July 25, 2006
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We Want to Hear from You
Started a new campaign? Won a victory lately? Is your state moving on DRA implementation?
If you have news from your state to share with other advocates, feel free to send it to Ann Vogel. We'll put the top stories here, on our "Across the States" Web page, and on the appropriate state page. Use this form to send in a brief report on what's happening, links to your (or other) Web sites for more details, and photos, if you have them.
You should also check out our State Information pages. If you see a broken link or incorrect information, let us know. |
Inside this Issue:
National Campaign Offers Ways for States to Get Involved
Families USA, in conjunction with over 35 other national organizations, launched the Campaign for Children’s Health Care on July 11. The campaign is designed to raise public awareness that more than 9 million children are uninsured in the United States and millions more are underinsured. The campaign calls on Congress and President to make comprehensive, affordable coverage for all children a national priority.
A major facet of the campaign is an online petition. One simple way advocates can engage in the campaign is to e-mail the petition link to various action lists and listservs. The link can be embedded in a message tied to local and state level messages about the need for children’s health care. Also, Families USA may be able to provide an organization-specific link so that you can track how many signatures came from your list. To find out more about how this works, contact Maryellen Barreca.
Another way to participate is through the “When an Apple a Day Isn’t Enough” national essay contest. Open to all children aged 9-18, the contest asks kids to answer questions about the importance of health care in their lives and in their communities. The contest is appropriate for schools, after-school programs, Sunday school groups, scouting groups, and any other groups of children. The essay offers the opportunity to talk about health care issues with children and their parents in a fun and engaging manner. State winners will be selected from each of two age groups (9-13 and 14-18). Winners will receive a $250 cash prize. A Grand Prize winner selected from each age group will receive a $2,500 cash prize and will be honored at a special ceremony in Washington, DC in February 2007. Entry packets, lesson plans, and more information are available on the campaign Web site.
The campaign is also planning a satellite town hall meeting for early December and religious leader summits in select areas. If you have suggestions for activities or would like to be involved in planning activities in your area, please contact either Ann Vogel, Families USA Outreach Coordinator, or Maryellen Barreca, Children’s Health Campaign Coordinator.
California Pushes to Cover All Children
Even though only 10 percent of California children are currently uninsured, that equates to almost 1 million children who lack access to affordable, comprehensive health insurance. Advocates, led by Californians for Healthy Kids (a collaboration of Children Now, Children’s Defense Fund, The Children’s Partnership, and PICO California, with 250 supporters), are sustaining pressure on the state to finish the job and cover all kids. They believe accomplishing universal coverage for children in such a large and diverse state would provide important momentum for achieving this goals for children in other states and nationally.
The Children’s Partnership, Children Now, and PICO California have joined six other organizations in filing a statewide ballot initiative to achieve several important public health goals, including preventing teen smoking and expanding access to affordable, comprehensive health insurance for all children in California. Proposition 86, sponsored by the Yes on Proposition 86 Campaign, would raise essential funds for these efforts through an additional cigarette tax of $2.60 per pack; it will be placed on the November 2006 ballot.
These advocates believe Proposition 86 offers the best opportunity to secure a stable source of funding for covering all kids this year and in the future. If it passes, the initiative is expected to raise $2.1 billion a year, of which $371 million will be dedicated to children’s health coverage. In addition to raising needed funds to provide access to affordable health coverage for all kids, the initiative will streamline and simplify the enrollment process, and create an oversight commission and a special fund to ensure accountability of this new revenue.
Californians for Healthy Kids is also sponsoring legislation to support the ballot initiative by securing policy changes to help California move smoothly and quickly to a statewide solution to children’s health insurance created by Proposition 86.
All this activity on children’s health care is paying off. California polls show that more than 80 percent of Californians want to see the state provide health insurance for all children. The tremendous support behind this legislative and ballot effort makes 2006 the best opportunity the state has had in many years to insure all children.
A 5-minute video that highlights the broad support for children’s health in California is available on the PICO California Web site.
MD Fair Share Update
On July 19, a federal judge issued a summary judgment ruling in favor of the Retail Industry Leaders Association in their case against the Maryland Fair Share Act. The act, commonly known as the “Wal-Mart law,” requires any employer in the state of Maryland with more than 10,000 employees to pay 8 percent of its payroll toward health insurance—or pay the same amount to the state. The ruling found that the law was preempted by federal ERISA law and that it would make nationally uniform administration of a company’s benefit plan impossible.
While the ruling is a disappointment for advocates pushing similar legislation across the country, this particular ruling only affects the law as passed in Maryland and would not apply to laws passed in other states. Advocates within the state of Maryland have not given up hope. The state Attorney General plans to appeal the ruling and state lawmakers have promised to redraft the law and continue pushing for large employers to pay their fair share for health care.
Families USA will hold a conference call to discuss the ruling and how it affects other states on July 27 at 3 pm eastern. Click here to RSVP for the call. A case study on the passage of the Maryland Fair Share Health Care law is available on our Web site.
P.S.: We’re on the Web too! Missed an issue? Think someone else might be interested? We now have past issues of this newsletter available on our Web site.
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