June 15, 2009
Dear Partners,
This alert includes information on a health reform day of action that Community Catalyst is hosting, a link to NEACH's new health care reform webpage, and an opportunity to engage your House Members around supporting strong Medicaid and CHIP programs in national health reform.
Health Reform Day of Action
We wanted to let you know that Community Catalyst is hosting a day of national health reform action in Washington, DC on Monday, July 13th. All NEACH partners are invited to attend.
State partners will meet together in Washington, DC on the evening of Sunday, July 12th to review materials and discuss meeting strategies. Community Catalyst will provide participants with materials that can be used during Hill visits, including information on promoting increased consumer involvement in the U.S. health care system. NEACH partners will also receive materials related to our priorities regarding children's health care issues.
On Monday, June 13th, partners will participate in meetings with their Congressional delegations to discuss their national health reform priorities. We will be asking our state partners to set up their own meetings, and we will assist people who need help or support in doing so. We will also be developing a feedback mechanism to gather information from meetings held throughout the day.
While NEACH and Community Catalyst will provide materials and technical support for this event, we are unable to pay for transportation or hotel costs. We know budgets are tight, but we believe this event will be extremely worthwhile and an effective way to make your voices heard during what is expected to be a peak point in the health reform debate.
If you wish to attend this event or have additional questions, please contact Maia Fedyszyn at 617-275-2871 or mfedyszyn@communitycatalyst.org. For partners who express interest in attending, we will be sending more detailed information in the coming weeks.
NEACH Health Reform Webpage
We recently added a new webpage to the NEACH website with information and materials on national health reform. The page includes bills and bill summaries, publications and reports, and links to additional resources. Click here to view this page.
Engage your House Members
Maine Equal Justice Partners, a NEACH partner organization, worked with Representative Chellie Pingree (D - ME) to draft a letter on the need to support low-income families in national health reform. Rep. Pingree's office sent this letter to her House colleagues on Friday, June 12th and asked them to sign on. Given that this letter focuses on the need to invest in and strengthen Medicaid and CHIP, we wanted to make all of our partners aware of it and engage you in reaching out to your delegation. Click here to view the letter.
ACTION STEP
Please reach out to your state's House Members and ask them to sign on to Representative Pingree's letter, entitled "Support Investments in Medicaid in Health Reform Legislation". Contact information for the New England Delegation can be found here.
Thank you for your continued dedication to children's health care issues. As always, please feel free to contact me (617-275-2929, arosenthal@communitycatalyst.org) directly with questions.
Sincerely,
Amy Rosenthal
Project Director
