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John and Peggy Means own and operate two restaurants in Mason City and are unable to afford health benefits for themselves or their 13 full- and part-time employees.
John had insurance until three years ago when he was diagnosed with an irregular heartbeat. After his diagnosis, he cut out caffeine from his diet, became more careful about what he ate and began to exercise. He has not experienced an irregular heartbeat since but his insurance did not cover the treatment because it is considered a pre-existing condition. Since he was paying for insurance but not receiving benefits, John dropped the coverage. John has been unable to find an affordable health insurance policy since then.
Peggy is in remission from breast cancer and requires expensive tests every six months to ensure her cancer has not returned. Currently she is paying for those tests out-of-pocket since her breast cancer is also considered to be a pre-existing condition, and she is unable to find an affordable health insurance policy.
The Means expect to be in medical debt well into their 70s and say that they are just trying to help their small town with the business their restaurants generate.
"We are willing to pay a reasonable amount for health insurance, but $600 or $700 a month would eat up over half of our take home pay. We don't want to close our doors, but if any major medical issues came up, that's probably what we would have to do. We need something that helps small business owners with the high insurance costs and gives us peace of mind," John said.
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