Health Action 2009 Tentative Workshop Schedule

Thursday, January 29

Workshops I
10:30am-12:00pm

Endangered Species? Talking about Medicare’s Fiscal Health
We have all heard the rhetoric about Medicare’s looming fiscal problems. But how do we separate rhetoric from reality? This workshop will discuss the real financial status of Medicare, where the potential for improved efficiency lies, and what we can do to preserve Medicare for generations to come.

Mission Possible: Keeping People Front and Center in the Health Reform Debate
The ailing economy and cost concerns threaten to overshadow the needs of Americans without health insurance. What can we do to keep the focus on people who need coverage? Come to this workshop and hear about polling and politics, and take part in a lively brainstorming session.

All Grown Up: Expanding Medicaid for Adults
Children with incomes below twice the poverty level are eligible for Medicaid or CHIP in most states, but their parents don't do nearly as well. States are all over the map when it comes to covering parents, and coverage for adults without children is even more spotty. This workshop will explore the status of and prospects for improving public coverage for adults, and ways to get those who are eligible enrolled.

Health Care Reform and Communities of Color:  What’s To Come in 2009?
As the stage is set for national health care reform in 2009, we're presented with the opportunity to address health inequity in our country.  What part will health disparities play in health care reform? What do advocates need to do to ensure that minority health remains part of the conversation? This workshop will describe where minority health fits into the broader health care reform discussion, including what disparities-related bills are currently on the floor, what types of initiatives need to be considered in order to eliminate disparities, and what advocates can do to raise the visibility of minority health issues.

Employer Responsibility and ERISA
Advocates and governments have tried various approaches to get employers to pay a fair share for their workers’ health care.  San Francisco’s “pay or play” law was recently upheld by a Court of Appeals, while earlier, Maryland’s “fair share” law for large employers was struck down. Massachusetts uses a small employer assessment and "free rider surcharge".  What new ideas for state, local or federal employer responsibility legislation are being considered and what do lawyers think is and is not allowable under current federal law (ERISA)?

Unfinished Business: Reauthorizing CHIP (Already!)
As of print time, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) still has not been reauthorized, and the clock is ticking down to March 31st, when the program’s temporary extension expires. This workshop will cover the latest in CHIP reauthorization—where the program stands today and where it’s going in 2009.

Make Media a Megaphone . . . and Get Your Message Out Loud and Clear
New to communications and media relations? Learn the basics of what elements are needed to reach out and engage your local and state media. Workshop will focus on how and when to pitch, the importance of media lists and relationship building, the proper use of statements, releases, advisories, letters to the editor and op-eds.

Helping Consumers Get Care and Deal with Medical Debt
Some states and community organizations have started “health assistance programs” or other helplines to advocate for consumers with health insurance problems and with medical debt. In every state, SHIP programs counsel Medicare consumers. Learn some troubleshooting tips to help consumers with common problems, how to advocate for a consumer assistance program in your state, and what some states have done to assist uninsured and underinsured consumers with medical debt. After an overview of these topics, we will divide into small groups for “hands on” exercises and discussion.

All Aboard: Making Coverage Truly Available To All
How do you make sure everyone can buy coverage? Should you require all insurers to sell to everyone, or use a high risk pool? And if only sick people buy coverage, the price will rise – so what do you do to bring in the young and healthy? We’ll talk about Massachusetts’ individual mandate and how that is going, alternative ways to encourage enrollments such as late penalties and automatic enrollment, and the outreach that is needed to make any health reform succeed.

Bridge Over Troubled Water: A Roundtable on Sustaining Medicaid During the Economic Crisis
The worst economic crisis in decades is upon us, and over half of all states face budget deficits. History shows us that state policymakers often head for Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program when it comes time to make cuts. In this facilitated conversation, participants can discuss ways to maintain these programs that have worked in the past and strategies to stop or mitigate cuts in coming year.

Immigrants and Health Care: Finding Effective Messages
As we saw with the CHIP reauthorization battle, getting immigrants the health care they deserve will not be easy. What lessons were learned and where do we go from here? This workshop will present new communications research around immigrants and health care, and discuss how we retool our message to prepare for the battle ahead.

Taking Care of Business: Keeping Main Street Healthy
Come learn about how to make health care reform a top priority for small business owners and how to engage small businesses. Advocates will discuss examples of organizing small businesses in their communities.

Medical Research: Keeping the Engine Going
Federal funding may be scarce, but medical research shouldn't be short-changed. It's essential to our health, our security, and our economic growth. This workshop looks at ways medical research, especially through NIH, helps communities across America and the globe.

Special Delivery: Getting Care to Vulnerable Populations
How to deliver high quality, cost-effective care for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries with chronic conditions or disabilities is a hot topic, especially as we move into the national health reform debate. This workshop will explore why tackling this issue is a key component of health reform, and examine various care coordination initiatives such as special needs plans for dual eligibles, medical homes, and managed care.

Click here: Engaging Activists Online
Many organizations have taken advocacy to a whole new level by using the internet as an innovative means of communication, outreach, and fundraising. Learn the value of developing your online advocacy program, and see how other organizations are pushing the envelope to promote grassroots and legislative action. 

Friday, January 30

Back from the Precipice: Taking Medicare in the Right Direction 
For most of this decade, Medicare has moved towards a privatized system – most notably through the Part D drug program and the growth of Medicare Advantage. Now we have a chance to take Medicare in a new direction. Let’s discuss how we can undo some of the damage, especially for low-income beneficiaries, and improve Medicare for everyone.

View from the House
A look at what health care legislation is expected in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2009.

