>This comes from the League of Women Voters, and I'm fwdg it in case you >haven't seen this info--- > >>-----Original Message----- >>From: Deanna Sessums [SMTP:[log in to unmask]] >>Sent: Wednesday, March 15, 2000 10:45 AM >>To: State League presidents >>Cc: Board of directors; All Staff >>Subject: LWVUS Urgent Lobby Request #106-17 >> >>This is a post-only service. Do not reply to this e-mail message. >> >>Tell Congress To Send A REAL Patients' Bill Of Rights To The President >> >>Despite strong support from the American public and an overwhelming >>bipartisan vote in the House of Representatives, the House-Senate >>conference committee working on the Patients' Bill of Rights has yet to >>agree to legislation which would provide REAL patient protections. >> >>Now is the time to contact your members of Congress and urge them to >>support the real patient protections included in H.R. 2723, the Bipartisan >>Managed Care Improvement Act, also known as the Norwood-Dingell bill. This >>House-passed bill addresses some of the most serious problems in managed >>care today while covering millions more Americans than other proposals. It >>guarantees basic health care protections, including the right to emergency >>room care using the "reasonably prudent person" standard, the right of >>seriously ill persons to receive ongoing treatment from specialists without >>getting permission each time from a managed care gatekeeper, and the right >>to an appeals process that will resolve grievances in a timely and balanced >>manner. >> >>No proposal has enjoyed such broad support -- in or out of Congress -- as >>the Norwood-Dingell bill. It is the only truly bipartisan bill that has >>passed the House or Senate, and it has been endorsed by more than 300 >>groups representing patients, providers, working people, small business >>owners, and people with disabilities. >> >>Once the conference committee reaches a compromise on this legislation it >>will return to the House and Senate floors for every member of Congress to >>vote on. Members of Congress need to hear from their constituents now in >>order to ensure that the conference committee reports out legislation that >>meets the basic health care protections described above. >> >>ACTION NEEDED >> >>1. Call your Representatives and Senators today and ask them to support the >>strong patient protections included in H.R. 2723, the Bipartisan Managed >>Care Improvement Act. You can reach them through the Capitol Hill >>switchboard at 202-224-3121. >> >>2. Follow up with an e-mail. You can locate your Representatives' and >>Senators' e-mail address and/or website through the League's website at >>http://www.lwv.org/cgi-bin/congress.pl?cf=lwv/cong.cf . >> >>3. Contact your grassroots network to generate calls and e-mails. Activate >>phone trees and copy this alert to your e-mail address list with a note >>asking them to take action as well. >> >>4. Let your e-mail address list know that they can subscribe directly for >>Grassroots Lobby Corps alerts like this one by going to the League's >>website at http://www.lwv.org/forms/joinglclist.html . They will be sent a >>confirmation message once their subscription to the GLC has been >>processed. >> >>THE MESSAGE >> >>The strong reforms passed by the House in the Norwood-Dingell bill should >>be the standard by which all legislation is measured. Ask your >>Representatives and Senators to support legislation that provides for an >>independent appeals process, ensures adequate access to specialists, and >>uses reasonable standards for access to emergency room care. Congress >>should pass strong patient protections by sending legislation, which >>establishes these essential health care protections, to the President for >>his signature. >> >>BACKGROUND >> >>The past decade has seen a "health care revolution" as managed care plans >>and health maintenance organizations (HMOs) replaced traditional >>fee-for-service health care plans for most Americans. The proportion of >>individuals enrolled in managed care plans has risen from 29 percent in >>1988 to 73 percent in 1995. Along with this exceptional growth have come a >>great number of problems as patients are denied the very coverage and >>quality care that they are paying for. These include HMOs' refusal to pay >>for emergency service, refusal to provide referrals to specialists and >>denials of coverage through one-sided internal appeals processes. The >>League strongly supports access to quality health care for consumers. >>While we support the use of managed care as a means of controlling costs, >>we are deeply concerned that this cost control has come at the expense of >>providing a basic level of quality care to patients. Congress recognized >>the increasing public concern over health care that emphasizes profits over >>people and both the Senate and the House debated and passed managed care >>reform legislation last year. >> >>The House of Representatives passed the Bipartisan Consensus Managed Care >>Improvement Act, H.R. 2723, by a strong vote of 275-151 on October 7, 1999. >>The legislation guarantees basic health care protections, including the >>right to emergency room care using the "reasonably prudent person" standard >>and the right of seriously ill persons to receive ongoing treatment from >>specialists without getting permission each time from a managed care >>gatekeeper. H.R. 2723 also guarantees patients the right to an appeals >>process that will resolve grievances in a timely and balanced manner. >> >>The Senate passed S. 1344, a managed care bill, by a vote of 53 - 47 on >>July 15, 1999. The legislation fell far short of achieving needed reform >>while failing to cover 2/3 of privately insured Americans. The League >>remains firmly opposed to managed care proposals, similar to that passed by >>the Senate, that do not provide for an outside appeals process, affect only >>a limited number of health plans, do not ensure adequate access to >>specialists and include provisions such as Medical Savings Accounts (MSAs) >>that would undercut universal health care. >> >>CONFERENCE COMMITTEE MEMBERS >>Below is a list of members of Congress who sit on the managed care reform >>conference committee. Although individuals in these states and >>congressional districts should particularly work to send a strong message >>to their representative(s), ALL members of congress should be asked to >>support strong patient protections when legislation once again comes before >>the entire Senate and House. >> >>SENATE >>Dodd (D-CT) >>Enzi (R-WY) >>Frist (R-TN) >>Gramm (R-TX) >>Gregg (R-NH) >>Harkin (D-IA) >>Hutchinson (R-AR) >>Jeffords (R-VT) >>Kennedy (D-MA) >>Mikulski (D-MD) >>Nickles (R-OK) >>Rockefeller (D-WV) >> >>HOUSE >>Andrews (D-NJ) >>Archer (R-TX) >>Berry (D-AR) >>Bilirakis (R-FL) >>Bliley (R-VA) >>Boehner (R-OH) >>Burton (R-IN) >>Clay (D-MO) >>Dingell (D-MI) >>Fletcher (R-KY) >>Goss (R-FL) >>Johnson, N (R-CT) >>McCrery (R-LA) >>Pallone (D-NJ) >>Rangel (D-NY) >>Scarborough (R-FL) >>Shadegg (R-AZ) >>Stark (D-CA) >>Talent (R-MO) >>Thomas (R-CA) >>Waxman (D-CA) >> >>For additional background information, check the League's website for >>previous action alerts on the Patients' Bill of Rights at >>http://www.lwv.org/takeaction/actalerts/alert_issue.html . >> >>You can find out how your members of Congress voted on the Patients' Bill >>of Rights and other League Priority issues in the last session of congress >>at http://www.lwv.org/takeaction/keyvotes.html . >> >>If you have questions or comments, please call Deanna Sessums, Grassroots >>Lobby Coordinator, at the national office, 202-263-1328, or contact her by >>e-mail at [log in to unmask] . >>### >> > Camilla Flintermann, CG for Peter 81/70/55 Oxford, Ohio http://www.newcountry.nu/pd/members/camilla/one.htm <[log in to unmask]> also, on PDWebring at http://members.tripod.lycos.nl/genugten/flinterm.htm "Ask me about the CARE list for Caregivers of Parkinsonians ! 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