Legislative Alert
I Need Your Help
Advocate Aaron Supporters:
As you all are aware I fight every single day to help make sure moms can have affordable access to prenatal care. Prenatal care is VERY serious and without it “babies born to mothers who receive no prenatal care are three times more likely to be born at a low birth weight, and five times more likely to die, than those whose mothers received prenatal care.” –US department of Health & Human Services
Three weeks ago I was in Washington, DC lobbying and fighting for this very cause. I had the pleasure of working with Karen Fennell, one of the top lobbyist in the women’s health arena. Karen contacted me today and asked me if I could enlist the Advocate Aaron Army. I responded with an ENTHUSIASTIC “YES”, and told her it would be impossible for our moms, friends, family, relatives, etc. to NOT come through with flying colors. The task is SIMPLE, but, I need you to do it NOW and I need you to forward it to EVERYONE you know. This isn’t about us. It is MUCH bigger. This is literally about life and death for the innocent babies whose mothers CANNOT access affordable prenatal care.
Please see the message from Karen below and then TAKE ACTION NOW!!!!
PRO MOM!!!
AdvocateAaron
A Healthy pregnancy for a Healthy baby
Dear Mothers and Friends:
Pregnant Women’s Access to Care is in danger in many States. Over 43% of women’s pregnancy care is paid for by the Medicaid program; an additional 18% of pregnant women have no health insurance.
Action by the Federal Government has jeopardized the financial stability of our birth centers. I am asking you and your friends to sign on to a letter to the United States Congress to fix this problem. As a Mother and Grandmother of twin girls, I cannot stand back and let pregnant women be left with no care.
We need 10,000 signatures by May 31st to ensure that all pregnant women have access to quality, affordable health care. Stop the Federal Government from excluding pregnant women from receiving the care they deserve.
Go to the American Association of Birth Centers website at www.birthcenters.org/news/breaking-news/?id=82 and sign our consumer letter. You can make a difference!
Sincerely,
Karen S. Fennell, MS, RN
Consultant
Healthcare Advisory Solutions
Maternity Healthcare is in Crisis
Benefits of Prenatal Vitamins
Prenatal vitamins work better when taken along with a healthy diet. They are only meant to be a supplement, and not a substitute for a proper diet. Never rely on prenatal vitamins for all your nutritional needs. Talk to your doctor about what foods you should be eating.
Be sure to keep an eye on your calcium. An expectant mother generally requires 1,200mg – 1,500mg of calcium on a daily basis. Most prenatal vitamins do not contain this amount, so you may need a calcium supplement in addition. (Many will only contain 250-500mg.) Calcium is certainly important in the development of your new baby.
No two prenatal vitamins are the same; and many may not provide any benefits at all. Recent studies show that a pregnant woman’s body does not necessarily absorb all of the nutrients provided by the vitamins, especially folate. Folate is extremely important in the baby’s prenatal development. The vitamin helps prevent birth defects like spina-bifida.
While prescribed vitamins are ideal, most of the same vitamins are available over the counter in stores. You may be able to save substantial money with a store bought brand. The most important things to consider are the ingredients in the vitamins, and whether they absorb quickly or not.
