. For the past six weeks, he's been walking the halls of the Capitol and Senate office buildings with his parents, trying to convince his elected officials not to let hundreds of kids like him die.

Timmy Morrison, left, on a lobbying trip to D.C. Photo via Little Lobbyists/Facebook.

Timmy is one of around a dozen "Little Lobbyists" — kids with chronic, lifelong medical conditions who, along with their families, visited the offices of all 100 Senators, dropping off notes and asking for meetings. And they, ultimately, helped kill the Senate's latest push to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

In the days leading up to the vote, hundreds of activists, organizers, and ordinary citizens descended on D.C. for a final push against the bill.

The effort led by groups like ADAPT, a disability rights community that staged a series of sit-ins on Capitol Hill and at lawmakers' offices, grassroots Indivisible groups as well as traditional liberal political organs, including MoveOn and Our Revolution.

The "Little Lobbyists" were organized by Timmy's mother Michelle Morrison and friend Elena Hung, first-time activists like so many others, who felt like their children's voices were missing from the health care debate.

"It really is just a handful of families trying to figure out what we can do," Morrison says.

Morrison, a linguist at the University of Maryland, explains that she originally barely noticed her health plan's lifetime million-dollar maximum.

Six days after the Affordable Care Act's ban on denying coverage of pre-existing conditions on children's policies kicked in on Sept. 23, 2010, Timmy was born with Opitz G/BBB syndrome, a rare respiratory disorder that requires him to breathe through a tracheostomy and eat through a feeding tube.

By Christmas, the cost of Timmy's treatment had already surged past $1 million. By the time he was six months old, it had climbed to well over $2 million. The Morrisons still pay thousands of dollars in medical bills annually, but thanks to the ACA, bankruptcy appeared to be off the table.

Timmy, undergoing treatment at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. Photo via Little Lobbyists/Twitter.

With the law in jeopardy, that threat once again became real.

"It feels a lot to us like someone is rolling the dice with our children’s lives and not taking the time to figure out what the impacts are," Morrison explains.

With the right care, which Timmy currently gets at three hospitals in three states, the little lobbyist leads a normal kindergarten life.

In between chatting about robots and pirates, Timmy plays on a local soccer team, which, when treated properly, his condition allows.

[rebelmouse-image 19476982 dam="1" original_size="700x593" caption="Timmy Morrison. Photo via Little Lobbyists/Twitter." expand=1]Timmy Morrison. Photo via Little Lobbyists/Twitter.

Even with Morrison's employer-sponsored plan, Timmy is on a waiting list for Medicaid to help with his care. Several versions of the bill threatened deep cuts to Medicaid.

Hence the constant travel to D.C.

"I don’t think he realizes that it’s unusual for a kindergartner to be running around shaking hands with senators," Morrison says.

For Timmy, the trips to the Capitol quickly became routine. Occasionally, he rode in a stroller, since too much walking can aggravate his breathing. The parents brought crayons and special snacks for all the kids.

[rebelmouse-image 19476983 dam="1" original_size="700x525" caption="Photo via Little Lobbyists/Facebook." expand=1]Photo via Little Lobbyists/Facebook.

Between meetings, Timmy spent time coloring in the outlines of the states whose senators' offices he's visited. Some of the older kids, 11 and 9, eventually started engaging staff members themselves, encouraging the younger ones to join in and speak up, Michelle says.

Meanwhile, for the adults, the joyful moments were tempered by frequent dead ends and creeping frustration.

The bipartisan group knew what it wanted any new bill to preserve: protections for pre-existing conditions, a ban on lifetime limits, and most critically, Medicaid funding.

The ever-shifting language of the proposed health care bill, however, often made it difficult to determine what arguments to present in meetings. "It’s like trying to catch soap," Morrison says.

[rebelmouse-image 19476984 dam="1" original_size="700x580" caption="Meeting with Senator Tammy Duckworth. Photo via Little Lobbyists/Twitter." expand=1]Meeting with Senator Tammy Duckworth. Photo via Little Lobbyists/Twitter.

The Senate's recent successful "motion to proceed" vote left the group "heartbroken, terrified, furious."

