Quality Health Care for All Campaign
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For more information on health care reform, visit the separate NJ For Health Care site.
To make NJCA's Quality Health Care For All Campaign more readable, we have created a new page focused on the many activities of New Jersey Health Care for America Now (NJ HCAN).
New Reports! See Additional Resources (below) for reports by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, The Lewin Group, Jacob Hacker, Sen. Max Baucus, and more.
TAKE ACTION to Win Health Care Reform in 2009! Click on each Event for details.
- COMING SOON! News on the June 25 Health Care Reform Lobby Day & Rally in Washington DC!
- Update! The May 30 "Day of Action for Health Care Reform" in Montclair a Success!
- Update! Learn about the April 14 "Health Care Town Hall"
- Update! Our April 4 "Bridge to Health Care" Rally in Camden & Philadelphia drew 350 participants! — see photos & video!
- JOIN! NJ HCAN — online sign-on option. Get your family and friends to join too!
Victory!!
Funding for NJ FamilyCare RESTORED in NJ's FY2010 State Budget!
Governor Corzine announced, on June 29, 2009, that the proposed $9 million cut to NJ FamilyCare (which would have cut back enrollment for parents between 150% — 200% of poverty) has been restored. This news is a direct result of all the amazing work our coalition has done in the last few weeks. Not only did we stop the proposed cutback to FamilyCare, but the program has been improved with the elimination of premiums for all children below 200% of poverty.
Thank you all for your hard work on this critical issue and congratulations to all! A special shout-out to our friends at AARP for their gutsy and out-spoken position, willing to give up their members homestead rebate (for seniors making between $100,000 — $150,000/year) in order to keep FamilyCare open to hard-working families.
We also thank Senator Vitale for his strong and outspoken support, Assemblyman Greenwald, Governor Corzine and Members of the Legislature who helped make this critical restoration possible.
Coming Soon! NJ Citizen Action will be releasing a press statement.
More Information
For your reference, here are selected earlier resources:
The NJ For Health Care Campaign calls on New Jersey policymakers to OPPOSE proposals in New Jersey's Fiscal Year 2010 State Budget to roll back enrollment of parents between 150 and 200 percent of the federal poverty level (FPL) in the NJ FamilyCare Program, and to implement co-payments for Medicaid recipients and people in the AIDS Drug Distribution Program (ADDP).
The NJ For Health Care Coalition delivered a letter to all Members of the New Jersey State Legislature on Wednesday, May 6, 2009 urging Members to oppose proposals to cutback funding for FamilyCare, Medicaid and the ADDP. Read the letters to the NJ Senate and the Assembly.
The NJ For Health Care Coalition and NJ Coalition For A Moral Budget were joined by NJ State Senator Joseph Vitale (D-Middlesex), Chair of the NJ Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee for a Press Conference on Tuesday, May 12 at 11:00 a.m. in Room 109 of the Trenton Statehouse calling on Members of the NJ Legislature to restore funding to these critical programs that serve our state's most vulnerable residents.
- NJ For Health Care Press Release.
- Coalition for a Moral Budget Press Release.
- List of Speakers.
- See who attended!
- Read Statements:
New Report! On Tuesday, June 9, 2009 the NJ for Health Care Campaign held a TelePress Conference to release a new report by the Rutgers Center for State Health Policy (CHSP) titled "State Practices in Health Coverage for Immigrants: A Report for New Jersey" (June 2009).
Based on key findings in the Report, NJ For Health Care called on State policymakers to restore $1 million for outreach and enrollment funding for NJ FamilyCare in NJ's Fiscal Year 2010 State Budget and recommend that NJ implement more effective outreach and enrollment strategies based on successful practices in states such as New York and Massachusetts including more partnerships with local and community-based organizations, more investment of meaningful financial resources, and the creation of user-friendly one-stop website.
- Read the Report.
- Read NJ For Health Care's Policy Recommendations.
- Read the Press Release.
- Read the Media Coverage (digest form) and the article "Groups Want New Jersey To Restore Immigrant Outreach Funds" (The Medical News — June 10, 2009).
