Care Coverage

WASHINGTON -- At a time when most of the momentum around health care reform seems to be directed toward slowing down and trimming back the costs of the new insurance program, a consensus is quietly building for one expensive new benefit.Home health care coverage for the elderly and disabled, which only recently seemed like a luxury Congress could not afford, is now given a reasonable chance of being included in some form in the version of the health care bill that comes up for a final vote this fall.

Soon after President Barack Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in 2010, Maryland began to implement this law to meet the needs of our families, communities and businesses. Today's historic Supreme Court decision allows our work to continue moving forward without interruption. As a result of the Affordable Care Act, tens of thousands of young adults in Maryland have been able to stay on their parents' insurance. Moms and dads of children with chronic illness have not had to worry about arbitrary denials of coverage.

In an early push to get health care at the top of the legislative agenda in Annapolis, a broad coalition that includes AARP and labor officials announced yesterday an advertising and direct-mail campaign for a plan that would double Maryland's cigarette tax and use the proceeds to expand coverage for the uninsured. AARP, the lobby for older Americans, launched a 60-second commercial that will air for 10 days on three area radio stations, while the 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East is mailing 350,000 leaflets urging recipients to return an enclosed card to their state representatives.

One could forgive viewers if they walked away confused after watching CNN's early coverage of the Supreme Court's health care decision. The network, itself, was confused. Within minutes after the decision was announced, CNN was hitting the airwaves with four different versions of what the ruling said. First, the network reported the justices had killed the individual mandate provision of the law -- perhaps its most controversial aspect. Then, CNN reported the law "may have been upheld.

At age 65, Bill O'Reilly says he's comfortable with his health care coverage. But many of his fellow seniors aren't, which is why the Maryland City resident makes the trip to Glen Burnie's Pascal Senior Center every week.Mr. O'Reilly is a volunteer counselor who helps people facing health insurance woes. He and 18 other counselors are part of a county Department of Aging initiative called Health Insurance Counseling Assistance Program."When we get into medical care, it gets a little hairy," he said.

The General Assembly passed legislation last night to help Bethlehem Steel Corp. retirees who are not old enough for Medicare to obtain state-backed insurance coverage. Under the legislation, Bethlehem retirees between the ages of 55 and 64 would be able to obtain insurance under the Maryland Health Insurance Plan. The insurance would be open to retirees regardless of their medical histories and would be available July 1. Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. is expected today to sign the bill, which was passed by the House 132 to 0. Coverage would benefit about a quarter of the steelmaker's 20,000 retirees and dependents in the Baltimore area.

Health care advocates said Monday that they had met their goal of adding 10,000 Baltimore residents to Medicaid rolls since the state expanded coverage and lowered eligibility requirements last year. Vincent DeMarco, president of the Maryland Citizens' Health Initiative, said that statewide, 50,000 adults have benefited from the new state health care expansion since it took effect in July of last year, and that 50,000 more children who were eligible for insurance but not yet covered have been enrolled since 2007 because of the O'Malley administration's outreach program and efforts by health care advocates.

MARYLAND HEALTH Secretary Nelson J. Sabatini recently issued a clarion call for universal health care in our state, and if Marylanders listen, we will all be healthier for it. This is especially true for the more than 600,000 Marylanders who have no health care coverage at all and the more than 200,000 seniors on Medicare who have no prescription drug coverage. Thanks to Mr. Sabatini, the question now is no longer whether Maryland will guarantee quality, affordable health care for all of its people, but how we are going to do it. Over the past four years, the Maryland Citizens' Health Initiative, a coalition of hundreds of religious, community, labor, business and health care groups from across the state, has worked hard to answer the "how" question.

The people of Maryland should be very proud of their leaders for making 2007 the year of public health in Maryland, which despite its wealth has traditionally been among the worst states at providing health insurance for poor adults. The General Assembly this year passed four new laws, which will: Require all workplaces and public places to be smoke-free. Increase the state tobacco tax by $1 per pack. Allow young adults to stay on their parents' insurance plans. Provide health care coverage for many lower-income adults.

