Virginia's healthcare workers are getting involved in this national grassroots movement and have a lot to say about our broken system.

Debra Goodwin, PA-C, is a physician assistant in Leesburg, VA who has seen access to quality care become a privilege that fewer and fewer people enjoy. She hopes that one day all of her patients will be able to afford their prescribed medicines.

"As a Family Practice Physician Assistant," Debra says, "I hear stories daily from my patients choosing to cut their medications in half or take them every other day to cut costs. I'm joining my colleagues in Healthcare United because our patients' stories must be told. Then we can lead the way to reform."

Elinor Abraham, RN, of Alexandria, VA has worked for decades on greater prevention and education for her patients. But without affordable primary care, too many people are missing out on the chance to lead healthy lives. Through Healthcare United, Elinor wants her fellow professionals to show our elected officials the way to a healthier society.

"Healthcare professionals are the real experts on reform," says Elinor, "and we need to put the right people in office in order to make the most effective changes in our healthcare system. That's why we need to vote; that's why I'm a part of Healthcare United."

Greetings from Oregon!  I'm Mara Kieval, and I'm the state leader for Healthcare United!

If you're from the area, I'd like to invite you to a special family picnic that we'll be having to celebrate healthcare workers in our community. We'll be giving information about not only Healthcare United, but heart health and and political health as well.

The entire health care community and their families are invited!  We'll be holding it on Saturday August 9th, from 11:00am PST - 3:00pm PST at Gabriel Park on Vermont Street in Southwest Portland. Everyone is welcome to celebrate health care workers role in our community wellness!

Healthcare givers from the Columbia, Missouri area -- made up of LPNs, RNs and respiratory therapists -- came together on July 19th to discuss the problems in the healthcare system. They left with a plan and a commitment to building a strong movement of healthcare givers.

Caregivers raised concerns about everything from rising insurance costs to healthcare having a "business mentality" to the increasing amount of uninsured in our country. After discussing the problems that are breaking our system, we moved to a conversation about what it is going to take to fix those problems.

The healthcare professionals in the room came up with a variety of ideas, including communicating with the public and the leaders of our country, using relatable language and voices joined together to educate about the issues. We concluded that healthcare givers can make an enormous difference if they work together - through small steps and realistic short term goals, we can achieve big results!

The most important first step to changing the healthcare system is to have your voice as a healthcare giver heard in the upcoming elections. The Columbia caregivers understand that the votes of healthcare workers are essential this year and they want to do everything they can to make sure every caregiver has that opportunity.

To make this happen, we're reaching out to our coworkers, neighbors, and other healthcare givers that we know who care about the problems we face, and want to make a difference.

You can get involved too! Follow the links to the "Action Center" to see what you can do today! Or, of course, if you're in Missouri, you can always contact me to find out what other ways health caregivers like yourself are moving forward!

Since launching our campaign, we've received numerous personal and professional accounts of caregiving from hundreds of Healthcare United members. You've shared with us the struggles that your patients endure, as well as your own personal struggles. Your essays, stories, pictures and videos have moved us beyond any words that we could share here, and so we've decided to share them in the best way possible: through your own voices.

We've created a compilation video of some of these stories (and there will be more videos to come!). In the video are several of your colleagues, including:

• Amy Lamb, a registered nurse of 15 years, who can't afford healthcare for her children.
• Freda Blacerby, a retired nurse, who became disabled in 2003.
• Ramona Lopez, a registered nurse who can't afford the co-pays for certain healthcare tests and has to skip them.
• Linda, who's been in the healthcare field for over 30 years. She stresses why we, as Healthcare United, need to get involved.

Every day, as witnesses, you see why we need to change our healthcare system. We hope that this video shows the urgency of why we need to get things done, and that it illustrates how we, as Healthcare United, can do this together.

As Healthcare United's organizer Mike Dolan says in the video, "if caregivers themselves -- you and others like you around the country -- own the debate, take control of the conversation, become a force...it can actually happen, and indeed it won't happen unless caregivers own the debate."

It was a scorcher here in Ohio as I made my way with seven healthcare professionals and healthcare advocates to the top of the legislative offices of the Carew Tower in downtown Cincinnati. Our mission: to brief Congressman Steve Chabot (R) on the devastating effects of diabetes, and the flaws in the Ohio healthcare system that can compound the effects of this illness, and to discuss new ways to work together to address these flaws. 