There is an easy test you can use to determine if the vitamins will be absorbed into your system. Put one of the prenatal vitamins into a cup of water. Wait ten minutes. If the vitamin is dissolved, or is very soft, it will be absorbed into your system. If the vitamin remains hard, it will probably pass through your system without depositing many of the nutrients it carries. This is important, so be sure to do this with any new vitamin. (I am NOT a doctor or rocket scientist, this is just plain LOGIC)
Finding the right prenatal vitamin may take a little trial and error, but the benefits are great. Just continue to keep in mind that you still need to maintain a healthy diet. The benefits of prenatal vitamins are enormous and highly recommended, but good nutrition is still better than any supplement. Remember, no vitamin is going to be exactly the same, but here is what most sources that I have found suggest (these will vary slightly):
4,000 and 5,000 IU (international units) of vitamin A
800 and 1,000 mcg (1 mg) of folic acid
400 IU of vitamin D
200 to 300 mg of calcium
70 mg of vitamin C
1.5 mg of thiamine
1.6 mg of riboflavin
2.6 mg of pyridoxine
17 mg of niacin amide
2.2 mcg of vitamin B-12
10 mg of vitamin E
15 mg of zinc
30 mg of iron
Fighting for the uninsured and underinsured pregnant mom and their unborn babies,
Advocate Aaron
Budgets Don’t Make The Cut For Pregnant Women, Mothers And Children
A number of states are considering or enacting budget cuts that undermine the importance of social services for pregnant women, mothers and their children. In what will likely be proven to be a feeble attempt to stabilize their economies, these states are looking at massive budget cuts of up to 25% — and in departments that dole out much-needed support services like health care and food stamps. They include:
Ohio, which has proposed a $67 million cut to the Department of Jobs and Family Services. Such a cut could cripple the state’s Medicaid system, which provides health care coverage for pregnant women and children without medical insurance (http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2008/01/28/daily50.html).
Utah, which is considering a 7% budget cut that will make it more difficult – yes, MORE DIFFICULT – for pregnant women to receive medical care (http://www.sltrib.com/ci_11274672).
California, which is considering budget cuts that would jeopardize the reach of human services programs like WIC and Healthy Families, a program that provides medical coverage for children whose families do not qualify for Medicaid (http://www.cbp.org/pdfs/2008/08_12_A_Time_of_Growing_Need.pdf).
So, to these states, the answer to increased poverty, unemployment and staggering economies is to cut funds from programs that support the victims of economic recession. Wow. When more and more women do not have access to prenatal care and more and more children do not have health insurance, the solution is to make these things even harder to get? This makes no sense, especially when you consider that states save $2 to $3 for every $1 spent on prenatal care. These are your elected officials, hard at work.
The fact that states are likely going to cut human services budgets is not only immoral, it is irresponsible. Consider the work of notable economists Joseph Stiglitz and Peter Orszag, who state that spending cuts are more harmful to an economy than carefully-planned tax increases (http://www.cbpp.org/1-8-08sfp.htm).
Comprehensive cuts will slow spending; while an increase in taxes only slows saving, allowing economic spending to continue.
The research is there, in black and white – the solution does not lie in cutting programs, it lies in affording programs. States seem to forget that many things become more expensive in time; instead of cutting services from those in need, perhaps states should cap the cost of, say, medical services – which would benefit nearly everyone and help to reduce state-funded health care spending. Dropping services now, only to re-institute them later, puts a state economy on a perpetual yo-yo and does nothing for long-term growth.
It’s disturbing to think that states are more willing to drop services for their most disadvantaged citizens rather than find a way to balance their budgets with tactics developed by the world’s top economists.
Everyone Needs Medicaid
How much do you know about Medicaid? If you’re like most people, you know that Medicaid is a program that assists low-income families with health care expenses. And, like most people, you might assume that Medicaid serves only as a vehicle for providing health care coverage to those who cannot afford it – but the stark reality is that Medicaid’s economic influence is far-reaching and provides benefits to everyone from low-income families to seven-figure CEOs.
Many states are considering Medicaid budget cuts, failing to realize that doing so will set off a chain of events that will spiral the economy into an even more dismal state. Consider the findings of this FamilyUSA brief (http://www.familiesusa.org/assets/pdfs/state-budget-cuts-2008.pdf), which demonstrates how Medicaid benefits keep the natural process of trade ticking. Cutting Medicaid budgets means states lose matching federal dollars, which are used throughout statewide spending cycles:
These new dollars pass from one person to another in successive rounds of spending. For example, health care employees spend part of their salaries on new cars, which adds to the income of auto dealership employees, enabling them to spend part of their salaries on washing machines, which enables appliance store employees to spend additional money on groceries, and so on. Economists call this the ‘multiplier effect.’