News Coverage:
- "Preserve Health Care Access" (The Times of Trenton — June 5, 2009)
- "N.J. FamilyCare Funding: An Avoidable Budget Cut" (Star-Ledger — May 26, 2009)
- "Untouchables On Tax Rebate?" (Gloucester County Times — May 14, 2009)
- "N.J. Senators Set To Fight For Budget Priorities" (Philadelphia Inquirer — May 18, 2009)
- "Statehouse Press Conf. Sen Vitale & Advocates Oppose State Budget" (NewsBlaze — May 12, 2009)
- "Vitale Statement On Health Care Cuts In FY 2010 Budget" (PolitickerNJ — May 12, 2009)
- "Sen. Vitale Joins Chorus Protesting Budget Cuts To Health Care" (NJBIZ — May 12, 2009)
- "NJ Lawmakers Wants To Cut Rebate For Some Seniors" (NJBIZ — May 13, 2009)
- "Plan Would Cut Seniors' Rebates, Sparing Programs" (Star-Ledger — May 13, 2009)
- "Falling Short: Time to Keep the FamilyCare Promise" — New Jersey Policy Perspective, May 2007
- "Coverage of Parents Helps Children Too" — Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, October 2006
- "An Advocate's Guide to the State Budget" — New Jersey Policy Perspective, 2005
With record high unemployment, thousands of New Jersey residents are losing their jobs and health care for themselves and their families. In December 2008 and January 2009 alone, it is estimated that 650 New Jersey residents a day lost their health coverage. Given the current economic climate, it is absolutely the wrong time to freeze enrollment in NJ FamilyCare for low income working parents or implement co-payments for those who can least afford them.
Proposed Conversion of Horizon BCBS of New Jersey
Support S-2532 / A-3729 — Legislation to Ensure Necessary Transparency, Consumer Protection and Public Participation in the Conversion Process
On August 15, 2008, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey, the State's largest, and only non-profit, health insurer, filed an application with the NJ Department of Banking and Insurance (DOBI) and the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) to convert to become a for-profit insurance company. Horizon's latest bid to convert raises numerous concerns relative to the health of NJ consumers and taxpayers.
NJ needs to know what impact conversion will have on the health status of all NJ residents including access to quality and affordable health care for underserved and vulnerable members of our communities, children, seniors, low and moderate income families, disabled residents and those with chronic illnesses.
S-2532 (Weinberg) and A-3729 (Vainieri-Huttle) protects consumers three important ways:
- Requires the State to hire an independent expert to conduct a fairness analysis evaluating the impact of the proposed conversion on the health status of all NJ residents. The fairness analysis allows the State to make a sound judgment regarding whether conversion is in the public interest as required by NJ law.
- Requires the State to hold a minimum of four public hearings, with at least one hearing each in the northern and southern regions of the State and at least two in the central region of the State, giving the public adequate opportunity to have a voice in the conversion process.
- Allows interested parties and those directly affected by the proposed conversion to apply for intervenor status so that concerns about the public health impacts and the protection of nonprofit assets are raised and addressed.
Take Action! CLICK HERE to Email Your Legislators and Urge them to Support and Co-Sponsor S-2532 / A-3729.
CLICK HERE for More About the Proposed Conversion of Horizon, the NJ Horizon Watch Coalition, and S-2532 / A-3729
The NJ Horizon Watch Coalition is a broad-based alliance of over 20 health care, consumer, labor, senior, faith-based, student, disability, civil rights and social justice organizations working to ensure that the proposed conversion of Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield, from a non-profit to for-profit insurer, takes place in accordance with both the spirit and full letter of the law.
The NJ Horizon Watch Coalition is also working to ensure that the public's interest is adequately represented, promoted and served, especially for low and moderate income individuals and families who are likley to have difficulty finding affordable health insurance.
The Physician Payments Sunshine Act
The Physician Payments Sunshine Act (S.301), introduced by Senators Kohl (D-WI) and Grassley (R-IA), would bring much needed transparency to the financial relationships that exist between drug and medical device companies and the medical profession by requiring all pharmaceutical, medical device, biotech companies and their subsidiaries to disclose all payments to physicians after reaching a $100 aggregate into a public online database.
