HEALTH CARE REFORM
Ken Heard, Onward...
Health Care should be a right not a privilege. Everyone who lives in
the United States should have access to affordable, quality health
care. But the Health Care Reform bill passed by the Senate does not
have a public option, a government run health insurance program to
compete with the private insurance companies forcing them to lower
costs. The Senate bill requires everyone to have health insurance but
does not guarantee that health insurance will be affordable.
The Health Insurance bill passed by the House of Representatives does
have a public option. Now the House and Senate must get together to
combine both bills. The insurance companies have been lobbying
Congress continuously, even sitting down with Congressional committees
to help write the legislation. Recent polls show that the majority of
people support a public option as part of health reform. Now is the
time for the people to speak out to Congress in their own interest.
More money is spent on health care in the USA than in any other
country in the world. Yet 47 million people here have no health
insurance. African Americans and other ethnic minorities of color
comprise half of the uninsured. Because of the health care gap, Black
people have higher incidents of disease and shorter lives. Infant
mortality rates for African American babies are 2 times that of white
babies. Life expectancy for Black people is 10 years shorter than for
white people. Cancer death rates for African American women are 19%
higher than for white women. African Americans make up 49% of new
diagnosis for HIV/AIDS. Heart failure rates for African American men
under 50 are 20 times higher than for white men. These alarming
statistics were published by the NAACP.
Another important bill is the Health Equity and Accountability Act of
2009 introduced by the Tri-Caucus comprised of the Congressional Black
Caucus, Hispanic Caucus and Asian Pacific Caucus. The Tri-Caucus says
that coverage is not enough. This bill calls for the elimination of
existing racial and ethnic disparities in health care. It calls for a
public health care insurance option that includes mental and dental
services and emphasis on prevention, health education and wellness in
communities.
The health care sector gave $167 million to candidates running for
Congress in 2008. Health care companies spent $484 million lobbying
Congress in 2008. That amount was even higher in 2009. The pressure
and influence of the insurance companies on Congress is immense. To
bring about the changes we deserve, the people must be well informed
and organized to engage government. History shows that social
movements bring about real change not the elected officials. Now is
the time for the people to speak out to Congress in their own interest.