Usually, a high-powered insurance company lobbyist in Washington, DC takes a long, luxurious August vacation – but not this year. This year the lobbyists have turned their sights to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) in a blatant attempt to hijack reform. We have to stop them.
Call California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner today. Tell him you support tough regulations that make health care affordable and hold the insurance companies accountable.
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Steve Poizner – 1-800-927-4357
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The above is from Health Care for America Now. Please call Commissioner Steve Poizner and urge him to stand up to lobbyists.
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“Starting in September, some of the worst abuses will be banned forever. No more discriminating against children with pre-existing conditions. No more retroactively dropping somebody’s policy when they get sick if they made an unintentional mistake on an application. No more lifetime limits or restrictive annual limits on coverage. Those days are over.” PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA
The above six laws are some of what we fought for. I know these laws are not enough, however it’s a bold move to take on the corporate greed that still holds 300 million Americans captive. More importantly it’s a start in the right direction, hopefully paving the way for more reform until comprehensive health care is available to every American. Please read the above carefully and know what your rights are!
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The Affordable Care Act Becomes Law March 23, 2010
“On March 23, 2010, President Obama signed the Affordable Care Act. The law puts in place comprehensive health insurance reforms that will roll out over four years and beyond, with most changes taking place by 2014. Others have already begun.”
The above is from HealthCare.gov, a new site that provides information about insurance options, prevention, quality care, understanding the new law and much more.
After viewing the site, I do think that this has valuable information that many people will benefit from. I especially appreciated how easy it was to navigate through the above topics. As many of us have experienced health care is confusing and sometimes scary. This site does ease some of the apprehension many have in starting to determine their fate in this health care industry.
One of my favorite aspects of the “Introduction” is the time line. With a comprehensive grid, it details what the law changed and when the changes will take place. Again, with so much confusion, this option does help you see what progress has been made and where health care is going.
The site clearly states that it a new and asks for your comments to help it grow, which something I liked.
However, going through the site I couldn’t help but feel that there wasn’t enough to help people with the cost of paying for health now. But then neither does this new law. I know I’m an impatient person but it is hard to be patient when so much money is still sucked out of sick Americans for a purely profit based industry.
I do hope people will go to this site for guidance it may not be perfect but it is a start. Also, no matter what any one says about President Obama and this law, this is the first administration to put a site out to help people navigate through the mess of the current health care system. That is something that I commend the President and the Department of Health and Human Services for providing.
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The following is from Senator Mark Leno’s facebook page commenting on Senate Bill 810. I’ve highlighted some comments and facts that stand out. This movement towards single payer status is important on so many levels, mainly to show the rest of the country that comprehensive health care can and will be obtained. Thanks for reading
SACRAMENTO – The Assembly Health Committee today approved the California Universal Health Care Act, authored by Senator Mark Leno (D-San Francisco). The bill guarantees all Californians comprehensive, universal health care while containing ballooning health care costs and improving the quality of care and delivery of health services statewide.
“Our state is being bankrupted by out-of-control health care costs, and small businesses and families are struggling to pay premiums that rise as much as 40% every year,” said Senator Leno. “California’s single payer plan remains the gold standard for health care reform, and is the only proposal that will truly contain health care spending and provide universal coverage for all.”
The California Universal Health Care Act creates a private-public partnership to provide every California resident medical, dental, vision, hospitalization and prescription drug benefits and allows patients to choose their own doctors and hospitals. This “Medicare for All” type of program works by pooling together the money that government, employers and individuals already spend on health care and putting it to better use by cutting out the for-profit middle man.
California currently spends $200 billion annually on a fragmented, inefficient health care system that wastes 30% of every dollar on administration. With Senate Bill 810, that wasteful spending is eliminated. The bill creates no new spending, and in fact, studies show that the state would save $8 billion in the first year under this single-payer health care plan.
“All other industrialized nations spend far less on health care than we do, and in return their residents receive higher quality care,” said Senator Leno. “California families and employers can no longer afford to foolishly waste 30 cents of every dollar on a health care system that focuses on minimizing claims and increasing profits instead of maximizing the health of the people.”
SB 810 is sponsored and supported by a broad coalitionof patients, nurses, doctors, teachers and school employees, small businesses, faith community members, retirees, local governments and school districts. These groups represent more than 2 million Californians. The bill is also sponsored by the California Nurses Association, California School Employees Association, Health Care for All California, California Physicians Alliance, California Teachers Association, California Council of Churches, League of Women Voters, California Health Professional Student Alliance, California Consumer Federation, California Alliance for Retired Americans, Single Payer Now and Progressive Democrats of America.
“California has the chance to lead the charge toward true healthcare reform that provides coverage to all,” said Allan Clark, California School Em
ployees Association President. “SB 810 will go even further than federal reform to guarantee medical care to every Californian. That’s the kind of change we need.”