Physicians write more than two billion prescriptions a year, an average of seven for every American. To capture these sales, the pharmaceutical industry spent $20.4 billion in marketing during 2007. Expenditures directed at physicians totaled $7.2 billion in 2005 (excluding pharmaceutical samples). An undisclosed portion of that budget is spent on direct payments to physicians in the form of gifts, food, continuing medical education, travel, and consultancy fees.
While pharmaceuticals and medical devices play a critical role in patient care, undisclosed gifts such as consulting payments, speaking fees, classes, and meals can inappropriately influence medical decisions and create conflicts of interest. Increased transparency of gifts and financial relationships will allow the government and the public to make informed decisions about prescription drug and medical device use.
Numerous reports have demonstrated that aggressive marketing tactics can exert undue influence on prescribing. Drug companies alone spend at least $25 billion per year marketing to doctors. Not only is this a huge driver of drug costs, but published evidence clearly shows that marketing spending shifts doctors toward higher cost and sometimes less-safe drugs.
Resources
- TAKE ACTION! Download the TEMPLATE letter and SEND to Senator Menendez asking him to support the Physician Payment Sunshine Act.
- Addressing Cost and Quality: The Physician Payment Sunshine Act.
- Physician Payment Sunshine Act Fact Sheet.
- View National Coalition for Appropriate Proscribing Members.
- JOIN! the National Coalition for Appropriate Proscribing (Download Invitation).
NEW REPORT!
Health Reform: The Cost of Failure
On May 21, 2009, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), along with New Jersey Citizen Action and the NJ Citizen Action Education Fund released a report, "Health Reform: The Cost of Failure."
It projects that if federal health care reform efforts are not enacted soon, within 10 years the cost of health care for businesses could double and the number of uninsured Americans could reach 66 million — with middle-income families hardest hit. The report was conducted by researchers from the Urban Institute in Washington, D.C. Read the Press Release, Statement, and full report.
Americans at Risk: One in Three Uninsured
The Uninsured: A Closer Look
State-Specific Report by Families USA
Every year, the U.S. Census Bureau — in its Current Population Survey (CPS) — reports the number of people who are uninsured. This widely quoted number is intended to offer an estimate of how many people did not have any type of health insurance at any point in time during the previous calendar year.
There are many people, however, who are uninsured for a portion of a year but not for the entire year. Though these individuals may suffer severe consequences to their health and their economic well-being as a result of being uninsured, they are not included in the Census Bureau's number.
In March 2009, Families USA released a new report, Americans at Risk: One in Three Uninsured, which was designed to provide a comprehensive picture of how many Americans were directly affected by the lack of health coverage in 2007-2008. That report contains national data, as well as a detailed discussion of the methodology.
On April 7, 2009 Families USA released a NJ State-Specific Report showing that:
- More than four out of five of New Jersey's uninsured, or 81 percent, were in working families, working full- or part-time.
- More than three out of five, or 60.2 percent, of those individuals and families in New Jersey with incomes below twice the poverty level — $42,400 of annual income for a family of four in 2008 — went without health insurance at some point in 2007-2008.
- In addition, almost one-quarter, or 23.6 percent, of those individuals and families in New Jersey with incomes at or above twice the poverty level — $42,400 of annual income for a family of four in 2008 — went without health insurance at some point in 2007-2008.
- While whites accounted for the largest number of uninsured in New Jersey, Hispanics/Latinos and African Americans were much more likely to be uninsured than whites: 58.1 percent of Hispanics/Latinos and 39.1 percent of African Americans went without health insurance in 2007-2008, compared to 22.7 percent of whites.
- Read the News Release.
- Read the NJ Report (PDF of full report).
- Read News Coverage of the Report Release:
- "Report Finds Health Insurance Gap In N.J." (Star-Ledger – April 7, 2009)
- "An Unhealthy Crisis" (The Times of Trenton – April 7, 2009)
- "Report: More NJ Residents Lacking Health Insurance" (Forbes – April 7, 2009)
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Report "At the Brink: Trends in America's Uninsured 1994–2007"
NEW! With Congress and the Obama administration discussing how to reform the nation's health care system, this new report looks at what has happened since the last significant reform effort ended in 1994 without any comprehensive congressional action. At the Brink: Trends in America's Uninsured 1994-2007 chronicles state-by-state health coverage trends. The report finds that over the last 15 years, nearly every state has seen increased numbers of uninsured residents, greater costs for workers while their incomes are flat, and significant erosion of private coverage.
