KHCC Participates in PBS Interview on Poverty and Health in Kansas
On May 21st, KPTS Channel 8, the Wichita area’s PBS station, aired a 30 minute Kansas Health Watch special on poverty and health in Kansas. KHCC Executive Director Corrie Edwards and a consumer were featured in the broadcast. Edwards discussed the prevalence of medical debt in Kansas and the difficulty many health consumers have paying their medical bills.
Watch the interview below.
Expanding Health Care Coverage: Proposals to Provide Affordable Coverage to All Americans
Earlier this week, the United States Senate Finance Committee released its description of policy options on coverage, "Expanding Health Care Coverage: Proposals to Provide Affordable Coverage to All Americans." This paper contains strong proposals to improve coverage and represents another major step forward to achieve affordable health care coverage for everyone. Click here to view the report as well as PowerPoint slides prepared by Senate staff that provide an overview of the paper.
One in Three Kansans Without Health Insurance & Kansans of Color Are More Likely to Go Without Health Insurance
According to a new report from Families USA, nearly one out of three people (31.4 percent) in Kansas under the age of 65 went without health insurance from 2007 to 2008.
Of the 748,000 uninsured Kansans, nearly three-quarters (71.4 percent) went without health coverage for six months or longer during this period. Moreover, people of racial and ethnic minorities are more likely to go without health insurance than whites.
Families USA released its report in March 2009, followed by reports specific to each state in the union.
Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee to Hold Hearing on Medical Debt
The Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee will hold a hearing to discuss the impact of medical debt on Kansans on Tuesday, March 3, 2009 at 1:30 p.m. in room 136-N of the Capitol. The hearing will put a face on the problems that so many Kansans deal with in having to make a choice between health and money. This is an issue that affects Kansans from all walks of life and from rural and urban areas alike. Read more . . .
Click here to read KHCC Executive Director's testimony.
Click the links below to read Kansas consumer's testimony.
In December, KHCC's California-based partner, Viewpoint Learning, released a progress report on the multi-step Voices for Health Care project. The report provides project findings for the three participating states - Kansas, Ohio, and Mississippi. You can read the progress report and watch a video of the March 2008 Choice Dialogues, a key step in the Voices for Health Care project. Stay tuned for more updates and video.
Brought to you by Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report provided by Kaiser Health News. Click here to view.
~What's New~
KHCC Uses Documentary to Promote Issue of Medical Debt
KHCC and documentary filmmaker Rebecca Schanberg have teamed up to highlight the issue of medical debt. KHCC will host a screening of Schanberg’s film “Do No Harm” in Lawrence. The film tells the story of two “whistleblowers” who uncover a Georgia hospital’s punitive collections practices. The screening will be held in the Gallery Room of the Lawrence Public Library on Thursday, July 16, 2009. The showing will begin at 6:00pm and will be followed by a short discussion on the prevalence of medical debt in Kansas. Lawrence area legislators have been invited to attend the screening and discussion.
Providing Care to the Uninsured Adds to the Costs of Health Insurance Premiums for Kansans
The numbers of uninsured Kansans and the costs of health insurance premiums in Kansas are rising. According to a report released today by Families USA, these problems are interrelated. Read more...
Click here to view the latest blog on Families USA's "Hidden Health Tax" report.
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~Message of the Month~
It's time to stop playing politics and solve the health care crisis. Health care reform will give you the freedom of choice to keep your current plan including keeping your current doctor, or choose another private plan, or the choice of a quality affordable public health insurance plan. Health care reform will stop the insurance companies from denying coverage for an illness you had 5 years ago or some other pre-existing condition, or denying you care because of your age. Health care will be affordable-it will cost less and cover more. It will be a uniquely American solution that gives you the peace of mind of knowing you will always have quality, affordable health care. Click here to review past messages.
