Activists Rally for a Public Health Insurance Option

Thousands from across the nation representing labor unions, community organizations, healthcare professions, churches, and other groups, came to Capitol Hill Thursday to lobby  lawmakers on the urgency of passing  healthcare reform legislation this year. They are determined to make sure than any bill includes a public insurance option. High-profile politicians and entertainers like Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.), Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), Former Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean and actress Edie Falco from The Sopranos participated in a massive rally in a park across from the U.S. Capitol. That action was followed by a town hall meeting and targeted state forums.

The events were organized by Health Care for America Now, an organization mounting an aggressive grassroots effort to gain momentum for President Barack Obama’s plan to provide quality healthcare for all.

The town hall meeting, held in the Capitol Visitors Center, addressed the inability for people of color to gain access to preventative care. Panelists also discussed the disproportionately higher incidences of chronic diseases and illnesses among minorities as well as environmental risks they face at work and

home. A number of attendees provided compelling testimony regarding language barriers, racial and ethnic discrimination, spiraling costs and other such challenges. According to Rep. Nydia Velasquez (D-N,Y.), chair of the House Small Business Committee, 52% of small businesses are unable to give their employees adequate health coverage.

ReShonda Young, who operates an Iowa-based delivery and facilities maintenance firm with her father, discussed the difficult choices minority business owners must make when it comes to offering workers health insurance. In 2006, she explored coverage options but couldn’t afford the 13% increase in the company’s payroll. Since then, profits have increased, and she decided to cover employees. However, premiums will boost payroll costs by at least 12%, she maintains, due to some employees’ pre-existing medical conditions. “We’re looking at somewhere close to $100,000 increase in our expenses. We’re going to do it because we feel that it’s important and our people deserve it, but it is a huge financial burden for us,” says Young.

After looking at various providers’ estimates, she’s more convinced than ever that a public insurance plan will make private insurers offer more competitive rates.

A draft bill presented in the House of Representatives last week includes a public option supported by the Obama administration. The provision, however, has sparked heated debate between conservative lawmakers — including fiscally-conservative Blue Dog Democrats — who balk at both the cost and the concept of what they call “government-run healthcare” and  black,  Hispanic, Asian Pacific American and progressive caucuses that will vote down any bill that does not include a public option.

“There’s broad and fundamental support for massive healthcare reform. We need to make sure that Congress and the president know that without a robust and strong public option that things are not going to fly,” says Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), a Congressional Black Caucus member who was scheduled to address event. “I personally will not vote for [a bill] that does not have that.” He added that “massive people power,” is critical to “ensuring that a bill that serves the interest of the American people is passed.”

Thursday’s events, many of the attendees believe, provide opportunities for people to become more

informed on the issues and available options and form nationwide collaborations. “Everyone must understand that it is important that we all have the same access to high quality health care. We all know someone who can’t afford their medication, particularly if they have hypertension, diabetes, or heart disease. If they’ve lost their job and lost their coverage, can they even afford COBRA?” says Donna Polk-Primm, who is executive director of the Nebraska Urban Indian Health Coalition Inc.

“So if we can have health care reform that provides access to public coverage as well as private, people can make informed choices. We can’t sit back and think ‘Oh, President Obama is going to take care of all of this.’ We must contact our elected officials and let them know that we are healthcare voters, we know the issues, we want change and we want it now,” adds Polk-Primm, who is African American.

Brian Smedley, director of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies’ Health Policy Institute and moderator of the town hall meeting, said that by 2042, one in two people

living in the US will be a person of color.  “It’s critically important that we address the needs of people of color and other communities because there are many racial and ethnic groups that face a much higher burden of disease and illness, shorter life expectancy, and higher infant mortality,” he explains. “We’ve got to start to address these problems because they will define the nation’s health status given the demographic changes in this country.”

Smedley believes a public plan modeled after Medicare will provide a good, comprehensive benefit plan at a reasonable cost because 95 cents out of every healthcare premium dollar is spent on patient care as opposed to administrative costs or profit. “This is important because we know that there are many health plans that hire thousands of people to make somebody else pay the bill,” he says. “If we can get rid of that kind of inefficiency, we can invest money back into healthcare, get people the care that they need earlier so they’re not waiting until they get sick, and thereby contain healthcare costs.”