- Read NJ Citizen Action Education Fund's Public Statement, distributed on Wednesday, March 25, 2009
- Read At the Brink: Trends in America's Uninsured 1994-2007 (PDF of full report)
"NEXT STEP: Health Care" NJ Report
NJ Health Care for America Now Coalition has released a new report, "NEXT STEP: Health Care" (link to complete report), showing that we cannot solve New Jersey's economic and fiscal crisis without National Health Care Reform in 2009.
The report lays out exactly how skyrocketing health care costs are busting New Jersey's state and local government budgets, crippling businesses, and making it hard for families to afford the health care they need to make ends meet. "NEXT STEP: Health Care" was released on February 23, 2009, by NJ Citizen Action, the NJ Health Care for America Now (HCAN) Campaign, Rutgers AAUP-AFT, the Statewide Parent Advocacy Network, New Jersey SEIU and the Health Professionals and Allied Employees. Read our Media Release.
New Report: Without Reform, Health Costs Will Double
Economic Recovery Bill and Broader Health Reform Urgently Needed
Without action from Congress, premiums and deductibles for residents of New Jersey with employer provided insurance will nearly double by 2016, according to a new report released on January 28, 2009 by the New Jersey Public Interest Research Group (NJPIRG). Read an executive summary of the report, and download the complete Health Care in Crisis (4.8 MB PDF).
"Unchecked, health care premiums will double by 2016," said NJPIRG Advocate Jacob Koetsier, "The health care reforms in President Obama's economic recovery plan are indispensable first steps to addressing this crisis."
New Jersey PIRG attributes these high costs to wasteful health spending and the insurance and pharmaceutical industries that profit from it. The report concludes that one out of three dollars spent on health care fuels profits for special interests without delivering better health care for patients.
The report spotlights two important categories of wasteful health spending in New Jersey:
- $7,320,320,000.00 each year was spent on inappropriate, ineffective and uncoordinated care which can actually cause harm to patients.
- An estimated $1,360,368,000.00in red tape is created by bloated insurance company bureaucracy.
Koetsier lauds the recovery plan's $24.1 billion investment in the health care infrastructure. Koetsier states, "This legislation funding of health information technology, evidence-based prevention, and comparative effectiveness research will enable reforms which we discuss in the report."
New Jersey Citizen Action, a state-wide watchdog group, agreed with the NJPIRG assessment, "It is crucial to address the rising cost of health care in New Jersey and across the country, and to make substantive healthcare reform a part of the economic recovery package, said Leo Torrey of NJCA. He added, "Lowering healthcare cost will bring much needed relief to all Americans."
The U.S. PIRG report calls for additional longer-term reforms that crack down on drug company marketing, rein in insurance industry red tape, and reform provider payment to encourage more effective medical care.
"This year, a new President and a new Congress have an opportunity to pass broad health reform that tames the waste, inefficiency, and skewed incentives that drive up our health care costs," noted Koetsier. "New Jersey's families can't afford to miss this opportunity."
For more information, contact Jacob Koetsier at 609-394-8155 ext. 313. New Jersey PIRG is a statewide, nonprofit non partisan citizen-based advocacy organization.
Core Principles
Health Care is a Right, Not a Market Commodity
New Jersey, like our country, faces a growing health care crisis, with more than 1.3 million residents uninsured and tens of thousands of others with inadequate coverage. The skyrocketing cost of coverage creates enormous pressure for families, businesses and our entire economy. New Jersey must address this crisis by taking bold action and setting an example for the nation.
Many current health care reform proposals are inadequate solutions to the health care crisis because they view health care as any other commodity subject to the laws of supply and demand. True health care reform will occur only when access to quality health care – like access to fire protection, police protection, and elementary and secondary education – is a right of all Americans, not a product that is available only to those who can afford it. Government's role is to guarantee quality affordable health care for everyone and must play a central role in regulating, financing, and providing health coverage.