Baltimore Ravens linebacker Peter Boulware will break from training at McDaniel College tomorrow to urge uninsured Carroll County families to enroll in a low-cost or free health insurance program. Boulware, a spokesman for the Covering Kids & Families Coalition, will take a few minutes at a junior football training camp to encourage local families to participate in the Maryland Children Health Program, which covers the cost of doctors' visits, hospitalization and prescriptions. "We want to make sure we're reaching those families that would be eligible," said Linda Reynolds-Wise, the health program's director.

Andy Harris probably learned a lesson from the flap caused by his questions about the health care benefits he'll enjoy as a congressman in a supposedly confidential briefing — but likely not the right one. Mr. Harris, a Republican and a physician who was elected this month to represent Maryland's 1st District, will surely chalk this one up as a painful object lesson in the "gotcha" culture of Washington, where reporters were eager to pounce on...

Health care advocates said Monday that they had met their goal of adding 10,000 Baltimore residents to Medicaid rolls since the state expanded coverage and lowered eligibility requirements last year. Vincent DeMarco, president of the Maryland Citizens' Health Initiative, said that statewide, 50,000 adults have benefited from the new state health care expansion since it took effect in July of last year, and that 50,000 more children who were eligible for insurance but not yet covered have been enrolled since 2007 because of the O'Malley administration's outreach program and efforts by health care advocates.

On Labor Day, workers are struggling As we celebrate Labor Day, we must also recognize that a large segment of Baltimore's workforce is struggling to provide for themselves and their families. One in five workers in Baltimore is employed in health care. But health care workers make up a large percentage of Baltimore's uninsured working poor. They earn some of the lowest wages for urban health care workers in the country, and many struggle to pay for health care coverage for themselves and their families, or just go without.

Our national experience with the Medicare program can provide guidance to the choices our legislators must make regarding health care reform. If one favors more or less government in health care, positive and negative lessons emerge from the nearly 50-year Medicare experience of providing universal health care coverage for all those age 65 and older. Medicare eliminated the fragmented, episodic and often dehumanizing care that many retired seniors were forced to seek through emergency departments or charitable sources because they no longer had coverage from an employer.

As presidents of three Maryland black chambers of commerce, our goals include promoting economic stability while eradicating barriers to growth within Maryland's black- and minority-owned business community. But it is difficult to promote economic stability while insurance costs are skyrocketing. The Maryland Health Care for All! plan ( www.healthcareforall.com) offers a solution that is both fair and practical. Two-thirds of Maryland workers enjoy company-sponsored health insurance, but our members are being forced to cut back on these benefits.

Hospitals often wind up with stacks of unpaid bills because of the lack of universal health insurance coverage in this country. And certainly, no one likes to receive a letter or call from a bill collector or go to court over a hospital charge. Yet hospitals can only survive if bills get paid. That was one of several key points missing from The Baltimore Sun's series "In Their Debt" (Dec. 21-23). At the same time, hospitals aren't anxious to litigate. Few disputes make it to court: less than 0.5 percent of all hospital bills.

As presidents of three Maryland black chambers of commerce, our goals include promoting economic stability while eradicating barriers to growth within Maryland's black- and minority-owned business community. But it is difficult to promote economic stability while insurance costs are skyrocketing. The Maryland Health Care for All! plan ( www.healthcareforall.com) offers a solution that is both fair and practical. Two-thirds of Maryland workers enjoy company-sponsored health insurance, but our members are being forced to cut back on these benefits.

WASHINGTON -- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. chief executive Lee Scott joined one of his toughest critics, labor leader Andrew L. Stern, yesterday to unveil a political campaign to promote universal health care coverage. The two longtime antagonists are helping lead a coalition of labor and business leaders in trying to get Congress to end the nation's reliance on employer-backed health insurance and develop a system for providing universal low-cost coverage within five years. "What unites us here today is our shared belief that it will be a far greater America when we get affordable health care for all Americans," Stern, president of the Service Employees International Union, said at a news conference at a Capitol Hill hotel.

Expanding Medicaid still fiscally responsible With budgets on the chopping block, one area the state should not cut is health care coverage ("'Devastating' state revenue report may mean cuts in public safety, education," Dec. 17). Here's why: As Maryland expands Medicaid coverage including preventive care, data from other states are showing that expanding health insurance can lead to costs savings down the road. Massachusetts adopted an ambitious program in 2006 that provides incentives for business and individuals to expand health insurance coverage.