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Friday Alert July 28, 2006
Alliance for Retired Americans
888 16th Street, N.W. - Washington DC, 20006 - (202)
974-8222 - www.retiredamericans.or
Rep. Stark Introduces National Health
Plan
Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA), the ranking
Democrat on the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee,
introduced a national health care plan, AmeriCare, on July
25. The legislation, H.R. 5886, builds on the Medicare
model for all Americans. Coverage includes preventive,
hospital, physician, maternity, mental health, and prescription
care. For Medicare recipients, AmeriCare would streamline
cost sharing in Medicare and close the Part D doughnut
hole. Financing would come from contributions from
employers, individuals, and states, all of which pay into the
current, fractured health system. The bill has 29 original
co-sponsors, including Rep. John Conyers (D-MI), who introduced
H.R. 676, another national insurance plan, earlier in the
Congress. AmeriCare has been endorsed by the AFL-CIO, the
United Auto Workers, the Communications Workers of America, the
Service Employees International Union, the American Nurses
Association, and Consumers Union.
Medication Errors Harm Hundreds of
Thousands Annually
Mistakes in dispensing
drugs are so prevalent in hospitals that, on average, a patient
will be subjected to a medication error each day he or she
occupies a hospital bed, according to a recent report by the
Institute of Medicine in The Washington Post. The
panel of experts estimated that drug errors cause at least
400,000 preventable injuries and deaths in hospitals each year,
more than 800,000 in nursing homes and facilities for the
elderly, and 530,000 among Medicare recipients treated in
outpatient clinics. Many of these medication errors could
be avoided if doctors adopted electronic prescribing, if
hospitals had a standardized bar-code system for checking and
dispensing drugs, and if patients learned more about the drugs
they take, the report said. Common errors include doctors
writing prescriptions that could interact dangerously with other
drugs, nurses putting the wrong medication -- or the wrong dose
-- in an intravenous drip and pharmacists dispensing the wrong
dose. Electronic prescriptions would bring an end to
deciphering illegible handwriting but cannot guarantee that a
drug order is typed correctly. "Hospitals and long-term
care facilities often do not report errors to patients or family
members," said Edward Coyle, Executive Director
of the Alliance. "Such reporting should be mandatory."
The United States: Big Spenders, but
Only for a Few
The U.S. spends more on health
care per capita, yet has the largest uninsured population of any
advanced, industrialized country, according to a new book,
The State of Working America 2006/2007, released
Tuesday by the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). Compared
to 19 other wealthy countries that belong to the Organization
for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the U.S. health
care model fails miserably, with 16% of the population lacking
health insurance in 2004. Ireland, Austria and Finland
spend half of what the U.S. spends on health care, as a
percentage of GDP, and cover 99-100 percent of their respective
populations. "The system is broken. This study shows
that Americans spend far more - and get far less -
when it comes to health care," said George J.
Kourpias, President of the Alliance.
Health Insurance...and Unexpected
Membership in the Wrong Organization
"Be
careful what you sign up for" was the moral of a Washington
Post article this week about the partnership between an
insurance company and a conservative organization. In a
class-action lawsuit filed against prominent businessman J.
Patrick Rooney, plaintiffs are testifying that Rooney's
insurance company, Medical Savings Insurance Co., lured them
into unknowingly joining conservative political organization
Citizens for a Sound Economy (CSE) by selling high-deductible
insurance policies and tax-free savings plans at group discount
rates. When signing up members for a plan, the insurance
brokers would slip in a pre-completed application for CSE, now
called FreedomWorks. The company is headed by former House
Majority Leader Dick Armey (R-TX), and gained 16,000 members and
$638,000 through the sale of its insurance policies.
"Unethical industry people often prey on seniors," said
Ruben Burks, Secretary-Treasurer of the
Alliance. "This story highlights the importance of reading
every piece of paper before you sign anything. The last
thing you want is your money going to a group with the wrong
agenda."
Find Lower-Cost Medicine with Consumer
Reports Best Buy Drugs
The latest Consumer
Reports Best Buy Drugs report on statins (for high cholesterol
and heart disease) shows consumers how to save over $700 a year
by taking lower-cost medications. The free report,
available at www.CRBestBuyDrugs.org,
identifies two new, generic statins as Best Buy picks - meaning
they are just as effective and safe as similar drugs for high
cholesterol, but cost significantly less. Even for
consumers with insurance coverage, out-of-pocket payments would
decline, because most generics now require a lower co-pay -
usually $7 to $10 per prescription versus $25 or more for
brand-name medication. The free, public education effort
by Consumers Union helps patients and doctors find the most
effective and affordable medicines.
National Convention Coming in
September
The National Convention is coming
up September 5-8, 2006 in Washington, D.C. House Minority
Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid
(D-NV), and political commentator Mark Shields are confirmed
speakers, and many other key Congressional leaders and political
thinkers will share their wisdom for 2006. Members will
elect a president and secretary-treasurer, and at-large members
will also elect six community-based board members.
Nominees must be members in good standing of the National
Alliance. Any self-enrolled (at-large) member may attend
the meeting and is eligible to vote. Register for the
convention by calling 1-888-373-6497 or visit www.retiredamericans.org.
Attendees must register separately with the Washington Hilton
and Towers (1-888-324-4586) by August 3 to get the Alliance
Convention hotel rate. The very low discount hotel rate
has been extended for two weeks ONLY until August 3. After
August 3, the hotel rate rises to $179/night plus tax. The
Alliance has no control over the rate after August 3. The
Alliance is waiving the late registration fee for the
convention; therefore, registration will remain $80.
Please register for the convention and your hotel as soon as
possible.
Become part of a progressive grassroots movement! Join the Alliance:
www.retiredamericans.org/join |