The New Jersey Health Care Reform Campaign supports the creation of a state-wide universal health care system that incorporates the following principles.
- Guaranteed Access to Affordable, Comprehensive Health Care for All New Jerseyans.
- Improves the Quality of Care for All New Jerseyans.
- Shared Responsibility.
- Reduce and Contain Costs to Assure Affordable Coverage.
- Preventive Care
Download a copy of these Core Principles with additional details.
New Jersey For Health Care Campaign
On Tuesday, April 29, 2008 a diverse alliance of organizations from across the state joined together at the Trenton Statehouse to announce the New Jersey for Health Care Campaign, a new initiative dedicated to finding a long-term solution to the health care crisis facing NJ and the nation. The NJ for Health Care Campaign is advancing a bold agenda for comprehensive statewide health care reform that will serve as a model for the nation. Read the Media Release.
The New Jersey for Health Care Campaign is made up of a broad-based alliance of health care, consumer, senior, student, disability, women's, labor, faith-based, civil rights and social justice organizations working to bring guaranteed, high quality, affordable health care to all New Jersey residents. See a complete list of organizations in the NJ for Health Care Campaign.
The NJ for Health Care Campaign continues to build strong alliances with other patient, health care, and social service agencies.
Download and Read:
- New Jersey for Health Care Core Principles.
- Media Release: NJCA's Response to Senator Vitale's Healthcare Proposal.
- Health Care for America by Jacob S. Hacker.
On Friday, October 10, 2008, the NJ For Health Care Campaign launched a new website — njforhealthcare.org — which will provide New Jerseyans with comprehensive information and resources on health care reform efforts at the state and national level, up-to-date news articles and press releases, a story-bank for New Jerseyans to share personal accounts of insurance company horror stories, opportunities to take action and the ability for both individuals and organizations to join the NJ For Health Care Campaign in working to make high quality, affordable health care a reality for all hard-working NJ families. Read the full Media Release — and visit njforhealthcare.org!
Take Action! Join the New Jersey For Health Care Campaign
Organizations: Sign the 2008 Endorsement Form.
Individuals: Sign the Health Care Voter Pledge Card.
Pledge your support for:
- Quality, affordable health care for all, without gaps in coverage or access;
- Care that is cost efficient and effective;
- Care that promotes wellness and prevention; and
- Financing that is fair and includes business, consumers, the health care industry and government.
For more information, contact Eve Weissman at 856-966-3091 or eve@njcitizenaciton.org.
New! The NJ Main Street Alliance brings together hundreds of small business owners who want real health care reform! Small businesses are the heart of New Jersey's economy and the heart of our communities. NJ businesses with fewer than 100 employees employed 1.3 million workers in 2005 — 37 percent of the state's private sector jobs, above the national average. No one knows as well as small business owners do how badly our health care system is broken. Small businesses are routinely left vulnerable to the premium hikes, benefit cuts, coverage denials and administrative nightmares that are commonplace in the health care system today. Join united small business owners across the state coming together to fix the broken health care system. Learn more about the NJ Main Street Alliance.
Release of Our National Survey Report: Taking the Pulse of Main Street
On January 15, 2009, at the Trenton Statehouse, the NJ Main Street Alliance released its national survey report, Taking the Pulse of Main Street: Small Businesses, Health Insurance, and Priorities for Reform (7.4MB download).
This report was conducted on nearly 1,200 small business owners and self-employed individuals in 12 states throughout the country. It focuses on small business owners' perspective on health care — their current health care experiences and preferred methods of reform.
For more information please contact: Crystal Snedden, Small Business Organizer, crystals@njcitizenaction.org or 973-643-8800 Ext. 31.
Conduct a Health Care Affordability Session in Your Neighborhood!
How much can YOU Afford to Spend on Health Care?
- Do you have the health care security you and your family need?
- What is truly affordable health care for New Jersey families and communities?
- Fill out an Affordability Worksheet and be part of innovative new research that will change the way Trenton looks at health care reform!
- Learn more about health care reform proposals in NJ and nationally... find out how YOU could be impacted!
Host an Affordability Session at your church, synagogue, mosque, senior or community center, or with friends and neighbors.
