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  • Health Reform and Small Business: Watch the Meeting, Read the Report

    Posted by Jesse Lee on April 24, 2009 at 10:00 AM EDT

    Even as the broader economy puts a strain on the profits of small businesses, health care costs continue to go up, with the inevitable result that more and more small business workers simply don't get coverage. Read a new, meticulously documented report from HHS, "Helping the Bottom Line: Health Reform and Small Business."
    Also, at 11:00 this morning Nancy-Ann DeParle, Director of the White House Office of Health Reform, will meet with small business owners and representatives as part of the Administration’s continuing series of White House Health Care Stakeholder Discussions. Listen to their experiences first hand:
    Watch the live-stream of the discussion.

    UPDATE: A recap of the meeting from Rebecca Adelman of HHS, who was there:

    Today, as the Department of Health and Human Services released a report detailing how small businesses are struggling to keep up with rising health care costs, White House office of Health Reform Director Nancy-Ann DeParle went straight to the source. She hosted a group of over 20 representatives from small businesses across the country, who affirmed the findings in the HHS report – small business are uniquely feeling the impact of skyrocketing health care costs. In fact, nearly one-third of the uninsured – 13 million people – are employees of firms with fewer than 100 workers. As a result, an increasing number of small business owners are unable to offer coverage to their employees.
    Jody Hall, owner of "Verité Coffee and Cupcake Royale" in Seattle, Washington, opened the meeting with a story familiar to all the small business owners gathered at the White House. Each year, she said, it is becoming more difficult to offer viable insurance plans to her employees. She said her health insurance premiums went up 40 percent last year, "and that’s just for a basic plan that, in all honesty, doesn’t provide real security." Before opening a small business, Hall spent years working at a large corporation that provided affordable insurance to even part-time employees. There, she learned that offering health insurance is the right thing to do, and it also helps a business attract and maintain a talented pool of employees. This year she had to raise the price of cupcakes in her store and offer her employees a less attractive health care plan to compensate for the escalating insurance costs.
    Many of the small business owners expressed concern that health care costs were making it more difficult for them to grow and take new risks. Jane Huelle, who owns a specialty pet-supply and dog training store called "The Dog Spot" in Washington DC, has five employees. She said, "I could really use another person, but I can’t hire anyone else because I’m already paying a salary in health insurance." Other attendees spoke of having to make painful cutbacks. Chris and Becky Link, owners of "Imagination Branding", had to reduce their staff by a third on account of increasing health care costs and the economic recession. "We are like a family, it was hard to do," they said.
    Director of the White House's National Economic Council Larry Summers also took part in the discussion. He stressed that small businesses are the backbone of the American economy: "There’s never been a big business which didn’t start as a small business." He noted that providing health care coverage for employees is especially costly for small businesses, and "as a country, we can do much, much better than we are." Health care reform, he said, is both a moral issue for our children and a deeply practical issue – and this year, we have a good chance to make this right
    Health Reform Discussion With Small Business Owners(HHS Photo/ Chris Smith)

     

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  • Streaming at 10:00: Health Care Stakeholders Discussion

    Posted by Jesse Lee on April 8, 2009 at 9:26 AM EDT

    Continuing in the transparent tradition of the White House Forum on Health Reform and the Regional Forums that followed, watch another discussion with key stakeholders streamed at WhiteHouse.gov/live. It will be a diverse group of stakeholders, from businesspeople to insurers to health professionals, sharing their views with Counselor to the President and Director of the White House Office of Health Reform Nancy-Ann DeParle.

    Rebecca Adelman of HHS live-blogs the event below:

    12:20: Nancy-Ann DeParle, who has spent the entire meeting listening to the diverse constituencies gathered at the White House, closes the meeting and urges all present to stay involved and stay in touch. She says, "we will need all of you" as the health reform details are fleshed out in the coming days.

    11:58: Trevor Fetter from Tenet highlights the problems many insured Americans have when they need treatment in hospitals, but don't understand their insurance plans well enough to know of the financial burdens they may take on from their hospital stays. He says we often talk about the uninsured, but we can't forget about those who are insured but who still struggle to afford their medical treatment.

    11:40: Brook Lehmann with Family Voices is speaking about health care for children. She makes the point that the CHIP law is a phenomenal achievement, but it doesn't stop there. She is concerned that if children don't have adequate access to care, then the insurance card is meaningless. She suggests that underserved children are best reached at their schools.

