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Larry Minnix testifies before Ways and Means Committee
The House Ways and Means Committee met for nearly 11 hours yesterday to talk about health care reform. Unfortunately, merely a few minutes were spent talking about long-term services and supports. AAHSA CEO Larry Minnix testified about the issue and urged the committee members not to ignore this vital part of our health care system.
“While the health reform discussions have focused on the acute care system, we note that the principles that underlie this draft bill resonate in the long-term services and supports field and mirror AAHSA’s public policy and the policy adopted by well over 100 organizations representing aging services and other providers, consumer groups and persons with disabilities,” said Minnix. “The care and services our members provide are an integral part of the health care system.”
Larry continued, “An estimated 10 million Americans currently need long-term services – personal care, assistive technology and other supportive services, and this number will grow. However, we lack a coordinated, national public-private system for adequately, efficiently and humanely delivering high quality services.”
Their silence to his statement, however, said more than the questions and quarrels I heard about other topics.
But the real irony of the day was in a conversation I overheard while standing outside the meeting room. Two men, probably in the early fifties, were taking the opportunity to catch up during a brief break.
I heard one of the men start talking about his 80-year-old father. He was explaining his dad’s recent hip replacement and sighed as he described his physical, and possibly mental, decline from the vibrant man he once knew. “I’m just glad he made it this long without too many problems,” he lamented.
I can’t help but wonder if things may have been a bit different if that hallway conversation had been taken into the hearing room. If the members considered their own parents, friends or loved ones, they might have spent more time on it.
So, that’s my charge to you, readers. Contact your legislator and tell them about your dad or grandmother. Tell them why they can’t be ignored and why it’s time to make it affordable to care.
This morning, AAHSA CEO Larry Minnix will join an esteemed group of physicians, corporation executives, economists and policy leaders at a hearing of the House Ways and Means Committee entitled “Health Reform in the 21st Century: Proposals to Reform the Health System”
The hearing will consist of three panels on different topics related to health care reform. During his panel, Minnix will discuss why including long-term serviceces and supports in health care reform would allow baby boomers to pre-fund their long-term-care needs, alleviate state budget burdens, and most important, provide individuals with the services they need in a place they call home. Simply put, he’s telling Congress it’s time to make it affordable to care.
But don’t take my word for it. Click here to listen to the hearing live.
There’s no doubt about it, AAHSA members and supporters know how to make the phones ring! We’ve made more than 2000 calls to the Senate as of 12:30 this afternoon. That’s 8.5 calls a minute!
Callers in key congressional districts are also contacting their member of Congress. So far, 283 calls have been made. The average call on this line is lasting more than two and half minutes. That means more meaningful conversations are probably taking place.
If we keep calling at this rate, we’re bound to meet our 10,000 call goal. We’ll keep you posted on our progress.
I can’t take credit for this blog’s title. It’s the same one Liza from McKnight’s Editor’s blog used in her post about long-term services and supports and advocacy.
She, like many of us, knows that the next few weeks are crucial for our field. Some may even say it’s now or never. Providers and consumers alike must make sure that their legislators know how important long-term services and supports are to millions of older and disabled Americans and those who care for them. It’s the only way to make sure that these vital services are included in health care reform.
Like Larry mentioned yesterday, AAHSA is having a Congressional Call-in Day on June 4. Last time, you helped us generate 7,300 calls. Our goal for tomorrow is 10,000 calls. Are you on board? Answer our poll and let us know if your voice will be heard.