For more information, contact NJCA Organizer Leo Torrey at 856-966-3091 ext. 205 or leo@njcitizenaction.org.
Greater Disclosure of Medical Errors
Nearly 100,000 Americans die each year from Preventable Medical Errors. In recent years, according to the NJ Department of Health, almost 100 died in New Jersey — but we don't know where. You can help!
Take Action! Call the AARP health care quality hotline at 1-800-844-2272 and urge Health Commissioner Heather Howard to make this important medical information public.
Preventable Medical Errors (PMEs) are avoidable mistakes that result in serious injury or even death. All too many New Jerseyans have experienced the terrible effects of preventable medical errors. However, in New Jersey, consumers are being denied the right to know where these errors are occurring.
For more information, read NEW! "Charlie Dent, Leonard Lance Among Moderate Republicans Opposed To Government-Run Health Care" (Express-Times – May 21, 2009), "Vitale-Sweeney-Weinberg Bill To Publicize Hospital Errors Approved In Assembly" (PolitickerNJ – May 21, 2009), the editorial "Don't Conceal Medical Errors" in the Asbury Park Press and view the AARP Video News Release, which sheds light on the horrors of PMEs and calls for Health Commissioner Heather Howard to release to the public each NJ hospital's safety record. Please take action today.
You have the right to know where Preventable Medical Errors are occurring in New Jersey. Please call 1-800-844-2272 and ask Commissioner Heather Howard to release the numbers by health care facility!
Support Children's Health Insurance – SCHIP
The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), enacted with bi-partisan support a decade ago as part of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (BBA), is designed to build on Medicaid by providing insurance to low-income children who are uninsured, but ineligible for Medicaid. New Jersey's SCHIP program is called NJ FamilyCare.
After two presidential vetoes and days before the program was scheduled to run out, Congress extended the SCHIP program until March 2009. The legislation includes just enough money to sustain the program at its current level and keep the approximately 6 million children in SCHIP from losing their health coverage. Unfortunately, there is no funding to cover uninsured children who are eligible for the program but not enrolled.
The extension was contained in a large health care bill called the Medicare, Medicaid and SCHIP Extension Act of 2007. Taken as a whole, this bill is both a disappointment and a promise for more health care action in future years. For example, the bill does not address the Bush administration's harmful directive to limit SCHIP eligibility to families who make less than 250 percent of the federal poverty level. Overturning this wrong-headed policy is a top priority for advocates.
As the number of uninsured children continues to rise, SCHIP will not be able to support current program levels or expand coverage to cover more uninsured children without additional federal funding.
The NJ For Health Care Campaign supports full funding for SCHIP and opposes the President's veto of funding for critical human needs. NJ for Health Care calls on New Jersey's entire congressional delegation to support proposals to increase funds for SCHIP and to pay for SCHIP expansion by eliminating over-payments to Medicare Advantage Plans (private Medicare plans paid for on the backs of taxpayers and seniors).
Feds Back Down on Bad Policy
Restrictive new rules promulgated by the Bush administration through an August 17, 2007 directive issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) would have impeded New Jersey's ability to provide health insurance for thousands of low-income children have been put on hold.
If enforced, the rules would likley compel New Jersey to reduce the amount of income a family could make and still be eligible for coverage from FamilyCare. In response to opposition to these rules from New Jersey, other states and many national organizations, CMS issued a statement saying it will not take any compliance action "at this time."
While any delay in these rules is a good thing, CMS could still decide to implement them later. This threat could have a chilling effect on the State's effort to insure all children as required in recently passed state legislation. It also leaves unclear whether New Jersey will receive all the federal funds necessary to operate FamilyCare through the fiscal year. The State of NJ has sued the federal government on this issue and is awaiting a summary decision from the court.
