| The latest news from and for state health care advocates |
January 2011 |
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In each edition, we'll feature an action, victory, campaign, or interesting tactic shared by a state advocate. Send us your updates. |
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In This Issue:
Buzz around the States
Renate Pore, a West Virginia health care advocate, was featured in a full-length piece in the West Virginia Gazette.
Small Business Majority organized a petition for small businesses against repeal.
The Iowa Children and Family Policy Center placed a very timely op-ed in the Des Moines Register.
New Jersey Citizen Action enumerated the ways the Affordable Care Act is good for New Jersey in a press conference and rally against repeal.
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States in Focus
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Creating a strong grassroots campaign around implementation will be essential in the next several years. Connecticut advocates have branded the campaign and are pushing out their message to their legislature, the media, and grassroots activists in order to create an echo chamber.
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A Big Plus for Connecticut
The Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut and its healthcare4every1 initiative have started 2011 with renewed energy and a new brand. Over the past two years, the organization has been working on federal health reform efforts while primarily focusing on Sustinet, a state-based reform that passed in the summer of 2009. Since the passage of the Sustinet and the Affordable Care Act, they have focused on robust implementation and coordination of the new laws. The healthcare4every1 initiative recently launched its Big Plus for Connecticut campaign to keep the grassroots engaged to achieve those goals.
January 5 was the first day of session for the new state legislature as well as the swearing-in day for the new governor and other office holders. In order to let new legislators know that health care needs to be a priority in the upcoming session, the campaign brought more than 100 volunteers to the capitol to emphasize the Big Plus campaign’s slogan, “Connecticut’s health care law is a big plus for all of us.”
Lynne Ide, Director of Advocacy at the Universal Health Care Foundation of Connecticut, manages the campaign. Lynne explained that the visibility day at the capitol was rather simple to organize, but it produced big results. Posted at every entrance and in the lobby, 125 campaign volunteers wearing bright red shirts created a presence that legislators could not miss. In fact, the Governor himself commented to one of the volunteers that they were everywhere he turned that day. The visibility event is just one facet of the new campaign. Lynne also noted that a new radio ad detailing the “pluses” for the Connecticut economy that the law produces also recently launched. You can listen to the ad here.
Connecticut is well-positioned to forge ahead on implementing the Affordable Care Act. Advocates are confident that the new supportive administration will push a pro-health care agenda. So far, the Sustinet board has recommended that Connecticut offer a public plan option both inside of the exchange and outside of it. With strong grassroots support for reform and the administration onboard, Connecticut is poised to be a leader in Affordable Care Act implementation. And the Universal Healthcare Foundation of Connecticut is ready to help their state lead the way.
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Meet volunteers and activists where they are. In Washington, advocates started simply by having volunteers share their story with an elected official and then participate in a rally. Building true grassroots leaders takes time—it’s critically important that they feel comfortable and enjoy each advocacy experience.
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Washington CAN! Empowers Story Sharers to Fight Budget Cuts
This month, Governor Gregoire of Washington State released her budget, and the cuts are startling. The Governor is proposing complete elimination of the state’s basic health program and benefits for persons with disabilities, as well as the removal of 26,000 undocumented children in the Children’s Health Program. Washington Community Action Network (Washington CAN!), along with many other advocacy organizations, has come out against the proposed budget and is calling for the legislature to make more sensible cuts that don’t harm the state’s most vulnerable populations.
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In the past several weeks, Washington CAN! has brought attention to the proposed cuts by highlighting the stories of real people through “legislative coffees” with elected officials hosted in the story sharers’ homes. Rachel Berkson, associate director of Washington CAN!, said, “By placing meetings in homes, story sharers were able to share their very personal stories in a more comfortable setting, which left legislators visibly moved and motivated to find a different route to fill the state’s $5 billion dollar deficit.”
Thus far, these meetings have had a lasting impact. Some state legislators are using personal stories to push back against cuts. And many more have signed onto principles that encourage elected officials to think about how specific cuts will harm lower-income people and communities of color across the state.
To read them, see Principles for an Equitable Budget: English |Spanish.
These meetings also have aided Washington CAN! in their long-standing goal to develop grassroots leaders. “To build leaders, we first need to empower them. I see the ‘legislative coffees’ as an avenue that allows us to guide ordinary people to become remarkable leaders that we can continue going back to with bigger and bigger asks,” Rachel said. Many people who shared their story at these meetings have recently participated in the People’s Summit on Martin Luther King Day, where nearly 700 people rallied against the Governor’s budget on the capitol steps.
As the budget debate rages on, Washington CAN! will continue to make opportunities to rally the grassroots and build leaders.
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Advocates can use implementation hearings that focus on technical aspects of health reform to engage consumers in the health care implementation fight. Working with state and national partners will be essential in preparing for hearings and rallying the public.
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In Missouri, Advocates Outnumber Industry Professionals at MLR Hearing
Working over the holidays is never ideal; however, when the Missouri Department of Health Insurance scheduled the medical loss ratio (MLR) adjustment hearing for December 28th, Missouri advocates had no choice. Andrea Routh, executive director of the Missouri Health Advocacy Alliance, serves as co-chair of the Insurance Directors Advisory Committee acting as the consumer representative. Through this capacity, Andrea was able to react fast to the hearing announcement and organize the advocacy community to weigh in on the importance of the Affordable Care Act’s MLR provision, which requires insurers to spend a reasonable share of premium dollars on medical care and quality improvement efforts rather than administration, marketing, and profits.
According to Andrea, the hearing in Missouri was an opportunity to re-energize and re-engage health consumer groups in implementation. She organized their private insurance work group to determine next steps. The group wanted to ensure they had a strong presence at the hearing, including testimonies from consumers. The private insurance work group secured participation from the Rural Crisis Center, Missouri Jobs with Justice, a faith leader, and the Missouri Budget Project.
Consumer testimonies conveyed the importance of the MLR provision and provided reasons why an adjustment for Missouri would hurt its health care system. Brian Colby, director of outreach and communications for the Missouri Health Advocacy Alliance, addressed the counterarguments insurance companies would make favoring the adjustment.
At the hearing, proponents of the Affordable Care Act provided eight testimonies representing diverse constituencies of the state, while the insurance industry was only represented by one company. Consumer advocates saw the hearing as a success because of the quantity and diversity of consumer representation. The Missouri hearing has already set a national example for advocates across the country on how to raise the consumer voice during implementation.
Beat of the Month
In honor of the terrific lineup at Health Action 2011, this month’s Beat is, A Better Way by Ben Harper.
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Last week, the House passed H.R. 2, a bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act in its entirety. But we know that Americans do not want to lose their new found rights. That's why it's so important to act. Send a strong message to House Speaker John Boehner and House members. If we stay silent, opponents will continue ignoring the fact that Americans support the provisions in the Affordable Care Act, and they will continue using taxpayer dollars to take away your health care rights.
Encourage your networks to stand up and take action here.
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New Resources from Families USA and Stand Up for Health Care
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