Donald Trump blocks stage 4 cancer patient who criticised his healthcare plans on Twitter
'I have stage 4 cancer, and Trump & the Republicans are trying to take away my health insurance,' Laura Packard wrote
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Donald Trump has blocked a stage-4 cancer patient on Twitter after she criticised him via the social media platform.
Laura Packard, a small business owner from Las Vegas, Nevada, recently tweeted at the President, telling him to "count your rubles, file your resignation, call it a day".
Responding to a comment on her tweet, she added: “I have stage 4 cancer, and Trump & the Republicans are trying to take away my health insurance.”
The next day, she awoke to find Mr Trump had blocked her on Twitter, barring her from reading and responding to tweets from his account.
“Omg. The President of the United States just personally blocked me, “ she tweeted, before telling Mr Trump to "grow the f*** up" and "stop tweeting on the can and run our d*** country".
Ms Packard suffers from stage 4 Hodgkin's lymphoma. The disease, while painful, is usually curable with a combination of chemotherapy, radiation, and immunotherapy.
Since she is self-employed, Ms Packard relies on the Affordable Care Act – also known as Obamacare – to help her pay the massive medical bills those treatments entail. But this week, Senate Republicans announced that they would once again try to repeal Obamacare.
According to some estimates, the new bill – called the Graham-Cassidy bill, after its two authors – would leave 30 million more Americans without health insurance. It would also remove federal protections for people with pre-existing conditions, like cancer.
A recent analysis from the Center for American Progress found that a 40-year-old with metastatic cancer could be forced to pay more than $140,000 out of pocket for their treatment – on top of their existing insurance premiums.
This summer, Ms Packard wrote an op-ed for US News & World Report about Republican attempts to repeal the healthcare law.
“Why is this not front-page news every day, and on the evening news every night?” she wondered at the time. “It feels like my friends and I are facing a death sentence and nobody notices or cares.”
In addition to writing op-eds, Ms Packard has tried to draw attention to the issue in true 21st-century fashion: by tweeting at the President.
“Your latest TrumpCare bill would mean 32M Americans will lose their health insurance,” she tweeted at Mr Trump the day before she was blocked. “What about putting them first?”
Her motivation, Ms Packard told ThinkProgress, is simple: “I just wish that he would listen.”
But on Wednesday morning, hours after blocking Ms Packard, the President tweeted his support for the Graham-Cassidy bill.
“I hope Republican Senators will vote for Graham-Cassidy and fulfill their promise to Repeal & Replace ObamaCare,” he wrote. “Money direct to States!”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments