NEWS AND ARTICLES

"Women and Health Coverage: The Affordability Gap", The Commonwwealth Fund and National Women's Law Center, April, 2007 "Women and Health Coverage: A Framework for Moving Forward", National Women's Law Center, April 2007. Reports find that women are very impacted by costs of health care and provides key questions for a framework for health care reform.

Democratic Presidential Candidates Forum on Health Care Reform on 3/24: all the candidates support reform, with some differences. Video, audio and transcript

"Raising Cigarette Taxes Reduces Smoking, Especially Among Kids (And the Cigarette Companies Know It)" posted on www.tobaccofreekids.org.

"Health Care in the 2006 Election", a poll by Lake Research Partners, highlights that health care was a major issue for voters second only to Iraq and the top economic issue. 74% of voters believe healthcare should be a priority for the next Congress.

"On the Comeback Trail," by Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, M.D., M.B.A, originally published in Modern Healthcare, Oct. 30, 2006. The author, who is President and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, states that "The paralysis is about to end. While health care will not determine the outcome of the 2006 midterm elections, it will be the dominating domestic issue in the 2008 presidential campaigns." The full article can be found at the Foundation's web site.

“Access to Care, Health Status and Health Disparities in the United States and Canada: Results of a Cross-National Based Survey” by Karen E. Lasser, M.D., posted June 23, 2006 on Medscape.com. Note: Medscape requires (free) registration to view articles.

"Diagnosing Women's Health Care" by Alina Salganicoff, Summer, 2006, National Council of Jewish Women Journal, special issue on "Facing the Crisis on Women's Health Care."

A nationwide poll after the 2006 elections shows broad support for change. The top health priorities were expanding coverage for the uninsured and reducing health care costs. 73% of Democratic voters say they would like to see the 2008 presidential candidates make a major effort to provide near universal coverage, even with a hike in spending. Almost 2/3 (64%) of the public believes government can do a lot to address the cost of health care. Drew Altman, president of the Kaiser Family Foundation said, “Health care is well positioned to emerge as a top national issue in 2008 and beyond.”

US Census Data report on health insurance coverage for women is not good news. Since 2000, some 2.9 million women have joined the ranks of the uninsured, including 535,000 in 2005 alone . The percent of women without health coverage rose from 13.8% in 2000 to 15.6% in 2005, a faster increase for women than the overall population. Since 2000, the Medicaid safety net caught some 2.2 million more women, keeping them from being uninsured.

In just two years, Maine's Dirigo Health Program open to all residents is providing health care to more than 15,400 Mainers, including 2,300 small businesses and has saved Maine over $78 million. Press release of the Consumers for Affordable Health Care Foundation.  

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