Monday, October 17, 2005

6th Annual Soul of Medicine Brunch

Physicians for Social Responsibility invites you to participate in the following upcoming events:
6th Annual Soul of Medicine Brunch
Sunday October 23rd
11:00 am - 1:30 pm

Featured speaker, Kevin Fosnocht, MD - University of Pennsylvania Program: "Responding to the Emotionally Charged/Difficult Situations Encountered with patients, attending staff and fellow students. How does one, as a student, cope with feelings of 'powerless' for perhaps the first time in one's life?"
Informal discussions will follow. There is no charge for the brunch.

College of Physicians
19 South 22nd Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103

Friday, September 16, 2005

Pulitizer Prize Winner James B. Steele Speaks on Health Care!

James B. Steele, pulitizer prize winning author will be in Philadelphia on Monday, November 7, 6:30 PM at the Penn Newman Center, 3720 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, PA on Penn campus. He will be speaking about his new paperback, Critical Condition: How Health Care in America Became Big Business and Bad Medicine.

Don't miss this amazing event and booksigning! Sponsored by the Philadelphia Area Committee to Defend Health Care and Physicians for a National Health Program. Free to the public. Parking in the lot behind the building on Sansom Street.

Physicians for a National Health Program Annual Meeting

Physicians for a National Health Program will hold their Annual Meeting in Philadelphia, December 10, 9-5 PM. There will be a PNHP speaker's training on Dec. 9 at the Friends Center, 15th and Cherry Streets. And there will be a PNHP dinner on December 10, at 6 PM. Location TBA by next week. For more information, see www.pnhp.org

American Public Health Association in Philadelphia

The American Public Health Association has been moved from New Orleans to Philadelphia, December 10-14 at the Convention Center. Don't miss the largest public health meeting in the America coming here! For information go to www.apha.org

Monday, August 08, 2005

Marcia Angell, MD to Speak on Single Payer

Marcia Angell, MD, Senior Lecturer, Harvard Medical School and former editor of the New England Journal of Medicine will be speaking on "Single Payer Healthcare: How Realistic?"

Come hear Marcia Angell, MD speak at the 25th Anniversary of the Zubrow lecture, Pennsylvania Hospital, 8th and Spruce Streets, Zubrow Auditorium, Philadelphia, September 29, 5 PM. Reception at 6 PM.

Monday, July 18, 2005

Happy 40th Birthday Medicare and Medicaid

July 30 is the 40th birthday of the dominant health care plans for America - Medicare and Medicaid. Both programs are being slowly privatized to the detriment of the programs.

Join the MEDICAID 40TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

Friday, June 29th

You can join other organizations across Pennsylvania to preserve federal Medicaid funding by:

Signing Our Stakeholder's Medicaid Birthday Card -

Dear Senator Rick Santorum,

The following organizations will be celebrating Medicaid’s 40th birthday throughout Pennsylvania.

The Stakeholders Alliance to Defend Medicaid invites you to join this celebration of a national

system that has supported more than 50 million seniors, children, people with disabilities and low-income

families with access to life-saving medical care each year. As a member of the Senate Finance Committee,

your vote will play a pivotal role in the Medicaid debate. We urge you to make decisions on Medicaid in the

coming months based on the needs of Pennsylvania residents who depend on Medicaid to sustain their lives.

Do not blow out the candles on Medicaid.

to sign the card: forward a reply to ksorensen@ccjustice.org with a subject line that says: Medicaid Sig
In the body of the email give your:

Organization _________________________________

Your name__________________________________

Phone number _______________________________

City______________________zip __________________


You can also have a birthday cake at your work and invite your members and clients. When you cut the cake marking the 40th Anniversary of the creation of Medicaid, hold the piece aside that says “Happy” for Senator Santorum. He can either take it, or throw it away for the people of PA with his vote. Please contact us if you're going to have a cake so we can include you with all of the other state-wide organizations who are having cake in our press alert.

alisasimon@pccy.org

or call Alisa Simon: (215) 563-5848

This event is sponsored by Stakeholders:

Citizens for Consumer Justice
Consumer Health Coalition
Pennsylvania Partnership for Children
Philadelphia Coalition for Children and Youth

Kate Sorensen
Citizens for Consumer Justice
215-569-8220
ksorensen@ccjustice.org

Sunday, June 12, 2005

Community Meeting MCP Hospital

There is a COMMUNITY MEETING BEING HELD ON
JUNE 16, (THURSDAY) AT 7:00p.m. at
MERCY VOCATIONAL CATHOLIC SCHOOL located at 29th Street and Allegheny Avenue.

Where we are now is that efforts are being taken by the community, medical staff, former workers, and others to ensure that the MCP hospital be turned over to the citizens for ownership and operations.

The politicians will be there; the community residents will be there; the medical staff will be there; former workers will be there; union representatives will be there; and the press will be there. At this meeting you will get a full update on all of the actions that have been and are being taken concerning OUR HOSPITAL. Please mark the date and pass this information along to everyone you know. It is vitally important that you meet the members of the various committees working to solve these issues concerning OUR HOSPITAL. Please be in attendance if possible. For further information feel free to call (215) 227-3622 at North Penn Civic Association.