    11:25: The meeting is tackling complicated issues at an impressive clip. Several participants have brought up the importance of educating patients about their choices for end of life care. Hospice care is being cited frequently as an option that would help reduce costs for the government and for families.

    11:07: Dr. Susan Kelly, President of Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science, is giving a passionate presentation about the state of the health care system in southern Los Angeles. She notes that for over 1.5 million people there is one hospital, and that the average person in southern LA spends under a dollar each year on health care because so few people receive treatment. She is urging that the health reform conversation speak to the shortage of affordable care in communities like these.

    10:53: There is a consensus at the meeting that we need to find ways to prevent illness before people even step into a health clinic. Ken Thorpe from the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease says the case for health reform is obvious. He says we need to redesign the delivery model for the treatment of chronic disease and implement innovative prevention programs for schools and communities.

    10:33: Electronic medical records are a hot topic at the meeting as a way to reduce costs. One participant says that a lot of America does not understand what "wiring" health care means. Dr. Mayer with the Society of Thoracic Surgeons says there is a big appetite for this to be developed in a way that is best for the patient. He points to his pen and says, this instrument still controls much of what we do in medicine, and we can do better.

    10:23: Now the participants are going around the table to introduce themselves. It's a diverse crowd with a lot of valuable insights on this complicated issue. Nancy-Ann first calls on two small business owners who both are struggling to pay the health care premiums for their employees, some of whom have chronic illnesses that require expensive treatment. They both say that the costs are unsustainable for their businesses.

    10:14: Nancy-Ann DeParle opens the meeting by citing the President's promise at his Congressional Address in February - that health reform cannot wait, must not wait, will not wait another year. She says she wants to discuss the President's principles for the health reform plan, and hear how the leaders around the table agree or disagree with the ideas he has laid out.

    10:02: Nearly 30 key stakeholders in the health reform effort are gathering around a large table on the third floor of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. White House Office of Health Reform Director Nancy-Ann DeParle is going to arrive any minute and will facilitate a conversation with the group of insurance industry executives, business leaders, health professionals and advocates about the reform effort.

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  • Streaming at 1:00 on AIDS.gov: New AIDS Awareness Campaign

    Posted by Jesse Lee on April 7, 2009 at 11:53 AM EDT

    Today the White House teams up with Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to launch a $45 million campaign to raise awareness on AIDS, an issue the President has spoken passionately about for years. This marks the first federally funded national domestic HIV/AIDS campaign in almost twenty years. Jeffrey S. Crowley, Director of Office of National AIDS Policy, will join Director of the Domestic Policy Council Melody Barnes, leading civil rights and HIV/AIDS groups, and officials from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation to announce the first phase of the campaign. Rebecca Adelman of HHS live-blogs the event below.
    Watch the event streamed live at AIDS.gov. [UPDATE: The event has now concluded.]

    Ed. Note: Visit the new website, CDC.gov/NineandaHalfMinutes, to learn more about the realities of the epidemic, how to prevent it, how to live with it, and what you can do to help.

    2:06: Jeff Crowley is wrapping up the event by thanking the speakers, the 14 partner organizations, and particularly the Kaiser Family Foundation which is also joining with the CDC to build the national media campaign.


    1:51: Jesse Milan says today he is celebrating the renewed committment by the federal government to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. As someone who has lived with HIV for more than 25 years, he tells the assembled group he still feels regret about what he did not know when he was infected. Milan says that today he celebrates the lives that will be saved by this educational campaign.

    1:41: Dorothy Height, Chair and President Emerita of the National Council of Negro Women, thanks the President, Mrs. Obama, and the 14 national African-American organizations who are going to deliver this important message. This effort will "take all of us," she says.  She stresses that we need to talk about the threat of HIV/AIDS as we talk about jobs, housing and civil rights. Height concludes by saying that we are all ready to bring the full strength of the movement to this campaign.

    1:30: Dr. Kevin Fenton with the CDC is now presenting the campaign materials to the group, which include video, audio, print and online messages in English and Spanish. He notes that the first phase of this campaign will encourage HIV testing within the African-American population. The next phase will target gay and bisexual men and women, and future phases will focus specifically on the Latino community and other high risk groups.

    1:13: Melody Barnes welcomes the group of over 100 advocates and partner organizations. She says that President Obama has often discussed that we don't talk about the threat of HIV/AIDS enough in our schools and communities. This new campaign will incorporate community groups - national African-American groups in particular - to educate populations most at risk. She is particularly highlighting the involvement and support of the faith community in this new campaign. 
     
