At 48, I heard the words no one ever wants to hear: “You have cancer.” Fortunately, my prostate cancer was caught early and treated successfully. Today, I’m grateful to be alive. But I’m also deeply aware that my story could have ended very differently if I hadn’t had access to routine preventive medical care.
That’s why I’m speaking out. For too many people in my district and elsewhere in the Chicago area and the country, the kind of health care that saved my life is slipping out of reach. And if Congress allows the Affordable Care Act’s enhanced premium tax credits to expire at the end of this year, the consequences will be deadly.
Let me be clear: This is not a theoretical policy debate. This is about whether working families can afford to see a doctor before it’s too late. It’s about whether a father gets screened in time to walk his daughter down the aisle. It’s about whether a mother catches a lump early enough to survive to see her grandkids. It’s about whether a man like me: Black, middle-aged and at higher risk for prostate cancer — gets a second chance.
In 2021, Congress expanded ACA premium tax credits under the American Rescue Plan Act, making health insurance more affordable for millions of Americans. In Illinois, enrollment in the ACA marketplace surged nearly 60% between 2020 and 2025, with a record 466,000 people signing up this year.
But if Congress doesn’t act, those tax credits will vanish on Dec. 31. That means premiums could double or even triple overnight. The average monthly premium with tax credits is $143, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Without the tax credits, that amount jumps to $674. For many families, that’s the difference between having insurance and going without.
And going without means skipping checkups, ignoring symptoms and catching cancer too late.
Black men are nearly twice as likely to die from prostate cancer as white men. In neighborhoods like Austin, Englewood, West Garfield Park and North Lawndale — where poverty, food insecurity and limited access to specialists already shorten life expectancy — this kind of policy failure isn’t just immoral. It’s lethal.
I was lucky. I had insurance. I had a health care team that moved quickly. But I also had fear, and I some sleepless nights. I had to tell my daughter that I had cancer. And I had to fight — not just for my health, but for my peace of mind.
No one should have to fight for access to health care on top of fighting for their life.
We know what happens when people lose health care coverage. We’ve seen it before. We’ve seen when emergency rooms become the only option. We’ve seen families go bankrupt over a diagnosis. We’ve seen preventable deaths mount in communities where health care access is limited.
And we know what works and saves lives. The ACA and tax credits work. Preventive care and early detection work.
This isn’t about politics. It’s about human beings: family members, friends and neighbors. It’s about the barber in Austin who’s too busy working two jobs to get checked out. It’s about the grandmother in East Garfield Park who skips her medication to pay rent. It’s about the teenager in North Lawndale who loses a parent because his or her cancer wasn’t caught in time. It’s about the mother in Englewood who prioritizes the health care of her young children over herself, with dire results.
We cannot let that happen — not when we have the tools to prevent it.
I urge Congress to extend the ACA premium tax credits before they expire. I urge my colleagues at every level of government to speak up, stand up and fight for the health care rights of our communities. And I urge every reader to understand what’s at stake — not just for someone else, but for you and your family.
Cancer doesn’t care about your ZIP code, but access to health care often does.
I survived prostate cancer because I had access to this type of medical care. Let’s make sure everyone else gets the same chance.
State Rep. La Shawn Ford represents the 8th District.