"We must now watch as the Senate takes as little time as it possibly can to decide the fate of our children," Morrison and Hung wrote in a blog post published the day of the vote.

The parents and children pressed on. The group spent the next few days engaged in a final push, thanking GOP Senators Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski for their no votes and lobbying hard for more.

— (@)

On the afternoon of the final vote, they finally secured their first in-person meeting with a Republican senator — Jeff Flake of Arizona.

After tucking Timmy in on the night of Thursday, July 28, Morrison drove alone to D.C. to join Hung at what the pair expected would be a vigil.

[rebelmouse-image 19476985 dam="1" original_size="700x801" caption="Photo via Little Lobbyists/Twitter." expand=1]Photo via Little Lobbyists/Twitter.

29 minutes after 1 a.m., it turned into a celebration of relief, when John McCain cast the decisive "no" vote on the bill.

The crowd outside the Capitol burst into cheers and tears of joy.

The surprise victory left Morrison feeling "pretty fabulous. And overwhelmed."

Their efforts had suffered dozens of setbacks in recent months. The House bill that was killed, then resurrected from the dead. The Senate bill, which was destroyed and reformed so many times. The crushing affirmative "motion to proceed" just two days earlier.

This, after all that, was sweet.

As Morrison and Hung wrote on their blog, dusting off and continuing to fight against the odds is nothing new for families like theirs.

"Our children have taught us well."

Corrections 8/1/2017 — The article incorrectly referred to Michelle Morrison as a linguistics professor at the University of Maryland. She is a linguist. Additionally, it stated that Timmy Morrison depended on Medicaid for part of his care. He is currently on a waiting list for the program. Other members of the Little Lobbyists do rely on Medicaid.

This isn't the bill he campaigned on.

During his campaign for president, Donald Trump set himself apart from the other Republicans vying for the nomination by claiming his election would mean a new health care system — one with lower costs, better care, and universal coverage. It all sounded pretty good, actually.

But now that he's in office, his tune has changed.

Trump has endorsed both the House and Senate versions of health care reform, even though they're exactly the types of plans he claimed he was against: ones that gut Medicaid, reduce the number of people with health insurance, and do nothing to control costs.

On Monday, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office confirmed the Senate's bill is as bad as originally thought, leaving 22 million additional people uninsured.

— (@)

So what gives? Was Trump lying during the campaign (something he has more than a bit of history with), or does he simply not know what he's endorsing? Whatever these new health care bills are, they're not what he promised.

Here are 10 of the biggest differences between what Trump promised and what he helped deliver.

1. Everybody will have health insurance and access to care.

"We’re going to have insurance for everybody. There was a philosophy in some circles that if you can’t pay for it, you don’t get it. That’s not going to happen with us." —Trump in a Jan. 15, 2017, Washington Post interview

GIF from CBS/YouTube.

While Trump has claimed to support making sure everybody has access to health care numerous times over the past two decades (In 2015, he even proposed a government-funded system on "60 Minutes"), this bill will cause 22 million more people to lose access to care.

2. Health insurance will cover more, cost less, and have lower deductibles.

"We will create quality, reliable, affordable health care in a free market where parents can make the health care decisions that they really want to make for their families. It will be a much better health care at a much less expensive cost." — Trump at a Nov. 1, 2016, rally in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

"Care will get better and costs will go down" is a great bumper-sticker-ready slogan, but it's not realistic.

The ACA slowed the pace of annual premium increases to the lowest they've been in decades. The truth is that both House and Senate versions of the new health care bill will lead to skyrocketing premiums and won't do much in terms of lowering deductibles either. As far as the "great health care" aspect of this goes, eliminating essential health benefits will lower the overall quality of health insurance plans.

3. People with pre-existing conditions won't lose coverage.

[rebelmouse-image 19529319 dam="1" original_size="450x253" caption="GIF from Face the Nation/YouTube." expand=1]GIF from Face the Nation/YouTube.

While both House and Senate bills say insurance companies can't deny someone coverage on the basis of pre-existing conditions, insurance companies will once again be allowed to charge those people a significantly higher premium, pricing them out of the market, which will have the same effect.

