Michigan Consumers for Healthcare Advancement introduce Community Catalyst at Detroit meeting

The Michigan Consumers for Healthcare Advancement (MCHA) held its monthly meeting at the Health Authority in February. The coalition has received a $200,000 grant from the Nokomis Foundation. Community Catalyst, which will be offering support for community organizing, provided a special presentation to the group regarding the status of health reform. The sobering account warned attendees to increase their advocacy among elected officials in the face of proposed funding cuts and partisan politics that could reduce the effectiveness of the Affordable Care Act. Community Catalyst, based in Boston, is a national non-profit advocacy organization that has provided leadership and support to state and local consumer organizations, policymakers and foundations that are working to change the health care system to serve all people, especially vulnerable populations. In addition to health reform, Community Catalyst works with children's health, issues relating to the chronically ill and dually-eligible populations, cost and quality, free care and community benefits through its "Hospital Accountability Project," oral health, prescription drugs,  and racial and ethnic health equity.

MCHA's mission is "to work collaboratively with a diverse alliance of consumers, partners, and policymakers to attain affordable, accessible, quality healthcare for everyone in Michigan through education, outreach, advocacy, and stakeholder engagement. For more information on the MCHA go to www.healthcareadvancement.org, email at info@healthcareadvancement.org, or phone 517-487-5436.

Webinar: 'Rethinking the future for vulnerable populations'

For most of us, 2030 may seem light years away, given the changes we're encountering day to day. But to properly plan the health systems change for vulnerable populations, 2030 is really not that far off. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is hosting a webinar on the topic, "Rethinking the future for vulnerable populations," which anticipates how the vulnerable in America will look like in 2030, in terms of economic, social, policy, and environmental factors. The webinar will feature Jane Lowe, Team Director for the Vulnerable Populations Portfolio, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation; Clement Bezoid, Founder and Chairman, Institute for Alternative Futures; and Ron Haskins, C0-Director, Center for Children and Families, Brookings Institution. The free conference will take place on Tuesday, April 12, at 1:30 p.m. For details visit www.rwjf.org/vulnerablepopulations.

 Cabrini Clinic holds jazz concert to benefit mission

Cabrini Clinic's a jazzy place, especially on Monday, April 25, when the Hot Club of Detroit will perform at Baker's Keyboard Lounge. Donation is $50 per person, which includes a soul food meal. Seating is limited. For information contact Siobhan Dodds at 313-961-7863.

New Center Circle of Care Forms

As a reminder, information on the Circles of Care can be found on the designated page of the Health Authority's website, www.healthaccess1.org. Go to "Interfaith Health & Hope Coalition" and find "Circles of Care." You now also find a calendar of events and other information about the Coalition.

Planning is under way for three programs: an Interfaith Prayer Event in the summer, topic and date to be determined; and a Teach-In on Memory Loss for fall. We're also exploring a workshop for health ministries. My thanks to the volunteers who are helping us with the Circles and our special programs. They are critical to developing the right topics and program content as well as administering them. If you'd like to volunteer for programs, please contact me at rbeford@yahoo.com.

 Finally, we express our gratitude and best wishes for Pastor Carl Ames who has been a steadfast member of the Coalition for the past five years, serving most recently as Treasurer. His wit and wisdom will be missed, as well as his commitment to interfaith health collaboration.

Ron Beford

Executive Director

Interfaith Health & Hope Coalition

Health reform law marks first anniversary

With most of the health reform law yet to be enacted, the one thing that seems to firmly in place is confusion and mixed reaction to the law. Opponents for the law are threatening to repeal it and minimally cripple it with funding reductions. They also have lawyers busily arguing against the individual mandate requirement. Proponents, forced into the defense/sell position from the beginning, say eventually consumers will get it - if they are able to get it in time.

What to expect in 2011

·         Health insurers will be required to spend at least 80 percent of their premiums on medical care or face the possibility of giving rebates to consumers.

·         Prescription drug costs could shrink $700 for a typical Medicare beneficiary in 2011, as the law begins to close the notorious "doughnut hole" - the gap in prescription coverage when millions of seniors must pay full price at the pharmacy. The National Council on Aging estimates the savings could reach $1,800 for some - no small change for folks on fixed incomes.

·         For the nutrition and diet conscious, the Food and Drug Administration is finalizing rules that will require chain restaurants with 20 or more locations, and owners of 20 or more vending machines, to display calorie information on menus, menu boards, and drive-thru signs. Restaurants must also provide diners with a brochure that includes detailed nutritional information, such as fat content of their dishes.

·         Consumers with flexible spending accounts, in which pre-tax income can be used for medical purchases, can no longer spend that money on over-the-counter medications unless they have a doctor's prescription. Medical devices such as eyeglasses and crutches, and co-pays and deductibles still qualify for the accounts, as insulin over-the-counter meds. This also plies to people with health reimbursement, health savings, and Archer medical savings accounts. Violation of this regulation could result in a tax penalty of 20 percent, double of what it was previously.

·          Medicare has increased payments for primary care by 10 percent, as an incentive for doctors and others who specialize in primary care - including nurse clinicians and physician assistants - to see seniors and disabled people more frequently, to prevent and manage disease. General surgeons will also receive an increase in medically underserved areas. The increase will expire in 2015.

·         The health law has frozen reimbursement at 2010 levels for private health plans that provide Medicare coverage to about a quarter of beneficiaries, but will eventually be restored at lower rates in 2012. Medicare says that reductions are fair because the plans are paid $1,000 more per person on average than traditional fee-for-service programs spend on a typical senior.

·         In July, Medicaid will stop paying for treatment of some hospital-acquired infections, in an effort to improve infection control practices in hospitals. Medicare already bans payments for treating many of these infections.

New website offers update on health reform benefits

"HealthCare and You," a coalition of provider, consumer, and patient groups has launched a consumer website to inform people about the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The website, www.HealthCareAndYou.org, provides information on the health reform law, its provisions and developments related to its implementation. The information is tailored by location, so visitors can select the state where they live and obtain customized information about the impact of the law.

'Dual-eligible': Meeting the needs of low-income elderly

It's a simple descriptor, "dual-eligible," but it's one of those terms that's lost in medical mystery. People often assume that Medicare covers every medical need of an elderly person. Not so. Some elderly are extremely poor and can't afford supplemental Medicare insurance or related services. The Obama administration recently proposed a program to reduce Medicaid costs by addressing the needs of about five percent of the Medicaid population - the "dual-eligible;" those who are eligible for Medicaid and Medicare.

Among the statistics, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation:

·         66 percent of dual eligibles have three or more chronic conditions;

·         61 percent are cognitively or mentally impaired;

·         22 percent require assistance with two or more daily tastes;

·         90 percent live below 150 percent of the federal poverty level.

Caring for this population is complicated because Medicare and Medicaid don't always interact well together due to different policies and requirements. The Obama administration has solicited proposals from states for competitive grants for innovative approaches to caring for dual-eligibles. Sections will be announced in April.

The Affordable Care Act has created a program in which the federal government will assume 90 percent of the Medicaid costs for beneficiaries care for in clinics with comprehensive case management services, known as medical homes or health homes. Medicare and Medicaid experts are cautious, but they agree that this program will bring cost savings. They also agree that these are often very sick people with a multitude of needs