    1:05: It's a full house at the Executive Office building as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is about to announce the first domestic HIV/AIDS awareness campaign in over a decade. Jeff Crowley opens the forum with a somber statistic: that every nine and a half minutes someone is infected with HIV in the United States. He says the "Act Against AIDS" campaign being announced today will direct Americans "to get the facts" about this serious epidemic within our own country that has been below the radar in recent years.  Domestic Policy Council Director Melody Barnes is up to speak next.

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  • California Regional Health Forum: Live-Blog

    Posted by Jesse Lee on April 6, 2009 at 1:39 PM EDT

    Director of Domestic Policy Council Melody Barnes speaks(Melody Barnes, Director of the Domestic Policy Council, speaks during the White House Regional Forum on Health Reform in Los Angeles, April 6, 2009.  Photo Credit Peter Grigsby)
    Rebecca Adelman of the Department of Health and Human Services returns to live-blog the final Regional Forum on Health Reform, watch the live stream at HealthReform.gov.

    3:53: Dr. Oz closes the forum by urging all of the participants in today’s forum, including those who are watching online and participating via satellite in cities across California, to go to www.healthreform.gov to continue to be part of the conversation about health care reform.
    3:46: Governor Gregoire closes by saying "we cannot fail again." She explains that the health reform we enact must be comprehensive, it must be universal, and it must provide affordable care. Governor Gregoire then finishes to loud applause when she says that "this country deserves a health care system that works for its people."
    3:43: Melody Barnes is making her closing remarks in Los Angeles. She says that today at the forum we heard all the reasons why we need to reform our health care system this year, and she urges the group to go back to their communities and insist to their friends, colleagues and family that health care reform happen immediately. She stresses that we may only have the next 100 days to accomplish this task, but that we can do it.
    3:39: Dr. Oz concludes by asking the Governors how Americans can help in the health reform effort. Governor Schwarzenegger responds by thanking the participants for participating in the forum, and urging everyone to stay involved. He says we cannot move forward in reforming the health care system without the voices of concerned Americans.

    3:30: Marian Wright Edelman is passionately addressing the forum. She says that we can do better when it comes to providing health insurance for children and eliminating health disparities. She said now is the time to end "the lottery of geography," and concludes by saying "God did not create two classes of children."

    3:25: Dr. Oz calls on the forum taking place in Oakland California, led by Mayor Ron Dellums. The Mayor introduces Don Miller, a practicing nurse in Seattle, Washington. Mr. Miller observes that emergency rooms are becoming more and more crowded, and are becoming more and more expensive. 

    3:15: Melody Barnes asks the forum how President Obama can reach out to everyday Americans to get their input on health reform, and she also asked members of the audience how they want to be involved in the effort. A participant named Louise answered her question directly by stressing the potential to match existing resources for future prevention and wellness programs, particularly those in schools.

    3:05: The group in Los Angeles is now hearing from Supervisor Oliveira via satellite in Clovis, California. Oliveira thanks Governor Schwarzenegger for his leadership, and says he challenges all of us to band together to tackle the most important public policy issue facing us, health care reform.

    2:59: Melody Barnes says that President Obama wants everyone around the table, and everything on the table as we discuss how best to reform the health system.

    2:55: Governor Gregoire thanks the President for signing the Children’s Health Insurance Program in February. She says it was her goal to insure every child by 2010, and while she wasn’t sure that would be possible before, Washington state will achieve that now thanks to the CHIP bill.

    2:52: Governor Schwarzenegger thanks the participants who have shared their stories, including one who shared a story about having her health policy cancelled by her insurance company. He said it is unacceptable that many in the audience and around the country have to "live in fear, even when they have a policy." He said this is something that is being raised as we talk about the need for universal health care. 

    2:46: Reynaldo Hernandez addresses the forum from a satellite location in San Diego. He says the cost of purchasing health insurance "just broke us financially." Hernandez said that in the United States, he knew he had a right to an education, and if he got in trouble with the law he had the right to an attorney – so why, if he gets sick, does he not have the right to have health insurance?

    2:42: A forum participant named Carole Moss just spoke emotionally about her son, who died from a preventable staph infection he got while receiving treatment in an Orange County hospital. She thanked President Obama for his dedication to health reform and transparency. She said she wished she had known that her son was at risk for such an infection.

    2:37: Governor Schwarzenegger takes a minute to talk about the importance of prevention as a way to bring down health care costs. He says Americans need to eat fewer calories and emphasizes wellness as a complement any health reform effort.