4. There will be no cuts to Medicaid.

[rebelmouse-image 19529320 dam="1" original_size="450x253" caption="GIF from Daily Signal/YouTube." expand=1]GIF from Daily Signal/YouTube.

The Senate's bill guts the program. Full stop. If passed, it'd be the largest cut in the program's history.

5. Health care reform would "fix our broken mental health system."

"We must expand treatment programs, and reform the laws to make it easier to take preventive action to save innocent lives. Most people with mental health problems are not violent, but just need help, and these reforms will help everyone." — Trump's campaign website

The proposed cuts to Medicaid and allowing states to opt out of essential health benefits (such as coverage for mental health services) will actively make things worse.

6. Under the new bill, Trump promised that "you will be able to choose your own doctor."

"We will repeal and replace disastrous Obamacare. You will be able to choose your own doctor again." — Trump's July 21, 2016, acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio

GIF from White House/YouTube.

This promise seems mostly to be a jab at President Barack Obama's claim that the Affordable Care Act would let people keep their existing doctor and insurance plans if they wanted to — something the legislation couldn't back up. It's been one of Trump's go-to lines over the years, tweeting about it 18 times and counting.

But there's one major problem with Trump's promise to restore the ability to "choose your own doctor again": It doesn't actually address this issue. Losing your insurance due to premium increases or an employer's decision to go with a different carrier is an issue that long pre-dates the ACA, as is the fact that the insurance accepted by doctors can also change at a moment's notice. The ACA didn't fix that, and neither do the House or Senate reform bills.

7. "Require price transparency from all health care providers."

"Require price transparency from all healthcare providers, especially doctors and healthcare organizations like clinics and hospitals. Individuals should be able to shop to find the best prices for procedures, exams or any other medical-related procedure." — Trump's campaign website

One thing that the ACA didn't do nearly enough is work to control health provider costs. And neither the House or Senate health care proposals do either. This isn't addressed.

8. It will be legal to purchase prescription drugs from other countries.

"Remove barriers to entry into free markets for drug providers that offer safe, reliable and cheaper products. ... Allowing consumers access to imported, safe and dependable drugs from overseas will bring more options to consumers. The reforms outlined above will lower healthcare costs for all Americans." — Trump's campaign website

On the surface, being able to reimport drugs from Canada and other countries sounds like a pretty great cost-cutting measure for consumers. There's definitely a debate over whether this would actually lower costs, but the truth is that this isn't addressed in either the House or Senate health care bills.

9. "People aren't going to be dying on the sidewalks and in the street."

"The people aren't going to be dying on the sidewalks and in the street, not if I'm president. So we'll work out a deal. We'll get them into the hospital. We'll get them in to see doctors. ... But I'm not going to allow people to die on the sidewalks in the street." — Feb. 29, 2016, episode of "Hannity"

Location aside and with 22 million more people standing to lose health care, people will die under this bill. Making it harder to pay for health care means it will be harder for people to actually get that much needed medicine, health exam, or admittance into a hospital or treatment program that could save their life.

10. "This is a repeal and replacement of Obamacare."

Both the House and Senate bills amend portions of the ACA, but they don't actually repeal the law.

Hillary Clinton ran on amending the ACA to address a number of specific issues related to the rising cost of care, the opioid crisis, premium increases, a lack of consumer choice, and more. During the campaign, Trump spoke mainly in vague platitudes about what he'd like his health care plan to be ("great," "wonderful," and so on) with very sparse specifics. One of those specifics, however, was to repeal and replace Obamacare.

This bill doesn't do that. Instead, it chips away at an existing system without offering solutions for the overwhelming majority of the country.

Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images.

It's not too late to do something about it.

No matter who you voted for, no matter what your political views are, this bill isn't what voters signed up for. The Senate hopes to bring the bill up for a vote sometime this week. The best thing you can do between now and then is to give your senators a call and let them know that you want them to vote no.

From Your Site Articles

Starring H. Jon Benjamin as ... a feminist condom!

For these actors, it's the role of a lifetime — or rather, the role of ... something tens of millions of women in the U.S. have used in their lifetimes.

