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Greens Urge Congress to Reject Bush-Frist Health Care Corporatization, Enact a National Health Insurance Plan. |
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THE GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES MEDIA RELEASE For immediate release: Tuesday, February 4, 2003 Contacts: GREENS URGE CONGRESS TO REJECT BUSH-FRIST HEALTH CARE CORPORATIZATION, ENACT A NATIONAL HEALTH INSURANCE PLAN As corporations take over public health care, seniors continue to lose prescription coverage; Sen. Frist must recuse himself from health care financing decisions because of conflicts of interest, say Greens WASHINGTON, DC -- The Green Party of the United States urged Congress to reject the Bush-Frist corporatization proposals for Medicaid and Medicare and instead enact national health insurance to guarantee the right to health care in the wealthiest country in the world. "Greens have always made single-payer national health insurance a major goal of the party," said Carol Miller, public health activist and New Mexico Green. "The U.S. is the only democracy on earth that doesn't guarantee access to health care, which is why 41 million Americans are uninsured, tens of millions more are under-insured, and nearly half of all personal bankruptcies each year are caused by health problems or a large medical debt, even though 79% of the families filing for bankruptcy had at least some health insurance coverage. It's time to get health care decisions out of the hands of corporations, whose only concern is maximization of profits, and back into the hands of patients and physicians. Medicare should not be turned into the next Enron." "National health coverage would drastically reduce health costs for most Americans, would provide quality guaranteed health care to all Americans regardless of income, age, or prior medical condition, and would allow Americans to choose which physician, hospital, or clinic they visit," added Miller. President Bush, in his January 28 State of the Union address, proposed giving HMOs a major role in disbursement of Medicare. The President has also advocated granting states the power to reduce and eliminate Medicaid benefits for millions of low-income people, especially senior citizens who need long term care. "Bush is eager to have the HMOs take over Medicare, despite evidence that HMOs increase Medicare costs, provide poorer quality care, and restrict patient choice," said John Battista, M.D., Connecticut Green and President of the Connecticut Coalition For Universal Health Care. "HMO's profit by restricting treatment, restricting the choice of providers, and enrolling healthy Medicare recipients. As Physicians for a National Health Program reminds us, managed care plans seek to enroll the healthy elderly because they are paid the same amount for each Medicare recipient they enroll. HMOs offer financial incentives and penalties that compel primary care physicians to limit referrals, diagnostic tests, and hospital visits. These practices pit patients against doctors, and specialists against primary care physicians." "In the District of Columbia, Mayor Anthony Williams' privatization plan has caused a health care emergency for thousands of older D.C. residents on very limited income," said Michele Tingling-Clemmons of the D.C. Statehood Green Party. "We're fighting to get the medicines restored for seniors and disabled people on Medicare who have had the prescription coverage they enjoyed through the DC public health care system for over 30 years, along with the Gray Panthers, D.C. Health Care Coalition, and other groups in D.C.'s Emergency Committee to Restore Seniors' Prescription Drug Benefits. Privatization really hurts people who've worked all their lives and deserve health care security without sacrificing their rent and food money." "Ask seniors about relying on HMOs for health care," noted Ron Forthofer, Ph.D., Texas Green, retired professor of biostatistics from the University of Texas School of Public Health, and single-payer advocate. "Over 2 million seniors have been dropped by HMOs during the past few years. We don't want for-profit companies involved in delivering health care because their emphasis is the bottom line, not health care." Sen. Bill Frist (R.-TN), whose plan President Bush supports, is tied financially to Columbia-HCA, a recidivist criminal corporation which has paid the largest fines in the history of Medicare. The largest hospital chain in the country and notorious union-buster, Columbia-HCA was founded by Frist's father and brother; Frist himself owns millions in company stock, kept in a blind trust. Even though Columbia-HCA had a patent stake in the outcome of 'Patients' Bill of Rights' and other health care legislation, Frist refuses to withdraw from debates and votes on these issues. Meanwhile, Columbia-HCA has been the focus of the government's longest running health care fraud inquiry ever. Columbia-HCA recently announced an $880 million settlement with the Justice Department. "Sen. Frist should remove himself from the Finance Committee and the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, and recuse himself from any vote that affects his personal wealth," said Jake Schneider, Wisconsin Green and treasurer of the Green Party of the United States. Physicians for a National Health Program is announcing a single-payer national health care plan on February 4, in a bill to be introduced by Rep. John Conyers (D.-MI). Green candidates and elected officials support such a proposal as a major plank of the party platform. The party urges all Americans to tell their Representatives and Senators why national health insurance is the only solution to the current health care crisis:
"We can win true universal health care, but we need the political will and elected officials who aren't swayed by corporate HMO, insurance, and pharmaceutical, and other corporate lobbies," said Jo Chamberlain, California Green and member of the party's national Steering Committee. "We need an informed citizenry that demands national health insurance. All of us need health care at some time or other. Our lives are at stake." MORE INFORMATION The Green Party of the United States http://www.gp.org Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP) http://www.pnhp.org/ search: spol, cpr
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