Everyone benefits when Medicaid is available: the most vulnerable citizens are provided with life-giving care, companies make money and employees have money to spend. Without Medicare, everyone suffers.
Medicaid already plays a very large role in health care and economic issues, and the ability of the program to sustain or expand services will have an even larger impact over the next several years. More layoffs and increasing medical expenses, coupled with a ‘less for more’ mentality among health care insurance providers, means more people will need Medicaid at a time when families have fewer extra dollars to spend. If millions are without Medicare, and states are not pulling additional federal funding, entire economies face collapse.
In this Business Insurance article (http://www.businessinsurance.com/cgi-bin/news.pl?id=14045&pageNo=1), Kaiser Family Foundation President and CEO Drew Atlman states: “… we may be seeing the tip of the iceberg of a trend toward less comprehensive, skimpier insurance for many working people with higher deductibles and higher out-of-pocket costs.”
While Altman is referring to employer-provided insurance policies, the same factors that are influencing private insurance carriers to offer less-appealing insurance are influencing state legislatures to consider Medicaid cuts. Medical care costs are rapidly increasing while fewer people are able to afford health care coverage.
Money will never negate the need for health care. Cutting Medicaid benefits will never make the population less dependent on health care. Medical procedures will not suddenly be deemed unnecessary because Medicare is cut. More people will not purchase their own insurance policies if Medicaid is unavailable.
Medicaid cuts are not the solution, and will do more harm than good to state budgets, companies, employees and all citizens nationwide.
All Or None: Pregnancy Must Be Covered
Colorado is considering several proposals that might provide health insurance to hundreds of thousands uninsured individuals across the state (http://denver.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2009/01/05/story7.html?b). Concepts include adding a surcharge to medical bills that would go toward providing health care to the uninsured, and creating a low-cost, guarantee-issue government-subsidized health coverage plan. Yet another proposal would require all insurers operating in Colorado to provide maternity care coverage. All concepts have stirred debate.
The Denver Business Journal quotes Rebecca Weiss, government affairs director for Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado, as saying that maternity insurance is a wonderful option, but warning that including it on every policy could drive up costs and put insurance out of economic reach for many.
Of all the conditions covered by medical insurance, pregnancy should be the last one to choose from. Care for cancer treatment can quickly rise to six or even seven figures, while the average pregnancy costs under $10,000. Are we being told that it’s okay to expect coverage for cancer treatments, but not pregnancy?
Pregnancy is the number one reason for hospitalization in the United States, which is probably why insurance companies do not want to cover it. Holier-than-thou attitudes predictably argue that, because one can control whether or not to become pregnant, no one can choose to not get cancer. But this premise slaps the face of humanity itself: are we encouraged to purchase (or have our health insurance cover) contraceptives and physically change how our body behaves in order to avoid insurance costs? Or should we remain abstinent, refusing to fulfill urges that many psychologists agree are key to human happiness?
As some would have it, the answer is yes, we should either change how our bodies naturally behave, undergo invasive procedures or simply refrain from sex and become unhappy in order to stave off the ‘condition’ of pregnancy. Have these holier-than-thou personalities forgotten how they got here?
Legislators must not ignore nature’s course when determining the future of health care and the policies that form the framework of fair and equal health care coverage. If pregnancy is allowed to be considered a condition by health insurance companies, then it must be provided for under health insurance coverage.
Pregnant And Need Inspiration?
Are you pregnant and in need of a bit of inspiration? Head on over to YouTube and do a search for ‘laughing baby’.
Being pregnant can be very trying, stressful, exciting, lonely, emotional and all out life-changing. But watching these videos, you realize how precious the baby inside you is – and how uplifting, gentle, exciting, fun and joyful motherhood is.