Our first story of how bad the problem is came from a woman named Kelley Davis. Kelley is 19 years old, a severe Type-II diabetic, and fully employed. Despite this, she's unable to afford the life saving insulin that can cost upwards of $350 each month. After aging out of the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), Kelley, like many Ohioans, was left with nowhere to turn saying, "You wouldn't imagine people would turn you down for something you need."

While Kelley's story is compelling, it's not unique. In a survey done by the Kaiser Foundation and National Public Radio, it was reported that:

• 28 percent of Ohioans say they have trouble paying for health insurance;
• 14 percent use up most of their savings on medical bills; and
• 16 percent have been contacted by a collection agency about unpaid medical bills.

As Lillian Kitchens, a local healthcare worker said during the meeting, "It's time to get health care back to what it was. It's become a money making business, not a care giving business."

Caregivers urged Congressman Chabot to explore how Ohio can invest in preventative treatment for chronic illnesses such as type-II diabetes. Opponents of healthcare reform sometimes contend that it's too expensive and not cost effective to invest in preventative programs - but that's just plain wrong. For example, every $10 invested per Ohio resident in nutrition programs that can curb the onset of Type-II diabetes would result in $795 million in savings for the state. Of that savings, $503 million would go right back into the pockets of Ohio citizens in the form of lowered premiums. People say we can't afford preventive care but really, we can't afford not to do this.

The other evening, my husband and I were scrolling through the DVR. Among old episodes of "The Office" and half a dozen Masterpiece mysteries (my fav), there was a new program I didn't recognize: "Hopkins."
 

I was tired that evening, perhaps a bit peevish. I wanted to watch something easy and entertaining. "So what's this Hopkins thing?" I asked, already ruling it out.
 
"I recorded it last week," my husband answered.  "I thought you'd be interested."
 
I reminded him that I don't usually like TV stories set in hospitals. Fictional programs like "E.R." really annoy me with their exaggerated heroics and shallow sentimentality.

"This isn't fictional," my husband said. "It's documentary."
 
The next thing I knew we were watching this story about a surgical team that flies out of Baltimore to bring back a heart for a young man who desperately needed it.  We watched the whole episode, and afterwards, my husband said he liked the program.
 
"The hospital parts were interesting," he said. "Realistic."
 
Now, it's interesting to think again about that episode of "Hopkins" and whether it was truly "realistic."  Surely all the details were right, because the camera was turned on real people-sick people and the people devoted to caring for them.  But as with all stories, the work of the film crew had been edited to focus on a narrative thread.
 
And what about the scenes that were never filmed in the first place-the ones that wouldn't have served the purpose of a medical-heroic story line? I'm thinking of the scene when someone asks the big question: "Do you have health insurance?"  
 
Or how about this one: Somewhere out there in that big city of Baltimore, a young woman is talking to her sister on the phone. She's asking her sister what she should do, because her child has a high fever and a sore throat.  Should she take the child to see the doctor?  Because it's going to cost a ton and she hasn't even paid the bill from a couple months ago when the kid fell off his bike and needed stitches.  (They don't have health insurance.) Then comes the voice of the sister. She sounds older, wiser. She says maybe it's strep throat, maybe the kid needs an antibiotic. And so forth.  It would be plenty realistic.  Lots of people in the big city of Baltimore don't have health insurance. Lots of hard-working employed people don't.
 
OK, maybe my idea lacks the heroics and the romance. Maybe it wouldn't be especially entertaining. But you can't beat it for reality. I'm thinking we need a "reality" series about the tragic brokenness of America's healthcare system.  I'm thinking we need it more than yet another medical-success story about heart transplants, no matter how uplifting.
 
Heck, I could write the screenplay with my eyes closed.  I bet you could too. 
 

I'm writing to you from the National Association of Hispanic Nurses (NAHN) Conference here in Boston, MA. I got here yesterday after five straight days of work-what was I thinking! But, right away I was re-energized by my fellow nurses. We are here in Boston learning so much, from disease management for illnesses like Diabetes that impact our communities greatly to cultural and linguistic competence, and not just for the Hispanic community but for all our patients. Most impressive are the younger generation of nurses attending, some still in nursing school. Many are working right in the community and doing great work.