Friday, May 13, 2005

Health Care Action Day

Tuesday, June 14th
This is your chance to join in solidarity and stand for Health and Social Security

1st... Tuesday, June 14th 10:30am
George Bush will be Attending a Fundraiser for Santorum
That's right, You've got a chance to come speak your mind about Social Security and the Bush/Santorum plan for Privatization and Benefit Cuts.
This is going to be really good

2nd... Tuesday, June 14th 4 pm
March for Healthcare Justice
March from the Clothespin to SEPTA HQ
1500 Market St to 1234 Market St.

The Pennsylvania State Legislature is finalizing massive cuts to our Medicaid Healthcare Safety-net. AND

Healthcare workers and Septa workers are in dispute to hold tight to the healthcare that they've fought for.

Advocates can support all of Pennsylvania's Underinsured by coming to this march and backing these folks.

March with hundreds of Medicaid recipients, hospital workers and transit workers in their demand for health care justice. This action will target Faye Moore, General Manager of SEPTA, who seeks to raise health care co-pays and premiums of the SEPTA workers by $400 per month.

Come to the Clothespin, 15th and Market Streets, Philadelphia to support the Transport Workers Union and hospital workers in their negotiations for health benefits, 3:30 PM, June 14. Prepare for a march at 4:30 PM.

Single Payer Health Plan for Pennsylvania

Pennsylvanians United for Single Payer Health Care have introduced model parameters for an innovative plan for universal health care in Pennsylvania. For more information, including a draft of the bill, go to http://www.pahcsc.org.

“ONE PAGER” - SUMMARY
MODEL BILL - 2005 BALANCED HEALTH CARE REFORM

I. Implementation January 1, 2007

II. Comprehensive universal health coverage, single payer, no deductibles or co-pays, and no caps. Covers all cost of hospitalization, physicians, prescription drugs, dental, mental, optical, emergency transport, addiction, transplants, durable medical equipment, hospice, long term care, etc. No coverage for purely cosmetic procedures. Replaces all private insurance, Medicaid, Adult Basic, PaCHIP, and all other government programs excepting Medicare and VA. The Plan plugs all holes in the Medicare and VA coverage. Parties to collective bargaining agreements with benefits at least as generous as the Balanced Plan may opt out. Private insurers may cover anything not covered by the Plan.

III. Replace the current malpractice system with a consumer choice between: (1) An administrative no-fault program providing a reasonable and immediate set of benefits to anyone injured by their medical care regardless of how careful the health care provider may have been, and (2) Retaining their traditional fault based remedies. The Plan will fund both the no-fault and fault approaches essentially eliminating malpractice insurance premiums for health care providers except for those who elect to purchase additional coverage to insure traditional claims exceeding the $3 million limit provided by the Plan.

IV $1000 per year tax rebates for active volunteer firefighters, EMTs, and rescue workers.

V. Medical error reduction through an aggressive and fully funded program to investigate all claims of errors, to order and enforce better practices to reduce avoidable health care related injuries, and to seek license revocation where appropriate.

VI. Cost containment through a certificate of need requirement to avoid wasteful and duplicative capital investment in medical equipment or services in over served areas while encouraging development in under served parts of the Commonwealth.

VII. Total commitment to establishing a culture of wellness through: (1) A fully funded K through 12 health education and physical fitness curriculum that is considered no less important than any other “core” subject, and (2) Identifying and eliminating environmental health risks.

VIII. Generous transitional assistance to employees displaced by the move to a single payer system. Adoption of this legislation will also create tens of thousands of excellent new jobs in health care, education, substance abuse treatment, and long term care.

IX. Preservation of the private health care system and the right of patients to choose their doctor.

X. Funding of a 21st Century digital medical record system that will be cost-efficient, eliminate redundant testing, and will reduce prescription and treatment errors.

XI. Dedicated funding of the program through a 10% Health Care Levy on payrolls (including the self-employed) plus a 3% Wellness Tax on all personal income. This becomes 1% each for employers and employees with a qualifying collective bargaining agreement.

XII. Exercising the collective purchasing power of 12 million Pennsylvanians to lower the cost of prescription drugs and durable medical equipment.

Thursday, May 05, 2005

Health Commissioner releases Phila Plan for Universal Health Care

Philadelphia releases plan for "Decent Health Care for All Philadelphians"

The City releases the Philadelphia plan for universal health care entitled, "Decent Health Care for All". This plan is a first step toward crafting a plan for universal health care. It calls for the city to initiate a Health Leadership Partnership of key leaders to coordinate services for the uninsured. At the same time, we must fight potential cuts in Medicaid and Medicare which could jeopardize services. The plan can be downloaded at the http://www.phila.gov/health.

Thursday, April 28, 2005

Cover The Uninsured Week

Cover The Uninsured events May 2-6, 2005

Religious Leaders Interfaith Breakfast
Thursday, May 5, Wyndham Franklin Plaza, 8 AM

Thursday, March 17, 2005

Closing Women's Medical Hospital

After 155 years as a hospital and birthplace of Women's Medical College, MCP/Women's Medical Hospital closed. If we do not revive MCP, there will be a sad closure to a important moment in history. Read the cover story of Physician's News Digest (http://www.physiciansnews.com)

Friday, March 11, 2005

Fight PA Medicaid Cuts

Call your state legislators today to oppose the proposed limits on Medicaid. For Phila area hospitals, the cuts will cost around $186 million and will force the closure of hospital floors and compromise emergency room services. CALL TODAY!