Hearings to tackle health system issues

By Cherry Sokoloski
North Forty News

People are lining up to complain about the American health care system. On May 6, Health Care for All Colorado will hold citizens' hearings in Fort Collins to give voice to individuals' and companies' experiences with health care in this country and changes they would like to see.

The event will be held at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic Church, 5450 S. Lemay Ave., 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. The hearings are open to the public at no charge. Rose Lew, chair of the northern Colorado chapter of HCAC, said there will be two hours of citizen testimony during the hearings.

Local physician Glenn Pearson will present the keynote address, "Health Care: A Moral, Medical and Economic Crisis." The closing address will be given by another Fort Collins doctor, Steven Thorson. A concurrent citizen action fair will be held in an adjoining room, with information on health care system issues and opportunities for involvement.

The focus of HCAC is to build grassroots support for universal health care, Lew said.

Fort Collins physician Cory Carroll is active with HCAC and plans to testify at the hearings. "I am an advocate for a single-payer system for health care funding in America," Carroll said. "The problems are great and a national health program will not solve all of them, but it should allow all Americans to have access to health care."

Carroll plans to tell the story of one of his patients, Brian McKee, whose health insurance was cancelled after he went to the doctor for back pain. The insurance company claimed that McKee lied on his initial health questionnaire, a claim that both he and Carroll deny. The company dropped his insurance retroactive to the beginning of the policy, so while they refunded his premiums, he also became liable for all the medical bills during that period. He had to pay several thousands of dollars for tests that were completed when he was supposedly insured, Carroll said.

"The case shows the extreme dark side of the for-profit insurance system," Carroll said. "To maintain a high profit margin, the health care insurance industry needs to insure healthy people and reject sick people, or anyone that may need potentially expensive care."

Renie O'Rourke, a nurse/hypnotherapist in Fort Collins, also has stories to share about the American health care system. "I've seen first-hand, with my family and patients, the shortcomings of our system," she said. One couple she knows has a medical savings account. After they turned 60, their health insurance premiums went to more than $1,400 per month, even though they had only minor health problems.

Another client had insurance through her husband's employer. She got breast cancer and was treated for it while insured, but then her husband died. She lost his insurance and couldn't get another policy. Now, she doesn't see a doctor except when absolutely necessary, because it's too expensive.

One young man is self-insured and pays a premium of $140 per month. On top of that, his medications cost almost $300 per month. "That's a lot for a 22-year-old," O'Rourke said.

"I want our health insurance to be like the fire department," O'Rourke stated. "You need them, you call them, they're there. People should not be punished because they have a chronic condition like heart disease, diabetes or mental health problems."

Lew said there is sufficient oral testimony for the May 6 hearings, but written testimony may be sent to HCAC at P.O. Box 1792, Fort Collins, CO 80522. For information about the hearings, call Lew at 224-0618 or go to www.healthcareforallcolorado.org.