    2:30: Governor Schwarzenegger introduces Dr. Mehmet Oz, who is helping moderate the forum today. Dr. Oz reads a question submitted on www.healthreform.gov about the stress of health care costs on businesses and families, and then leads a discussion about the skyrocketing cost of health care. One forum participant points out that a leading reason Americans file for bankruptcy is illness. President of the California Medical Association, Dr. Dev GnanaDev, suggests that any health reform plan should provide universal coverage and universal access.

    2:14: Dr. Alice Chen, a doctor specializing in internal medicine and hospital medicine at UCLA, is now addressing the forum. She hosted one of the over 350 community discussions that took place in Calfornia and Washington State over the holidays this past year.  She tells a story about a man she met who lost his insurance because he couldn’t afford it, and who later died because he had difficulty getting in to see a doctor. By the time she met him in the hospital, he was too sick to walk. Dr. Chen tells the group that "it's time for us to make things right, no matter what it takes.  And what makes me hopeful is that every one of us has a voice, and we are using our voices and speaking up in unprecedented numbers."

    2:10: Domestic Policy Council Director Melody Barnes thanks the Governors for their leadership, and says she can "feel the momentum" that we have for health reform this year. She says that leaders in Washington, D.C. and in the states are talking about health reform, but so are thousands of everyday Americans who know we need health reform now. One of the 30,000 people throughout the country who held community discussions over the holidays, Dr. Alice Chen, is up to speak next.

    2:00: Governor Chris Gregoire is greeting the participants in the forum, and those watching in California, in Washington state and on Healthreform.gov. Governor Gregoire says that we desperately need national health reform – and that states cannot do it alone. She says she couldn’t be more delighted to work with Governor Schwarzenegger and other leaders around the country, President Obama especially, on this urgent issue.  She stresses that she agreed with President Obama that we cannot wait to reform our health system – that health reform is not only a moral imperative, but an economic imperative.

    1:52: Governor Schwarzenegger thanks Dr. Ross for hosting the forum today, and then goes on to thank President Obama for putting the spotlight on the important issue of health reform. Schwarzenegger says when Americans say they are going to do something, they do it – but health reform is one glaring exception. He says it speaks to the complexity of the issue and the difficulty of bringing together stakeholders. He then turns the microphone over to Governor Chris Gregoire.

    1:46: Dr. Bob Ross, President of the California Endowment which is hosting the forum today in Los Angeles, introduces Governor Schwarzenegger and thanks him for making California a healthier place. Dr. Ross also introduces, via satellite, the other gatherings in cities throughout the state of California (Oakland, San Diego, and Clovis) that are participating in the discussion.

    1:38: The fifth and final Regional Forum on Health Reform is getting started in Los Angeles, California. Today’s forum will be hosted by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Washington Governor Chris Gregoire, and Melody Barnes, who is Director of the White House Domestic Policy Council. The event will feature several special guests including Marian Wright Edelman, Dr. Dean Ornish and Dr. Mehmet Oz.

     

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  • Streaming Today: The Final Forum in California

    Posted by Jesse Lee on April 6, 2009 at 12:00 PM EDT

    At 10:30 AM in California, 1:30 PM back here in Washington, the final White House Regional Forum on Health Reform will be hosted by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Washington Governor Chris Gregoire – watch it streamed live at HealthReform.gov, or read the live-blog here at WhiteHouse.gov.
    While all of these forums together constitute only one significant step in a long process, it is hard not to look back and marvel at what an inspiring, eye-opening and sometimes heart-breaking journey it has been around the country. Starting at the White House Forum on Health Reform, which Nancy-Ann DeParle of the White House Office of Health Reform discussed later when the official report on that forum was released, there has been a different feel to this from prior efforts:
    After an hour and a half of discussion, we went back to the East Room to report the results of our breakout session to the President.  I held my breath when the President called on several members of the audience who had opposed health reform in the past, including Karen Ignagni of America’s Health Insurance Plans ("AHIP").  AHIP’s predecessor ran the "Harry and Louise" advertising campaign in the early 1990s, which is largely credited with rallying support against health care reform.  I knew things were different this time around when Karen said, "We want to work with you, we want to work with the members of Congress on a bipartisan basis here…We hear the American people about what’s not working…You have our commitment to play, to contribute, and to help pass health care reform this year."
    Every regional forum in every location has held its own unique lessons. In Michigan, we heard from the wife of a GM worker whose experience showed how health care concerns can compound the anxiety of employment uncertainty to unbearable proportions. In Vermont the idea of health care as part of the social safety net was a top concern. In Iowa we heard about the needs and preferences regarding long-term care in rural communities. And in North Carolina it was a snap shot of a state hurting about as bad as anybody during this economic crisis and facing even longer term challenges of an eroding manufacturing base.
    The forum in California will surely be just as interesting, and will shine a light on just as many unique issues. Don’t miss your chance to watch one live.

