Health Care Rivals Join Together In Making The Uninsured Priority Number One

Oct 13, 1999

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tuesday, Oct. 12, 1999

Kit Gray (202) 745-5110 Lorie Slass, Families USA (202) 628-3030 Richard Coorsh, HIAA (202)824-1787

New Nonpartisan Poll Reveals 69 Percent Would Pay Higher Taxes to Assure All Americans Have Access to Health Insurance Coverage

Washington, D.C. -- Families USA and the Health Insurance Association of America, longtime rivals in the national health care debate, announced today that they will join other national groups for a January 2000 conference that will tackle the problem of the uninsured. The conference is being sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Health Coverage 2000: Meeting the Challenge of the Uninsured, will feature concrete proposals presented by HIAA, Families USA, and five other leading health care, industry, and labor groups on expanding health insurance coverage.

With a new nonpartisan poll showing that 90 percent of Americans favor making sure all families and children have access to affordable health insurance, organizers say now is the time to seek solutions to what they see as the nation’s number one problem: providing affordable coverage for millions of Americans who need it. The poll was conducted Sept. 29–Oct. 4 by polling firms Public Opinion Strategies and Lake, Snell, Perry, and Associates. According to the poll, the public’s support for covering the uninsured is just as strong as it was in 1992 – with 69 percent of Americans saying they would be willing to pay more in taxes to assure all Americans have health insurance coverage, matching exactly the percentage in 1992 (Mellman Group Data).

"Without question the American people care about helping the millions of individuals and families who lack health insurance," said Chip Kahn, president of the Health Insurance Association of America. "The health insurance industry is committed to working with other organizations to develop solutions that address our nation’s number one problem: providing affordable coverage for millions of Americans who need it."

The poll also found that most Americans would favor helping uninsured families and children get health insurance over paying down the national debt or cutting federal income taxes.

"Despite a strong economy, more and more people are becoming uninsured with each passing year," said Ron Pollack, executive director of Families USA. "It is high time for all groups interested in health care to dedicate themselves to high quality, affordable health coverage for everyone. We welcome past friends and foes in making this a top goal for America."

Additional findings from the poll include:

• Seventy-five percent of Americans favor making sure all families and children have access to affordable health insurance, even if it costs them more.
• Fifty-four percent of Americans are more likely to vote for a candidate who talks about making sure all families and children have access to affordable health insurance.
• A majority of Americans believe the uninsured problem has gotten worse and will get worse in the future. Fifty-nine percent say the number of uninsured Americans has increased in the last 10 years and 51 percent say the number will continue to increase in the next 10 years.

"For millions of Americans and their families, lack of health insurance coverage limits access to affordable health care," said Jack Ebeler, senior vice president of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "We are pleased to support these leaders in the health, business, and labor communities in coming together to propose a range of solutions at the Health Coverge 2000 conference."

In addition to leading sponsors Families USA, the Health Insurance Association of America and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, other co-sponsors of the Health Coverage 2000 conference who will present proposals include the American Hospital Association, the American Medical Association, the American Nurses Association, the Service Employees International Union, and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Three news organizations, American Hotline, American Healthline, and Freedom Channel.com, are working with the conference sponsors to guarantee a rigorous and non-partisan discussion of proposals to expand health coverage in the United States.

Health Coverage 2000 is slated for January 13, 2000 at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. At the conference, each participating group will present a detailed proposal providing its perspective on how to tackle the problem of the uninsured. The conference will also include a presentation on the economic trends contributing to the rising number of Americans without health insurance. Two videos produced for the conference will explore the impact of the lack of health coverage on individual Americans as well as the views of presidential candidates on the problem of the uninsured. In addition, high-level political speakers, including Governor Howard Dean of Vermont, are slated to speak.

For more information on Health Coverage 2000: Meeting the Challenge of the Uninsured, visit the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Website (www.rwjf.org).