As a nurse active with Value Care Value Nurse I agreed to host a reception for Healthcare United last night. Again, what was I thinking! So many of my colleagues from the Conference came, we had standing room only. We were able to show nurses the Healthcare United website and how we are going to win healthcare reform for our patients and ourselves. Lots of the nurses are now going to spread the word back home, at work and online.

After all my conversations last night I started thinking about the term "healthcare united" and what it means to me. I thought about the 12 million healthcare workers united for the same cause to make a mandate for healthcare reform happen. I'm realizing that we are united, we just have to talk to each other and spread the word.

I've got to get back to the conference now but just wanted to give this update. Oh, and check out the pictures from the reception!

This morning, as I listened to NPR's coverage of yesterday's momentous override vote, I was struck by the significance of this moment for U.S. healthcare.

If you have ever doubted the idea that healthcare workers can build power to elect the next President and Congress—and win healthcare reform in 2009—yesterday's override of Bush's veto should leave no doubt in your mind of just how powerful an organized movement can be.  In the past month, healthcare workers rallied together and sent their message to Congress—that enough was enough, that a Medicare bill rewarding insurance companies while short-changing patient care is unacceptable. 

In the end, Congress listened to healthcare workers—not the insurance industry—with droves of Republicans in both the House and Senate reversing their earlier votes to join in on yesterday's override.  Thanks to all of you (more than 800 total!) who took part in our action to contact Sen. McCain and other members of Congress.

As I travel the country speaking to nurses, doctors, personal care assistants, pharmacists, acupuncturists and countless others, I'll be reflecting on what each of us, as part of Healthcare United, can achieve in the weeks and months ahead.

Summertime in the Twin Cities is off to a busy start for Healthcare United volunteers. We held our first meet-up over coffee in early June, where myself and another RN hosted a film screening and discussed how transparency and accountability are necessary in reforming our healthcare system. This would impact caregivers from a variety of backgrounds, including RNs, dental hygienists, physical therapists, doctors and pharmacists. We acknowledges that while we all work in a different healthcare areas, we are all healthcare workers.

On June 19th, during a visit by Sen. John McCain to the Twin Cities, I represented Healthcare United at a morning press conference. As an RN and a healthcare reform activist, I stressed that we healthcare workers are the ones we've been waiting for. It's our job to see to it that the broken healthcare system gets fixed. A recent online survey by the Healthcare United campaign demonstrated that healthcare workers are ready to act for change, they're just not sure how. One positive step in that direction is to do all we can to encourage Minnesota healthcare workers to register and vote for change.

In the afternoon of June 19th, I participated in a peaceful demonstration of healthcare workers, peace workers, unions and other activists in front of McCain's hotel. I was able to deliver Healthcare United's survey results on healthcare reform to one of McCain's aides. When I joined together in chanting with other demonstrators, I kicked off the chant: "Patients--before Profits-Healthcare Reform NOW!"

If we all register and vote on Election Day, I know our newly elected officials will hear this chant loud and clear!

After President Bush’s defiant veto this afternoon, the Senate is poised for an override vote. According the Majority Leader Harry Reid, the vote will take place at around 5:30pm.
 
Sen. Ted Kennedy whose return to the Senate floor last week helped usher in a great victory for patients and doctors alike, is currently undergoing treatment for his cancer and is not expected to vote today.
 
Sen. Reid is confident that Kennedy’s participation will not be needed since many GOP lawmakers reinforced their continued support for the bill.
 
Sen. John McCain is still nowhere to be found.
 
For the complete article from Roll Call, please click here (subscription required).

First off, let me say THANK YOU. You joined with thousands of others in participating in a nationwide survey this spring on how we can best improve our nation's healthcare system.
 
The collective response was overwhelming! 8,300 of you spoke out on your concerns and priorities this election year.  
 
Here's a quick snapshot of how the results broke down (for more detailed results, visit this page):

• 95.7% of you are concerned with the state of the healthcare system in this country.
• Most participants feel that the 2008 presidential candidates do not share their concerns, with 85% stating that the candidates do not talk enough about healthcare reform.  
• Most importantly, the study found that nearly 9 in 10 doctors, nurses and caregivers would be willing to advocate on behalf of the changes that they'd like to see implemented, but are unsure of how to do so.