When your baby laughs, you’ll forget about life’s stresses – the small stuff, the things that, when put in perspective, are really not so important – and focus on the true joy of being a mother. Despite all of the bad things that can happen in this world, a laughing baby reminds us how special life is and transcends all the negative noise we’re bombarded with every day.
A laughing baby is a great stress reliever and a wonderful way to celebrate life. Take good care of your baby – he or she is just waiting to laugh with you.
Support For Pregnant Women
Sometimes, all we need is someone to talk to who understands what we’re going through. When you’re pregnant, you can be prone to solitary feelings when lonely, upset, afraid or confused. Help for pregnant women doesn’t need to be in form of money or gifts – true support costs nothing at all.
When friends and family aren’t available or don’t understand, speaking with other pregnant women can help you get through tough times and even form the foundation for lifelong bonds of sharing and friendship. Be happy to be pregnant – it’s good for your baby!
Here are five online resources where pregnant women can find free community support and camaraderie by connecting with other pregnant women who “get it.”
About.com Pregnancy and Childbirth Forum
There are literally thousands more – and a quick search with your favorite search engine will help you find additional pregnancy-related communities online.
Everyone needs friends to help them through tough times. I’m thrilled to see so many women coming together to share support, to share their stories, and to share their lives with one another. What a refreshing splash of humanity in an oft-troubled pond.
Government-subsidized Health Care In A Year?
Could the U.S. government be voting on government-subsidized health care a year from now? They will be if Pete Stark has his way. The health care reformist and sometimes-cantankerous California representative was quoted in a recent Wall Street Journal article as predicting that it would take a year to clear a public health care plan through Congress (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123008136111331971.html).
This is great news for those of us who know the horrors of facing pregnancy without insurance. But there are plenty of people ready to rain on Stark’s parade if they have their way, including Democrats from his own party, pharmaceutical lobbyists and the health insurance industry.
Two things that set Stark apart from the rest: 1) he does not think Congress should negotiate terms with insurance companies; and 2) he does not think a public health care plan should pay whatever price pharmaceutical companies determine for prescriptions. He wants costs to be fair and affordable, something I’ve been championing as Advocate Aaron for years as well.
Like the rest of us, Stark faces several challenges in his plight to form a public health system, and is often criticized for being blunt and vocal in his positions. Stones are thrown his way because he unyieldingly stands for what he believes in — I thought that’s what we elected these people for!
Some of the arguments Stark and his supporters have to counter include the pharmaceutical industry’s stance that restrictions on drug prices will limit the availability of drugs to people who need them as well as innovation that fuels new medical discoveries. Insurance companies claim premiums will rise as younger people take out the publicly-funded health care policy.
These industries simply want to maintain and proliferate profitability. That’s fine for some corporate entities, but not those in which lives are at stake. The availability of products, in these cases, literally means the difference between life and death.
Medicare and Medicaid already pay whatever the drug companies charge, and in doing so drain public funds that could be used elsewhere – or to provide live-saving drugs to more people. And because these programs constitute two of the largest ‘clients’ drug companies have – they’re billion-dollar clients – it might be the drug companies who cannot afford to exist without publicly-funded health care, and not the other way around.
Publicly-funded insurance would, as Stark points out, have lower overhead costs than current private health care plans, which would mean lower premiums. Naturally, private health care companies don’t want us to believe this, simply because they want to make a buck.
These insurance companies have had their chance – if they would have taken the initiative to develop a health care plan that the millions of uninsured could afford, the volume of takers alone should have covered the costs – if even for a small profit. Intelligent business dictates that a little PR goes a long way, and preventive business measures (just like preventive health care practices) pay big dividends.
If the insurance companies have no consideration for the health of those who cannot afford insurance, then why should the U.S. citizenship give a damn about their business health? I get a bit cantankerous myself at times.
If Stark’s prediction is to come true, there are only two options: 1) the pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies get on board and work within the demands of the American people, or 2) the American people take it upon themselves to provide health care and the pharmaceutical companies and the insurance companies die. There is no room for debate. That time has passed.
