Now that the legislative session has adjourned I want to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for your commitment and engagement over this past year and to try to put the session into perspective. I know that it was a disappointment that our SB 27 (the Oregon Better Health Act) was not brought up for a vote – and I will have more to say about that in a moment. But, at the same time, we should not overlook the progress that was made by the legislature to address the growing crisis in our health care system.
Progress in the Oregon Legislature Two significant pieces of health reform legislation did pass. The Healthy Kids Act (SB 3) was adopted to expand coverage for children through a proposed increase in the tobacco tax (SJR4); and SB 329 – The Healthy Oregon Act – seeks to develop a strategy for pooling resources to help finance health insurance for Oregonians who currently cannot afford it. Kudos to Governor Kulongoski and to the persistence of the House leadership in keeping the Healthy Kids Act a priority throughout the session; and congratulations to Senators Bates and Westlund for their innovative approach to state health insurance reform.
These are important steps that seek to deal with the financial barriers to access faced by over 600,000 Oregonians, including 117,000 children. If the tobacco tax increase is approved by the voters this November – and if the provisions of SB 329 are successfully implemented in 2010 – many of these Oregonians will be able to afford needed medical care. We have supported – and should continue to support – both of these efforts.
The Issue of Cost At the same time, however, we need to recognize that the growing number of uninsured people – both here in Oregon and around the country – is directly related to the increase in the cost of coverage. And cost is a symptom of two deeper and much more fundamental problems. First is our current federal eligibility and financing structure which reflects the now obsolete circumstances of mid-20th century America. Second is how we define a “benefit” and the misaligned financial incentives and inefficient system through which this health care is delivered.
This means that expanding financial access in the short term – without, at the same time, squarely and honestly addressing these two underlying problems – will do little to stem escalating medical costs, make health care more affordable or mitigate the growing disadvantage faced by U.S. businesses competing in a global economy against firms not burdened by the spiraling cost of providing health care to their employees. And the fact that we were not successful in forcing this debate during the recent legislative session in no way diminishes its central importance in arriving at a sustainable solution to this crisis.
The Archimedes Movement We formed the Archimedes Movement 18 months ago based on the belief that Oregonians needed and wanted a meaningful path of engagement and participation in the development of a new health care system – a safe place in which we can discuss the difficult issues which must be addressed in the process of creating a more equitable and sustainable system.
We all knew that this was not going to be easy – but don’t underestimate the significance of your commitment and hard work over the past year. You have already made a huge difference. Through your engagement we have laid a strong foundation on which we can continue to build; you have moved the debate forward by legitimizing the importance of examining all aspects of our failing health care system – including Medicare and our system of employer sponsored coverage; and you have produced a framework through which that effort can continue.
The Archimedes Movement will continue to grow because Oregonians want to help shape their own future; and we are going to keep at it until we have a health care system that serves us all. Over the next two months we will be meeting with chapters around Oregon and the Northwest to build consensus on the best strategy for moving forward. In the early fall we will have a series of meetings around the state to launch the next step in our efforts to meet our goal.
I look forward to working with you in common cause as we move ahead.
John
Recent Comments