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Kathleen Sibelius 
Fri Sep 04, 2009 at 08:11:06 AM EDT
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In an event hosted by SEIU/Change That Works, Health and Human Services (HHS) Sec. Kathleen Sebelius listen as six Mainerstold her of their own experiences with America's health care system. The event happened yesterday afternoon on the campus of UMaine Orono, and was moderated by Ginette Rivard. The audience included members of the various sponsors of the event: AARP, Maine Medical Association, Maine People's Alliance, AFSCME, Maine Women's Lobby, and the Maine Cancer Society.
Panelists were Joe McSwain, owner of a tower and steeple repair company; Lee Roberts, a former journalist and current English teacher (see her recap here; Mary Morse Dwelly, wife and partner of an ophthalmologist; George Rubino, professional bass player and maker of bows for stringed instruments; John Hailey, owner of a company that provides direct care medical services; and Dr. Stephanie Lash, a neurologist and president of the Maine Medical Association.
Sec. Sebelius' opening remarks began with the announcement that Maine is one of 13 states that will receive a Federal grant to help provide insurance to direct care workers, seasonal, and part time workers. Of the $70 million in question, Maine will receive $8.5 million this year (Anne Ravan at MPBN has a great story on this here).
Sec. Sebelius then turned to the subject at hand, saying that we are "closer to health insurance reform in this country than we have ever been." Regarding H.R. 3200, she said that with the public option "no longer will insurance companies get to pick and choose who gets coverage," and that gender and age scaling will no longer be allowed. Sec. Sebelius affirmed he support for the public option.
More after the jump.
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Sun Aug 16, 2009 at 13:10:19 PM EDT
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One wonders why we even bother to try. Obviously, large donations from the health insurance industry, combined with the "outrage" manufactured by their PR firms, has more of an influence on some members of Congress than the voice of the people does.
The Hill reports that HHS Sec. Kathleen Sibelius says the public option is "not the essential element" of health insurance reform:
A public health insurance option took more hits Sunday as Sen. Kent Conrad described its pursuit as a "wasted effort" and an administration official said it is not an "essential" part of reform.
Conrad (D-N.D.), who supports setting up health insurance co-operatives with government seed money to compete with private insurers, described the public option as all but a lost cause.
"Look, the fact of the matter is there are not the votes in the U.S. Senate for the public option, there never have been," Conrad said in an interview on "Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace."
"So to continue to chase that rabbit is, I think, a wasted effort," Conrad said.
His comments followed Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius's remark that a public option is "not the essential element" to ensure competition in the health insurance market. Sebelius made the remark on CNN's "State of the Union."
It's really frickin' unbelievable. Any "reform" that includes only the for-profit health insurance industry will fail. We will not see any meaningful reform regarding health reform, nor anything for that matter, as long as we do not have meaningful campaign finance reform.
Members of Congress are beholden to the powerful elites that contribute thousands and millions of dollars to them. Other groups that profit from our current system, especially broadcast media, want nothing to change.
It makes my blood boil, and should yours.
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Fri Aug 07, 2009 at 12:18:50 PM EDT
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Just found this in my mailbox:
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will host a webcast to discuss how health insurance reform will benefit all Americans today at 1:00 PM EDT. Sebelius will also announce the release of a series of new state by state reports outlining how health insurance reform will improve health care for all Americans.
The webcast will feature top HHS officials who will discuss how health insurance reform will improve the quality of care for all Americans and take questions.
HHS officials participating in the webcast include:
Secretary Kathleen Sebelius.
Dr. David Blumenthal, National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. Dr. Blumenthal will discuss how health information technology can reduce medical errors and improve the quality of care for all Americans.
Dr. Howard Koh, Assistant Secretary for Health. Dr. Koh will outline how prevention and wellness initiatives can help all Americans live longer, healthier lives.
Dr. Mary Wakefield, R.N., Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration. Dr. Wakefield will outline the current shortage of health providers and discuss how reform will help ensure all Americans have access to the care they need.
The participants will answer questions submitted by the American people. Questions can be emailed to hhsstudio@hhs.gov. Questions can also be submitted via Facebook by visiting http://apps.facebook.com/white... or on Twitter by using the hashtag #HCRQ.
WHAT: Webcast: Health Insurance Reform - What's in it For You
WHEN: TODAY, Friday, August 7, 2009, 1:00 PM EDT
WHERE: www.healthreform.gov
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