VIRGINIA ORGANIZING PROJECT: Healthcare in Virginia

This comes from the Virginia Organizing Project Website:

We Need to Improve Access to Health Care in Virginia!
Everyone Must Have Access to Quality Affordable Health Care

* Forty-seven million Americans and one million Virginians do NOT have health insurance.
* About 75 percent of Virginia’s uninsured people work or live with someone who works full time – often for small businesses that can’t afford to provide health insurance.

Health Coverage Must Be Affordable

* Health care and health insurance are now unaffordable for many families, individuals and businesses.
* Premiums for family coverage have gone up 78 percent since 2001. Because many employers are shifting these higher costs to their workers, many low-income workers cannot afford health insurance that is offered to them.
* Even for people with health insurance, higher deductibles and co-payments have become obstacles to timely and appropriate care.

Health Coverage Must Be Comprehensive

* Health insurance must cover what people need to stay healthy and treat illnesses, injuries, chronic conditions and disabilities.
* Coverage must include parity for mental health, prescriptions, dental, hearing, vision, reproductive health care, rehabilitation, and some long-term care.
* Primary care, preventive care, health and nutrition education and choice in providers and treatment settings are essential.

Health Insurance Needs To Be Portable And Enrollment Should Be Simple

* People are reluctant to leave jobs or other situations for fear of losing health insurance.
* Many eligible people do not access already available public plans due to unnecessary procedures and documentation requirements.

The Health Safety Net (Medicaid) Must Be Preserved And Improved

* While Virginia’s Medicaid program provides quality coverage to over 700,000 low-income Virginians, there are still many thousands of very poor citizens who don’t qualify under Virginia’s particularly strict rules.
* For example, parents in a family of four can’t get Virginia Medicaid unless their countable income is under $6,000 per year! That’s the 6th lowest eligibility level in the entire country!
o Virginia can and should do much more to improve its Medicaid program:
o Virginia has the 9th highest per capita income in the U.S,
o But Virginia is ranked 48th for per capita Medicaid spending.
o Virginia is also ranked 50th (lowest) for federal grants received for programs such as Medicaid, meaning Virginians aren’t getting their money’s worth for the federal taxes we all pay!
* Virginia gets one federal dollar for every state dollar spent on Medicaid. Medicaid is a good investment and helps Virginia’s economy!

Government Must Be An Active Watchdog of the Health Care System To Ensure:
Strong Consumer Protections

* Prohibit practices such as using pre-existing conditions to deny coverage
* Create large groups to share costs more fairly
* Streamline insurance administration to eliminate unnecessary bureaucracy

Equity in Health Care

* Eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in health care access and quality
* Eliminate discrimination based on diagnosis or condition

Cost Controls that Promote Quality

* Use standard claim forms throughout system
* Use mid-level providers
* Use less expensive medications whenever appropriate


Tell your legislators that health care is a priority, tell them your story, and tell them what you think needs to be changed! You can write a letter, make a phone call or send an e-mail — let your voice be heard.
To contact your legislator go to: http://legis.state.va.us

For more information on health care reform:

Families USA
www.familiesusa.org

AARP
www.aarp.org/issues/dividedwefail/

SEIU
www.americansforhealthcare.org

AFL-CIO
www.aflcio.org/issues/healthcare

Contact: Brian Johns at bjohns_at_virginia-organizing.org