New Jersey Citizen Action, New Jersey Appleseed Public Interest Law Center, Alliance for the Betterment of Citizens with Disabilities (ABCD), Alliance for Disabled in Action (ADA), BlueWaveNJ, Catholic Charities Diocese of Trenton, CWA Local 1034, CWA Local 1037, the Elder Rights Alliance of NJ, Family Voices of NJ, Health Care for All/NJ, Health Professionals and Allied Employees (HPAE), National Association of Social Workers (NASW) of NJ, National Organization for Women (NOW)—Morris County Chapter, Next Step (incorporated as People with Disabilities for Social and Economic Justice), the Statewide Parent Advocacy Network (SPAN), and the Workmen's Circle/Arbeter Ring NJ Region have submitted an amicus brief in support of the State's Complaint. Read the amicus brief.
CMS Directive
The directive issued on August 17, 2007 by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services would severely limit the ability of NJ and other states to insure all children through the current SCHIP program as well as expand coverage by offering full-cost buy-ins to those with incomes above 350% FPL. The CMS directive would:
- Require applicants to have been uninsured for one year and over;
- Require 95% participation rate for children below 200% FPL;
- Require the State to establish that there has not been a 2% decrease in enrollment of private plans; and
- Require the State not to offer an insurance plan on more favorable terms than a competitive private plan.
New Jersey has a lot at stake. Over 124,000 previously uninsured, low-income children are currently covered under the New Jersey's SCHIP program known as FamilyCare, which constitutes the State's primary mechanism to ensure comprehensive health insurance for children residing in New Jersey.
It remains important for anyone concerned about this issue to keep New Jersey's congressional delegation informed about the serious consequences of denying health coverage to children in working families already struggling with rising energy and food costs.
Resources
- A Step Backward: How Federal Rules Would Deny Health Insurance to New Jersey Children, By Raymond J. Castro, Senior Policy Analyst, NJ Policy Perspective
- Here is more information about the NJ FamilyCare program.
NJ Prescription Drug Pricing Registry Website Launched
The Rx Drug Registry, for which NJCA successfully lobbied, has officially been launched by the New Jersey Department of Consumer Affairs. Now consumers are able to easily search for drugs by entering the drug name, dosage, and their zip code.
With drug prices varying by as much as 25% from store to store, the registry will help those without prescription drug coverage, including those stuck in the "donut hole" of the new Part D prescription drug program. NJCA was instrumental in helping draft the legislation and lobbyied on its behalf. See our press release. Search the Rx Drug Registry to find the most affordable prices.
Additional Resources
- UPDATES! Check for National Health Care Reform Updates at the website of Majority Leader Steny Hoyer.
- NEW! Consumer Perspective on Senate Finance Committee Proposals to Expand Health Care Coverage By Community Catalyst
- The Beltway Inside Out — #1 — May 4, 2009 (A Campaign Strategy Blog from HCAN's National Campaign Manager, Richard Kirsch)
- EPI Policy Memorandum: "Why a Public Insurance Plan is Essential for Health Reform"
- Center for American Progress: "Competitive Health Care: A Public Health Insurance Plan that Delivers Market Discipline"
- "Insuring All Americans Is A Critical Component of An Efficient, High Quality Health Care System" By January Angeles (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities — April 21, 2009).
- "HEALTHY COMPETITION: How to Structure Public Health Insurance Plan Choice to Ensure Risk-Sharing, Cost Control, and Quality Improvement" By Jacob S. Hacker, Ph.D., UC Berkeley Department of Political Science and UC Berkeley School of Law.
- "Call to Action: Health Care Reform 2009" By Senator Max Baucus (D–Mont.), Chairman, Senate Finance Committee.
- "The Cost and Coverage Impacts of a Public Plan: Alternative Design Options" Prepared By John Sheils & Randy Haught (The Lewin Group — April 6, 2009) .
- "A Public Insurance Option Primer" (from Ezra Klein's blog at The American Prospect — March 2009).
- Ann Twomey, President of the Health Professionals and Allied Employees, Speaks at Obama's March 6, 2009 Health Care Summit! Here are her remarks in PDF format, or you can read them online.
- "The Case For Public Plan Choice In National Health Reform: Key To Cost Control And Quality Coverage" By Jacob S. Hacker, Ph.D.
- "Getting Tough: The Hospitals' Burden" By Deborah Sontag (The New York Times — November 8, 2008).
- "President Obama's Path to Greatness: Health Care As Stimulus" By Dean Baker (November 4, 2008).
