On Oct. 1, 2013, when the Affordable Care Act’s website launched to enroll Americans in the new health insurance options, it was a photo of a smiling brown-eyed, brown-haired woman that greeted whoever went to the site.
But not long afterward, that same face became an object of ridicule. The public started to question the identity of the woman, altering her face on Photoshop and she even became the subject of late-night talk show jokes.
The woman, who spoke exclusively to ABC News, asked that only her first name be used – Adriana – and said she was speaking out now to defend herself after enduring online humiliation.
She told ABC that she did not know that she was going to the “the face” of the site. Instead, she thought her photo was going to be used as a stock photo, and she says she was never paid.
“We signed a release that said it was supposedly going to be used for material for promoting the healthcare which I didn’t know was going to have a negative impact,” she said. “I deserve a chance to tell people who I am and not just let everybody else say what they want.”
Adriana is a native of Colombia and is not an American citizen. Although her photo was taken down from the site two weeks ago, she said, in tears, she has never undergone such “bullying” before, and that she decided to speak on air for her child.
“I am a mother, and I am a wife, and I am not a professional model,” she said. “I’m here to stand up for myself and defend myself.”
Despite its glitches, more than 106,000 have perused both the state and federal websites of the Affordable Care Act, but only 26,000 people managed to buy health insurance during its first month of existence, the Health and Human Services Department said Wednesday.
Tagged: Adriana, Affordable Care Act face, Affordable Care Act site, bullying, Obamacare face
