|
Health
We are at a critical juncture in the state of America’s health. Our country spends over $2 trillion dollars each year on health care -- more than any other country in the world -- yet we are dying younger and have the highest rate of preventable deaths among 19 industrialized nations. In this wealthiest of nations, at any given time over 46 million people do not have health insurance and cannot get basic health care. I believe that we have a moral imperative to ensure Americans have access to comprehensive, affordable, and effective healthcare, and that belief has guided my work in Congress.
I supported passage of comprehensive health reform, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, to improve access to quality affordable care and help us begin to reign in the explosive costs of health care in this nation. In the 34th Congressional District, where almost 40 percent of our community is uninsured, this law will extend coverage to 179,000 residents currently without insurance. The new law improves Medicare for 59,000 seniors in our congressional district by putting us on a path toward closing the Medicare Part D “donut hole” when beneficiaries are responsible for the full cost of their drugs.
The new law is already working: insurance plans are now prohibited from denying coverage to children with preexisting conditions and young adults can stay on their parents’ health plans until 26. In 2014 adults with preexisting conditions will be protected as well. If you would like more information about how this new health care law will impact you, visit the sites below.
As a Co-Chair of the Study Group on Public Health, I worked hard to ensure that public health and wellness provisions were included in the final health reform bill. Millions of Americans suffer from preventable chronic diseases including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and obesity, and I as a member of the Appropriations Health Subcommittee I advocate for investments in prevention that save lives and money. I also serve as Chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Health Taskforce, focusing on policies that reduce health disparities across all minority communities, and ensure access to culturally and linguistically appropriate health care.
The Impacts of the Health Care Reform Law
As you are aware, on March 23, 2010, President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (H.R. 3590) into law. The following week the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act (H.R. 4872) was enacted, making significant improvements to the new law. These landmark pieces of legislation will expand access to quality and affordable health care to Americans and help us begin to reign in the explosive costs of health care in this nation. Please see the links below for more information about the new law and how it will impact you and your family.
Short summary of provisions within H.R. 3590 and H.R. 4872
Provisions within the bills that will take effect within the next year
Health Reform’s impact specifically on the 34th Congressional District
Health Reform and how it is paid for
Health Reform for American Families
Health Reform for Children
Health Reform for Early Retirees
Health Reform for Seniors
Health Reform for Young Adults
Health Reform for Women
Health Reform for Employers
Health Reform for Small Businesses
Health Reform for Latinos
Health Reform for African-Americans
Congresswoman Roybal-Allard’s statement on H.R. 3590
H.R. 3590 bill text
H.R. 4872 bill text
Healthcare Reform Implementation in 2011 Newsletter for the 34th Congressional District
Click here to view the newsletter in English
Click here to view the newsletter in Spanish
Summer 2010 Health Reform Newsletter for the 34th Congressional District
Click here to view the newsletter in English
Click here to view the newsletter in Spanish
Important Information on Diabetes
Congresswoman Roybal-Allard is very concerned about the national epidemic of childhood obesity and diabetes that is disproportionately impacting our Latino and minority communities, and believes that this may well be the most critical public health crisis facing our nation in the next quarter century. As founding co-chair of the Congressional Study Group on Public Health, the Congresswoman has worked hard in Congress to focus attention on the importance of investments in prevention and public health outreach to address chronic preventable diseases like diabetes. She also strongly believes that individual health education and family wellness efforts are essential to building healthier communities. For that reason she is happy to share this link to the Children with Diabetes website, and invites her constituents to use this informative resource as one tool in their efforts to prevent Diabetes and its complications.
Congresswoman Roybal-Allard's Health Legislation
The Guidance, Understanding and Information for Dual Eligibles (GUIDE) Act,
Assists people with mental disabilities in finding the right Medicare prescription drug plan for them by creating a demonstration program to provide one-on-one counseling services. The measure would also require that counseling services be provided by trained social workers and counselors in community mental health centers and other community-based non-profit organizations.
The Support 21 Act of 2009
Authorizes a new highly visible media campaign to educate the public about underage drinking laws and build support for their enforcement. The legislation asks the National Academy of Sciences to provide a report to Congress about the influence of drinking alcohol on the development of the adolescent brain. The legislation authorizes supplemental grant funds to current and former Drug Free Community grantees to work with pediatric health care providers and parents to reduce underage drinking.
Maxmizing Optimal Maternity Services (MOMS) for the 21st Century Act, H.R. 2141
- (June 7, 2011) Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Roybal-Allard Introduces Sweeping Maternity Care Reform Legislation to Improve the Health and Well-Being of Mothers and Babies
- (October 10, 2010) Los Angeles, CA - Los Angeles Chapter of the American College of Nurse Midwives Honors Congresswoman During Its Observance of National Midwifery Week for Her Authorship of Legislation Aimed at Placing a National Focus on Evidenced-Based Maternity Care Practices
- (August 12, 2010) East Los Angeles, CA - Congresswoman Urges Ramona Opportunity High School Students to Stay in School
- (July 27, 2010) Washington, D.C. - American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Meets with Congresswoman Roybal-Allard
- (July 22, 2010) Washington, DC - Amnesty International Applauds MOMS for the 21st Century Act
- (July 22, 2010) Silver Spring, MD - American College of Nurse-Midwives Applauds MOMS for the 21st Century Act
- (July 21, 2010) Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Roybal-Allard Introduces Sweeping Maternity Care Reform Legislation to Improve the Health and Well-Being of Mothers and Babies
- To view the Congresswoman's floor statement about the legislation, click here.
- (July 20, 2010) Washington, D.C. - Dear Colleague: The MOMS for the 21st Century Act
- (June 28, 2010) Washington, D.C. - A Tour of the DC Developing Families Center
- (June 15, 2010) Washington, D.C. - National Leaders in Midwifery Commend Congresswoman Roybal-Allard for Her Advocacy to Improve the Health of Mothers and Their Families
- (May 12, 2010) Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Joins the March of Dimes in Raising Awareness about the Public Health Crisis of Premature Births in Our Country
The Communities of Color Teen Pregnancy Prevention Act, HR 2678
Make additional federal competitive grants available for existing and new school-based and community-based teenage pregnancy intervention programs in minority communities. The legislation would also authorize a national multimedia educational campaign to provide public education and increase public awareness about teenage pregnancy prevention and the importance of promoting and building healthy relationships to prevent teenage pregnancies.
|