“Now, more than ever, we need to improve the delivery of our health services so we can guarantee care for every patient, and do so in a humane and targeted manner,” said Geri Jenkins, co-president of the California Nurses Association and National Nurses Organizing Committee. “The only way to achieve that for our state is through passage of SB 810, which will make sure that our patient care dollars are actually spent on patients—instead of on insurance company executives and their outsized bonuses.”
The California Universal Health Care Act is nearly identical to legislation (SB 840) introduced in 2007 by former Senator Sheila Kuehl. The California Legislature passed SB 840 in 2008, but it was vetoed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.
The following video was produced by California OneCare. This grass roots organization is a leader in educating millions of Californians about the benefits of a single payer system. If you are unfamiliar with California OneCare, please check out their website, californiaonecare.org. It is truly inspiring to see such dedication in providing health care to millions of people.
The following was sent out by Progressive Democrats of America. The question remains the same; will SB 810 pass the Health Committee on June 29? Please read the following and do what you can before the 29th.
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New! Update Your Profile Here. New!
Progressive Democrats of America is a grassroots PAC that works both inside the Democratic Party and outside in movements for peace and justice. PDA’s advisory board includes seven members of Congress and activist leaders such as Tom Hayden, Medea Benjamin, Thom Hartmann, Jim Hightower, and Lila 
Garrett.
Join a PDA Issue Organizing Team
More info | Find Chapters | Find Local Events
Spread the Progressive Word—Shop PDAstore
The following was sent to me from Progressive Democrats of America. Please read the following.
Join the Healthcare for All IOT call TONIGHT!
Please join us for our Health Care for All/Single Payer conference call:
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
9:00 p.m. ET, 8:00 p.m. CT, 7:00 p.m. MT, 6:00 p.m. PT
Phone Number: (605) 475-4000, Access Code: 968483#
Please RSVP with this personalized link here.
Agenda:
1) HNW co-chair, Donna Smith, will update us on the Declaration of Health Independence and talk about some upcoming events.
2) Katie Robbins from Healthcare-NOW! will join us to talk about plans for the upcoming US Social Forum.
3) Eve of Brown Bag Lunch Vigil updates.
Call Instructions:
Chat Room: We are expecting a very large call.
Conference Call:
Make sure to check out the new installment of The Agitator: Voices of PDA, with guests Chuck Pennacchio of Healthcare for All PA and Ben Day of Mass-Care.
We look forward to your participation in the Healthcare for All IOT call.
In solidarity,
Conor Boylan, Field Coordinator
Tim Carpenter, National Director
Laura Bonham, Deputy Director
Roberta McNair, BBLV and IOT Coordinator
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New! Update Your Profile Here. New!
Progressive Democrats of America is a grassroots PAC that works both inside the Democratic Party and outside in movements for peace and justice. PDA’s advisory board includes seven members of Congress and activist leaders such as Tom Hayden, Medea Benjamin, Thom Hartmann, Jim Hightower, and Lila Garrett.
Join a PDA Issue Organizing Team
An update about yesterday’s post, FOUR bills have passed. This is great news, but the fight for comprehensive health care is not over. Please read the following and make calls regarding the two remaining bills on the floor.
The following was sent to me by Health Care for America Now – CA. www.hcanca.org
We’re not done yet! There are still two very important bills on the floor that we need to pass before Friday, June 4. Even more, both of these remaining bills deal with rate regulation, and we know that the private insurance industry is working desperately to influence state leaders to oppose these two bills.
The two remaining bills include AB2578 (Jones) in the Assembly and SB1163 (Leno) in the Senate. Both pieces of legislation are critical in helping to protect California consumers against unjust rate hikes, like the one proposed earlier this year by Anthem Blue Cross calling for a staggering 39% increase in premiums on consumers in the individual market!
The insurance industry knows that these two bills will end “business as usual” by requiring approval from the Department of Managed Care or Department of Insurance whenever private insurance companies attempt to increase our rates (AB2578); and require health plans to provide specific reasons for denying coverage or charging higher than standard rates (SB1163).
That’s why the insurance industry has spent millions of dollars here in California to crush these two remaining health reform implementation bills! But together we can help put an end to private insurance industry abuse, and make our health care stronger, more accessible and more affordable for all!
Votes on these remaining bills are expected to take place in the next couple of days. So please, call your Assemblymember and State Senator TODAY and ask them to stand up for rate regulations and oversight that help keep the insurance industry honest!
Click here to take action TODAY!
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There are some very important pieces of legislation coming up for vote in the senate and the assembly that will help Californians move the state closer to Single Payer status. Please read the following, click the below link, make calls to your legislators and help move Californians forward.
In the State Assembly:
In the State Senate:
Call Your State Legislators TODAY! | Health Care for America Now – California!.
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