It's clear that healthcare professionals in this country demand wholesale change--both for our patients, our profession, and most of all, our families. Many of you are eager to advocate for these changes, but are unsure of how best to participate.
 
That's why, on Saturday, July 19th at 1:00pm EDT,  Healthcare United is holding our first-ever national healthcare conference call for our members--and you're invited. On the call, we'll hear reports from several members on what's happening in their state, and how we can help. We'll also hear from a leading research firm on a recent survey of caregivers and what matters most to us this election year. To view the agenda for the call, click here.
 
If you can join us, please take a moment to RSVP for this call. I'll be sending around more details next week, including a conference call number and information.

Thanks for helping make healthcare reform happen!

Thousands of Healthcare United activists clearly recognized what President Bush did not, that the Medicare reform bill that the House and Senate approved shores up vital healthcare services for millions of seniors and military families and allows doctors to do the work they were meant to do - care for their patients.

Senator John McCain didn't seem to grasp this either, but your message reached his desk loud and clear.

Bush's decision was based in part because the bill would reduce payments to private Medicare Advantage plans offered by insurance companies. And as many of those companies are staunch supporters of the Bush administration, the president chose to side with them rather than Medicare patients.

When our Congress gathers to vote on the override of the president's veto, he'll find out once again not to underestimate the power of concerned activists like Healthcare United and others who are standing together to ensure that Medicare keeps working for seniors, the disabled and military families.

Speaking at a Health Reform Summit in Washington DC, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernake shared some of his thoughts on healthcare costs and his prognosis was quite gloomy. The National Coalition on Health Care estimates that by the year 2016 spending on healthcare will consume 20% of the nations’ gross domestic product -- approximately $4.2 trillion.

According to Chairman Bernake, “Per capita health care spending in the United States has increased at a faster rate that per capita income for a number of decades.”

So what does it all mean? Well, if you're a healthcare worker and have a family of four, it means that you spent nearly $3,300 per year for healthcare coverage in 2007.  That's 10% more than you spent in 2006, according to the National Coalition on Health Care.
 
With out of pocket healthcare costs going up 10% in one year, how are families supposed to get ahead?

Sources:

1) http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-06-17-voa39.cfm <http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-06-17-voa39.cfm
2) http://www.nchc.org/facts/cost.shtml

The Senate floor exploded in a roar of bipartisan cheering yesterday as Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA) returned to cast his vote on the much anticipated Medicare bill that would block a 10% cut in payments to doctors, support community hospitals, and expand access to primary care services. The Senator’s vote was among 9 that helped secure a veto-proof margin of (69-30) for one of the most critical pieces of healthcare legislation this year.

The warm reception Senator Kennedy received speaks volumes about the character of a man that has dedicated his life to improving the quality of our healthcare system over a distinguished 46 year career.

"I return today to keep a promise to our senior citizens, and that is to protect Medicare. Win, lose or draw, I wasn't going to take the chance that my vote would make a difference," Kennedy said in statement released from his office.

Here's some footage from his return:

In stark contrast to Senator Kennedy, Republican presidential candidate Senator John McCain talks often about his commitment to improving the healthcare system, but didn't make it to DC to vote on the bill or the previous vote that came to the floor on June 26th.

For more news on Senator Kennedy’s vital Medicare vote, click here!

I came across a recent report by The Commonwealth Fund that talked about underinsurance. Underinsurance is when you have insurance but it covers very little with high co-pays and even higher deductibles. For those who have not heard of it, consider yourself very lucky because 25 million patients in our healthcare system have to deal with this problem each time they seek care. And sadly, this number is growing.
 
On average, if you’re underinsured you pay anywhere upwards of 10% of your income on out-of-pocket medical expenses – and that’s on top of paying a premium for your health insurance. The result of this is that those who are underinsured regularly go without needed care such as doctor visits, filling prescriptions, and following up on recommended tests or treatment.
 
A troubling finding of this report is that among families earning over $40,000 per year, rates of being underinsured have nearly tripled since 2003.
 
The topic of underinsurance isn’t getting as much attention as it should in the national healthcare debate, but it further highlights the problem that the healthcare system in this country needs to be fixed -- yesterday.
 
You can read the full article here.