Storybanking: Personal Narratives as Tools for Advocacy
Humanizing health care advocacy initiatives through personal stories can make a huge difference in getting your message across to the public, the media, and policymakers. See how stories have made a difference in health advocacy campaigns. Get answers to your questions on starting a story bank, gathering stories, and more from experienced Story Bankers. Take this opportunity to collaborate with other Story Banking groups.

Funding Health Advocacy: The Road Ahead
Join a discussion with leading national and regional foundation officers about their emerging priorities and interests in the coming year and how to best work with potential funders to garner support for your organization’s advocacy activities.  This session will include plenty of time for dialogue and questions and answers and is intended for both beginning and seasoned fundraisers and advocates.

Which States Bench More?: A Tool for Promoting Health Equity
States are often the testing grounds for new policies and programs. Several states are leading the charge to develop solutions for reducing racial and ethnic health disparities. But which states have the most muscle? This session will describe what states are doing to promote health equity and introduce policy strategies for reducing inequities in health. 

Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems: Are Buy-In Programs a Solution for Covering Moderate Income Children?
As states have moved ahead with expansions of children’s coverage in recent years, many have incorporated a buy-in component to allow families with income higher than public program eligibility levels to participate. This workshop will explore state experiences with buy-in programs, and some of the key policy issues surrounding them, including cost-sharing, adverse selection, and crowd out.

How to Make Health Insurance Affordable
We’ll talk about tools that can be used by state insurance regulators and that are part of federal proposals to control the price of insurance.  Don’t know much about rate review, medical loss ratios, or purchasing pools?  This workshop is designed both for people just learning the basics and those who are already advocating for improved insurance regulation.  

Bare Bones and Big Bills
Among the underinsured are people in limited-benefit health plans, which provide restricted, or even no coverage, for many necessary services that other insurers are required to cover. Learn the problems that limited-benefit plans have caused consumers, and how to fight the spread of these plans in your state. Also, hear up-to-date research on how underinsurance and uninsurance strip families of their economic security and lead to medical bankruptcy.

In the Trenches: Making Medicare’s Changes Work for Beneficiaries
As its name implies, the Medicare Improvement for Patients and Providers act (MIPPA) includes changes to Medicare that have the potential to help beneficiaries. Come learn what these provisions are, how they can best be implemented, and what you can do as an advocate and counselor to maximize the positive effects of MIPPA.

Just Say "No": Avoiding Medicaid and CHIP Cuts
In the midst of the worst state budget crisis in years, states advocates must be creative in proposing alternatives to cutting Medicaid and CHIP. This workshop will provide an update about the status of federal fiscal relief efforts as well as ideas about other sources of new revenue to prevent or minimize Medicaid and CHIP cuts.

State Health Care Reform: A Roundtable Discussion
This session will be an open discussion for state advocates to share campaign tactics, new ideas, and lessons learned from current and past health care expansion campaigns.

View from the Senate
A look at what health care legislation is expected in the U.S. Senate in 2009.

Cracking the Tax Code: The Tax Treatment of Health Care
Tax credits, tax deductions, tax exclusions: We've all heard the terms, but what do they mean for the average Joe? We'll discuss how these terms fit into our current health system, which are progressive, which are regressive, and what it all means for making health reform a reality.

The Domino Effect: Social Factors That Influence Health
This workshop will explore how experts are addressing the social determinants of health and developing programs to ensure healthier communities.

The Real Moral Majority: Health Care and the Faith Community
The faith community is diverse with a strong, grassroots voice at the local, state, and national levels on health care. This workshop will discuss framing the moral message for health care reform with the faith community.

Tricks of the Trade: Will My Insurance Really Cover My Illness?
People with major illnesses and the disease societies that serve them can tell you about a host of problems sick people face when they try to use their insurance—policies may be pulled out from under them or care denied, provider networks are inadequate, pain management and new treatments may not be covered, and appeals are difficult. On the other hand, federal mental health parity legislation was a major win for people with mental illness this year. Learn what state and federal policies can make insurance better serve the sick and how to partner with disease societies on these issues.

Long Term Solutions for Long Term Care: Implications of Health Reform for the Future of Long-Term Care
Long-term care has been notably absent from most discussions about the prospects for health reform in 2009. But as a major component of Medicaid expenditures long-term care is an area of growing concern for states as the population ages. What place should long-term care hold in health reform? What other options exist for improving our nation's provision of long-term care? This workshop will explore these questions and more.

Working with Ethnic Media to Achieve Health Equity
This workshop will explore the landscape of the ethnic media, how to work with the ethnic media to interject health disparities into the national health care reform debate, and media advocacy best practices.

Towards Health Reform That Meets the Needs of Women
Women face distinct challenges in our health care system.  Health reform presents an opportunity to ensure that all women have access to affordable, high-quality comprehensive health care.  This workshop will introduce a new resource, the Reform Matters Toolkit, designed to give advocates the information and tools they need to ensure that health reform meets the unique needs of women.  Using the Toolkit as a guide, the workshop will explore various policy issues in health care reform and their impact on women; these issues include affordability, the need for strong insurance regulation, and the important role of public programs. Participants will receive their own copy of the Reform Matters Toolkit.

A Prescription for Savings: Ensuring Drug Quality, Controlling Drug Prices
In these tough economic times, bringing rising health care costs under control is a top priority at both the state and national level. How do prescription drugs fit into the cost containment puzzle? Come to this workshop to learn about and discuss methods for controlling pharmaceutical spending while encouraging safe, cost-effective prescribing.