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  • Regional Health Forum: Greensboro, Streamed and Live-blogged at 10:30

    Posted by Jesse Lee on March 31, 2009 at 10:15 AM EDT

    The fourth White House Regional Forum on Health Reform is in Greensboro, North Carolina, hosted by Governor Beverly Perdue and Nancy-Ann DeParle, Director of the WH Office of Health Reform.  Rebecca Adelman of the Department of Health and Human Services gives us the play-by-play below, but you can also watch it streamed live at HealthReform.gov.
    [UPDATE: The event is now over]

    12:10: Governor Perdue closes the event by thanking Nancy-Ann DeParle and President Obama for choosing North Carolina as one of five states to hold a regional forum on health reform. She said North Carolinians will continue to think of innovative solutions to bring down health care costs, and she stresses that her state is ready to help as the President works to enact health care reform this year.

    12:07: Nancy-Ann DeParle closes the discussion in Greensboro by saying that the forum struck her as exemplifying the best and the worst of the health care system. North Carolina has leading medical professionals who represent the best of America’s talented doctors and nurses, but many North Carolinians cannot afford the health insurance that would allow them to benefit from that local talent.

    11:58: A number of doctors have spoken in North Carolina, including Dr. David Talbot who said one significant problem is the fragmentation of health care. He suggests that any primary care network should include dental care, mental health care, and also needs to have the means to assess people based on their risk. He adds that as we talk about extending health care services to everyone, we need to think about how to move away from "hamster health care" where we are running in a wheel.

    11:41: Dr. Bill Roper from the University of North Carolina up now speaking about the urgent need for health reform – he said if we don’t make long overdue changes to the health care system, it will go from being "the most expensive system in the world to the most expensive system in the galaxy."
    11:33: After a number of North Carolinians tell heart-wrenching stories about their inability to afford adequate health care for their families, Governor Perdue says, "We don’t want to overwhelm Nancy-Ann, but this is life in North Carolina." 

    11:27: Rising costs are a huge topic of discussion in Greensboro - Frank Amend, a college educated professional tells the forum participants that he pays more for his treatment than for his mortgage. Several other participants chime in after Mr. Amend, including two mothers who have children with disabilities and are struggling to pay for the long-term care their children need.

    11:12: Collete Davis, a bankruptcy attorney who lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, was one of the over 30,000 Americans who held a community discussion in her neighborhood. She's speaking emotionally about her struggle to find health insurance after she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis. She says despite being in a good financial position as an attorney, it was a huge challenge to pay for her treatment. She was especially struck by how many Americans must be struggling, if she was. 

    11:02: Nancy-Ann DeParle thanks Governor Perdue for her "can do" leadership, and for hosting this forum. DeParle said rising health care costs are forcing families across America to make impossible choices, and that is why President Obama believes we have to come to a solution this year that will ease the stress that businesses and families are under. She noted the first important step in this effort is for Congress to pass the President’s budget that provides a reserve fund for a health care plan.

    10:51: Governor Perdue thanks the attendees for taking time out of their busy schedules to engage in this pressing issue. She thanks Nancy-Ann DeParle for traveling to North Carolina, and says she feels encouraged that President Obama and his administration are devoting their energies to making sensible reforms to our health care system that will bring down the costs crippling families and businesses. 

    10:42: The Greensboro forum kicks off with a message from President Obama, who says, "health reform cannot wait another year." He urges the group to use this forum to ask questions and make suggestions, since they know first-hand what works about America’s health care system, and what doesn’t.

    10:35: The fourth White House regional forum is about to begin in Greensboro, NC, hosted by North Carolina A&T State University. Governor Bev Perdue will be moderating the forum, along with the Director of the White House office for Health Reform, Nancy-Ann DeParle. These forums, which have taken place already in Michigan, Vermont, and Iowa, are a crucial part of the President’s effort to seek input from Americans across the ideological spectrum and understand how health care problems affect different parts of the country as he works with Congress to enact health care reform this year.

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