I'm talking, of course, about birth control.

Starring Rachel Dratch ("Saturday Night Live"), Desi Lydic ("The Daily Show"), H. Jon Benjamin ("Bob's Burgers"), and Franchesca Ramsey (MTV's "Decoded"), this new video makes a funny and impassioned plea to save access to zero-copay contraception.

"We can't afford to lose control!" exclaims Dratch as a sentient supply of birth control pills. Benjamin's feminist condom (seriously) echoes the call while wearing the tiniest of protest hats. It's ... it's a sight to see.

Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, 55 million women in the U.S. have access to copay-free contraception, and that's a good for all of us — even men.

Sure, a recent study found that 52% of men don't think they personally benefit from birth control (and maybe that's a case for better sex ed in the U.S. because, um, come on, guys). But the truth is that when contraception is accessible, there are fewer unplanned pregnancies; and when there are fewer unplanned pregnancies, the government (and taxpayers) save money.

How much money, you ask? Try $21 billion per year.

The video PSA is funny and cute, but the topic is seriously important.

With the future of the American health care system up in the air, there's no telling what changes await.

That's why folks behind the Keep Birth Control Copay Free campaign put together a list of steps you can take to ask both parties in Congress to work together (bipartisanship FTW!) to ensure that reforms made to the Affordable Care Act include access to contraceptives.

Seriously, this isn't a Democrat or Republican issue. Photo by Keep Birth Control Copay Free.

As outlined in the video, without insurance, contraception can be prohibitively expensive — with birth control pills costing as much as $50 per month, birth control patches coming in at around $80 per month, and long-term birth control like IUDs costing more than $1,000.

So if you're ready to take action, head on over to Keep Birth Control Copay Free's website for some shareable infographics to post on social media and their town hall toolkit for advice on how to talk to your representatives about this important issue.

Family

Sarah Michelle Gellar opens up about a challenge many moms face but few discuss.

Sarah Michelle Gellar just opened up about what it was like struggling with postpartum depression after the 2009 birth of her daughter, Charlotte.

As many as 1 in 7 new mothers will experience postpartum depression, yet it's something that doesn't get talked about nearly enough as the result of some pretty serious shame and stigma. On Instagram, the "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" actress shared her story alongside a heart-meltingly sweet throwback photo of Charlotte (now age 7) as an infant.

Having kids is wonderful, and life changing, and rarely what you're prepared for. I love my children more than anything in the world. But like a lot of women, I too struggled with postpartum depression after my first baby was born. I got help, and made it through, and every day since has been the best gift I could ever have asked for. To those of you going through this, know that you're not alone and that it really does get better. And if you believe that postpartum depression should be covered by healthcare, please take a moment and go to callmecongress.com today, find your rep's numbers and let them know. #NotAPreExistingCondition
A post shared by Sarah Michelle (@sarahmgellar) on May 9, 2017 at 8:15am PDT

"Having kids is wonderful, and life changing, and rarely what you're prepared for. I love my children more than anything in the world. But like a lot of women, I too struggled with postpartum depression after my first baby was born. I got help, and made it through, and every day since has been the best gift I could ever have asked for. To those of you going through this, know that you're not alone and that it really does get better."

Geller was moved to share her story now in light of the current debate around health care reform.

Congress presently is mulling over its options when it comes to what, if anything, it should change about our current system. Some of those plans could mean a return to the days where pre-existing conditions (the definition of which is pretty much up to insurance companies but would likely include things like postpartum depression) could either get you excluded from a plan or charged a higher rate.

Gellar isn't having it and urged people to call their members of Congress and demand coverage:

"And if you believe that postpartum depression should be covered by healthcare, please take a moment and go to callmycongress.com today, find your rep's numbers and let them know. #NotAPreExistingCondition"

Prinze family out!! ✈️✈️
A post shared by Sarah Michelle (@sarahmgellar) on Dec 21, 2016 at 6:08pm PST

Gellar was fortunate to get the help and support she needed to get through postpartum depression years ago. Also, thankfully, our current health care system allows those of us who might not be as financially well off as she is to receive that same sort of care. Let's fight to keep it that way.