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Health Care for All 2009

Health Care for All 2009 “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.” -Martin Luther King, Jr. We spend twice as much as the rest of the industrialized world on health care

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Health Care for All 2009

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  1. Health Care for All 2009

  2. “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.”-Martin Luther King, Jr. We spend twice as much as the rest of the industrialized world on health care Yet 46 million Americans lack health insurance, 8 million of whom are children Millions more are underinsured As our economy worsens, things will only get worse A Moral and Economic Imperative

  3. Those We Trust Support Reform • 450,000 Doctors Can’t Be Wrong –watch the video • Listen tonurses support health carereform on the White House blog

  4. Strengthen and expand Medicaid Increase access to primary care for underserved communities through a larger and better supported community health center network Create a strong, non-profit, public health insurance plan as an option for people to choose. Build support for a National Health Program (a.k.a. single-payer system) as the long-term vision for U.S. health care Support efforts to end childhood hunger in the United States through investments in child nutrition programs RESULTS 2009 Health Care Campaign Goals

  5. The Children’s Health Insurance Program Reauthorization Act (CHIPRA) provides health coverage to 4.1 million more low- and moderate-income children The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) increased federal funds for Medicaid to help states maintain health coverage during the recession Reasons to Celebrate!

  6. Health Care Legislative Update The House of Representatives passed the “Affordable Health Care for America Act” (H.R.3962), 220-215 on November 7, 2009. Read AARP’s endorsement of this bill The Senate has begun debate on the ”Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” bill which merged the two Senate Committee bills. The Senate and House bills will be the sent to a Conference Committee to create one bill. That bill must be voted on again by both chambers. Visit the Kaiser Family Foundation website for up-to-date reports

  7. Background on Medicaid • Covers 60 million low-income Americans (over 40 percent of the poor) • Larger than any other single health care program in the U.S. (including Medicare) • Benefit coverage includes physician and hospital visits, well-child care, health screenings, vision care and dental services and all services deemed “medically necessary” • The child health component of Medicaid is the Early Periodic Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) Program, and is required in every state.

  8. Medicaid Benefits • Reduces out-of-pocket expenses • Covers many services not typically covered by private health insurance – transportation and disability assistance • Provides comprehensive coverage, including long-term care due to serious illness • Carries 20 percent fewer overhead and administrative costs than private insurance • Allows appeals to benefit denials without risk of losing coverage

  9. Medicaid Access Issues • Many adults do not qualify for Medicaid • Only 25% of the nation’s uninsured are currently eligible for either Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) • 35% of uninsured Americans have income levels below $10,830 a year – by expanding Medicaid, we can reduce the number of uninsured by over one-third • Only 16 states and Washington, DC currently cover parents up to the federal poverty line ($22,050 for a family of four in 2009)

  10. Medicaid and Health Reform

  11. CHCs comprise the nation’s largest primary care system with 1,100 facilities serving 19 million people Anyone can seek care at a CHC but most cared for are uninsured or on Medicaid CHCs primarily serve lower income and minority communities 70 percent of patients have incomes below 100% FPL Background on Community Health Centers (CHCs)

  12. CHC Access Issues • Many in rural areas and urban inner cities still lack nearby health care facilities and primary care providers • Need has increased for health care providers to staff community health centers • Newly underinsured turning more to CHCs for affordable care • A combination of incentives for doctors and health care service providers, along with increased federal funding, is desperately needed for health centers to merely maintain the level of care they currently provide their communities Learn which CHCs are near you at the Health Resources and Services Administration locator

  13. Health Centers and Health Reform

  14. National Health Program RESULTS has endorsed a national health insurance program as our long term goal for U.S. health care A national health program, or "single-payer" health care, is a system in which a single public or quasi-public agency organizes health financing, but delivery of care remains largely private In the U.S., Medicare is a single-payer system in that private doctors and hospitals deliver care to patients but the bills are paid by the government, not private insurers

  15. Single-Payer Would Help Patients • All Americans would be covered for all medically necessary services • Patients would regain free choice of doctor and hospital, and doctors would regain autonomy over patient care • Families will pay less

  16. Single-Payer Would Help the Economy • Medicare for All would be a major economic stimulus • Single-Payer health care lowers costs through: • Negotiating reasonable fees for services • Bulk purchasing of prescription drugs • Eliminating administrative waste • Businesses will pay less • 62 percent of all bankruptcies are caused by illness and medical bills – see Physicians for a National Health Program video

  17. Single-Payer and Health Reform

  18. Federal nutrition programs help feed children in low-income families 12.4 million children lived in households that were food insecure in 2007 (USDA) Both poverty and food insecurity are much higher for Hispanic and African-American households Moderate under-nutrition can have lasting effects on cognitive development of children Child Nutrition Programs

  19. Child Nutrition Reauthorization has been postponed until 2010 School Breakfast and Lunch Special Nutrition for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) the Summer Food Service Program, and the Child and Adult Care Feeding Program (CACFP President Obama’s proposed budget would increase total funding for child nutrition by $2.7 billion in FY 2010 Child Nutrition Reauthorization

  20. Principles for Child Nutrition Reauthorization • A broad-based Child Nutrition Coalition has agreed on a statement of principles for reauthorization. RESULTS endorses these principles. • Improving access to nutritious food in schools, child care centers and homes, in after school programs, on weekends, during the summer, and in the home. • Enhancing the nutritional environment to promote healthy eating habits for women and children. • Modernizing and streamlining program operations to improve program integrity and efficiency.

  21. Health Care Laser Talk • Engage:New data shows that 45,000 people die every single year in the United States because they lack health coverage; at least one-third of the uninsured fall below the poverty line and cannot get Medicaid coverage because of current program restrictions. • Problem:While I am pleased that all of the health reform bills moving in Congress expand the Medicaid program to everyone at or below 133 percent of the poverty line, the Senate bill still needs serious improvements in order to provide a reliable health safety net that protects low-income communities.

  22. Health Care Laser Talk • Inform:For example, the Senate bill delays this important Medicaid expansion until 2014, and also asks states to pay for part of it, which has drawn objections from many governors. Unlike the House bill, the Senate legislation does not include resources to increase reimbursement rates — this is key to making sure that society’s most vulnerable can access services in their communities. The foundation for meaningful health reform this year must be America’s successful public programs — Medicare, Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) — and I hope you will support amendments that strengthen the Medicaid program.

  23. Health Care Laser Talk • Call to Action:Will you work to strengthen Medicaid • by securing full federal financing for the expansion, providing “traditional” Medicaid benefits to all those who gain coverage, • expanding access by increasing Medicaid reimbursement rates, and • not making our most vulnerable wait five years to get coverage through Medicaid?

  24. Resources • Health Reform.gov offers a state-by-state analysis of how health care reform can benefit the constituents of your elected officials • Media tips from Universal Health Care Action Network (UHCAN) • A Woman Is Not a Pre-existing Condition – watch the videos • Side-by-side comparisons of bills from Kaiser Family Foundation • Part of a faith community? Check out Faithful Reform in Health Care

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