LOCAL VIEW: Affordability protections key to health care reform

October 22, 2009  |  North County Times  |  Link to article

In April 2008, Karen lost her brother, who died suddenly of a heart attack while caring for their diabetic mother and working full time as a paralegal.

It wasn't until after his death that his children told Karen that their father had not taken his heart medication for more than a month because he couldn't afford it. The firm for which he was working didn't provide health care benefits, and he could not afford to buy private insurance and raise four kids.

This is only one of many stories that our people have recently shared with us. The stories are about everyday people who have lost their health insurance, could not afford to purchase it, have been denied because of a pre-existing condition, or have inadequate coverage.

During the past several months, the debate has become muddied by partisanship, special interest maneuvering, fear tactics, and misinformation. In the midst of these news-grabbing threats to health care reform, it is essential to remember that there is an unacceptable human cost should we fail to enact it.

Thousands and thousands of people across our nation die and suffer each year in our current system. Adequate and affordable health care is not a partisan or ideological issue. It is a human issue, and it is a moral imperative. In this light, we want to lift our voices on behalf of the many people in our congregations who believe that now is the time for reform.

While there are a number of essential qualities that we wish to see in reform legislation, we would like to stress the need for making coverage available at an affordable cost to families. As clergy of local congregations and members of North County-based Faith Works, we join our voices with AARP, American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, and PICO National Network in proposing that any health care reform must include the following five affordability standard protections:

-- Provide adequate benefits that people need to stay healthy, guaranteeing coverage similar in value to the basic package offered to members of Congress and federal employees;

-- Limit premium rate differences based on age so that premiums for older individuals are no more than twice the premium amount for younger individuals;

-- Provide subsidies on a sliding scale to families earning up to 400 percent of the artificially low federal poverty line, with a cap on out-of-pocket costs that protects families from being underinsured;

-- Protect the lowest-income households in the Health Care Exchange from premiums; and

-- As a last resort, if necessary, exempt families who do not have an affordable coverage option available from penalties under the individual mandate and ensure that a safety net exists. Requiring families to buy coverage that costs more than they can afford, or that leaves them underinsured, would undermine the fundamental goal of extending coverage to all families and diminish the public support needed to pass and sustain reform.

As members of Congress and the president work toward meaningful health care reform, we are aware that there are many vital aspects to a successful system of care. However, we urge them, and all Americans, to ensure that affordability is a central piece of health care reform.

Karen's brother lost his life because he could not afford health care. Let us work for affordable health care so that this tragic story will never be repeated.

The Rev. EDWARD (BUD) KAICHER is with St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, Vista. Co-signers are Deacon Miguel Enriquez, St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church, Vista; the Rev. Michael Henderson, Shiloh Church of God in Christ, Oceanside; the Rev. Cindy Arntson, North Coast United Methodist Church, Oceanside; and the Rev. Doug Kelly, Christ Presbyterian Church, Carlsbad.