How will health reform affect my community?

Ever wonder how H.R. 3200, the House health care bill would impact our local community?

Well you're in luck. The Energy & Commerce Committee one of the tri-committee developers of the legislation has put up an excellent resource that provides estimates impacts for every single House district nationwide. MA-10 is here (PDF).

If you know anyone who is on the fence about health care reform consider sending them the link. Be sure to point out the final bullet point to those concerned about the cost of health care reform.

• No deficit spending. The cost of health care reform under the legislation is fully paid for: half through making the Medicare and Medicaid program more efficient and half through a surtax on the income of the wealthiest individuals. This surtax would affect only 5,800* households in the district. The surtax would not affect 98.3%* of taxpayers in the district.

__________

* These figures refer to MA-10 and will different depending on the district.

Remember two things:

1. Democrats are committed to making sure reform does not increase the national deficit; and
2. the status quo system is financially unsustainable.

Rage-Ex -- for those health care blues

Rationality preventing you from getting caught up in fear and panic about health care reform? Try Rage-Ex: if your insurance will cover it.

Health care reform myths

Media Matters for America has an excellent piece debunking the most common health care reform myths.

Included in Media Matters list are:

1. There is no health care crisis
2. Health care reform will impose rationing
3. Health care reform provides for euthanasia, "death panel"
4. Health care reform legislation will cover undocumented immigrants
5. Health care reform will raise your taxes
6. Health care reform would tax all small businesses
7. Health care reform would add $1 trillion-plus to deficit
8. House bill would ban private individual insurance
9. Obama said he didn't read House bill
10. Co-ops are an adequate substitute for a public option
11. Obama is pushing a system like the U.K. and Canada
12. Obama, Dems pushing "socialized medicine"
13. Prominent opponents of health care reform are credible
14. Government can't run a health care program

I've put a link to this handy reference in the resources list on the left.

Action: sign the FireDogLake petition to Congress

The intrepid folks at FireDogLake will be heading to Washington in September to continue their efforts on behalf of reform. Jane Hamsher and Eve Gittelson are hoping to deliver a petition with 25,000 signatures to progressive house members urging them to stand strong on their pledges to support a robust public option.

Please sign the petition.

Action: thank Rep. Delahunt for standing for the public option

The political action blog FireDogLake has been at the forefront of grassroots organizing for health care reform. In particular, they have been strongly supporting the public option component of reform. Their efforts have included organizing calls, emails and letters to progressive Democratic representatives asking each member to publicly state that he or she will not vote for a reform bill that does not include a robust public option.

Thanks to the efforts of FireDogLake and many other organizations and individuals, 65 members of the House are on record as being unwilling to vote for a reform bill that does not include the public option. If, as expected, no Republican is going to vote for reform, our progressive House members with the support of the grassroots have drawn a line in the sand for authentic health care reform.

FireDogLake is now asking us to thank our members. Our representative Bill Delahunt is among those who have pledged support for the public option. Please take a few minutes to phone one of his offices and express you support for his committment to the public option and health care reform generally. Here is his contact information:

Washington, DC
Phone: 202-225-3111
Fax: 202-225-5658

Cape and Islands Office
146 Main Street
Hyannis, MA 02601
Phone: 508-771-0666
Fax: 508-790-1959

If you happen to be in Hyannis consider stopping into the office to thank his staff and send you thanks to Rep. Delahunt.

Eight points to better health care

As he continues to engage more directly in his push for health care reform President Obama will be emphasizing eight points that demonstrate how reform will help everyday Americans.

The re-tooled pitch highlights eight ways that, the White House says, health-care consumers would be treated better by insurance companies if reform efforts pass.

As one reads through these the disfunction of our current system is manifest. Is this the best we can do to protect and maintain our health? And remember, this is a system that leaves many uninsured or underinsured and still costs us, per capita, twice as much as other countries while delivering generally poorer outcomes.

• No Discrimination for Pre-Existing Conditions: Insurance companies will be prohibited from refusing you coverage because of your medical history.
  
• No Exorbitant Out-of-Pocket Expenses, Deductibles or Co-Pays: Insurance companies will have to abide by yearly caps on how much they can charge for out-of-pocket expenses.
  
• No Cost-Sharing for Preventive Care: Insurance companies must fully cover, without charge, regular checkups and tests that help you prevent illness, such as mammograms or eye and foot exams for diabetics.
  
• No Dropping of Coverage for Seriously Ill: Insurance companies will be prohibited from dropping or watering down insurance coverage for those who become seriously ill.
  
• No Gender Discrimination: Insurance companies will be prohibited from charging you more because of your gender.
  
• No Annual or Lifetime Caps on Coverage: Insurance companies will be prevented from placing annual or lifetime caps on the coverage you receive.
  
• Extended Coverage for Young Adults: Children would continue to be eligible for family coverage through the age of 26.
  
• Guaranteed Insurance Renewal: Insurance companies will be required to renew any policy as long as the policyholder pays their premium in full. Insurance companies won't be allowed to refuse renewal because someone became sick.

President Obama is asking for our help

This week the President is stepping up the push for health care reform. As noted in the last post, he came out strongly for the public option in his weekend address.

Now, Organizing for America* is asking for our help. There are two actions:

1. declare your support for President Obama's health care reform agenda
2. Ask your friends to do the same; and remember to ask them to ask their friends.

Last week, Republican Senator Jim DeMint made it pretty clear why the opponents of health care reform are fighting so hard. As he told a special interest attack group, "If we're able to stop Obama on this, it will be his Waterloo. It will break him." Here's how the President responded:

Think about that. This isn't about me. This isn't about politics. This is about a health care system that is breaking America's families, breaking America's businesses and breaking America's economy. And we can't afford the politics of delay and defeat when it comes to health care. Not this time, not now. There are too many lives and livelihoods at stake.

With Congress only days away from finalizing their plans for reform, it's time to stand with the President and fight back against this disastrous brand of old-style politics. So we need as many people as possible to publicly support the President's principles for health care reform and call on Congress to act.

Before the first full votes in Congress, we'll publish the signatures in newspaper ads across the nation, to make sure your voice is heard.

Declare your support for health care reform.

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* Organizing for America is the grassroots organization developed from the 2008 Obama campaign in an effort to organize support for the President's agenda.