OPINION"Cover the Uninsured Week" a national grassroots effortAMA Leader Commentary. By J. Edward Hill, MD. Feb. 3, 2003. A message to all physicians from J. Edward Hill, MD, chair of the AMA Board of Trustees. What does it mean when you and your family can't get health insurance? That's the question America will be asking the second week of March, during "Cover the Uninsured Week." And I hope the answers will shock our nation right out of its complacency. Living without health insurance means living sicker and dying younger. It means that if your uninsured wife or daughter or sister gets breast cancer, she's almost 50% more likely to die than a woman who has private health insurance. It means that if you or a family member get lung cancer or skin cancer, it's more likely to be discovered at a later, more advanced stage of disease -- when treatment is far more difficult. Worst of all, living without health insurance is a fact of life -- and sometimes death -- for more than 41 million Americans. And it's a national disgrace. As the number of uninsured people continues to grow, the safety nets in our system -- free clinics, community health centers, emergency departments and hospitals -- simply can't pick up the slack. What's more, with budget pressures mounting for state and federal programs, such as the State Children's Health Insurance Program, the situation is likely to get worse unless the nation acts. Before our nation can seriously address the problem, however, it has to see it. Too often, Americans who have health coverage tend to think of the uninsured as "other people." But eight out of 10 uninsured people work or are members of working families. They are hairdressers and carpenters, small business owners and high-flying entrepreneurs. They are neighbors and friends -- and all too often, they are invisible. "Cover the Uninsured Week" aims to change all that. This weeklong campaign, funded primarily by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and supported by a diverse coalition of organizations (including the AMA), will put a national spotlight on the plight of the uninsured. Through town-hall meetings, people will be able to share stories about the devastating consequences of living without health care coverage -- and, with any luck, their legislators will be listening. At community health fairs, uninsured men and women will have the opportunity to find out if they suffer hypertension or high cholesterol before it's too late. While these and other events take place, television and print advertising will bring the story of the uninsured into the family rooms and living rooms of our nation. Patients, nurses, labor leaders and small business owners, among many others, will all be part of "Cover the Uninsured Week." Indeed, anyone who cares about the problem can and should play a part. That means physicians. That means organized medicine. Longstanding AMA policy holds that all Americans should have access to health insurance -- and we at the AMA are working on a plan to help all Americans gain access to health care coverage. Though still a work in progress, the AMA's plan to reform America's health insurance system demonstrates our ongoing commitment to creating a real-world solution to the problem; you can read more about it online (http://www.ama-assn.org/go/healthpolicy). Our commitment to change is shared by other members of the Federation of medicine. At the AMA's 2002 Interim Meeting, the House of Delegates passed new policy concerning the uninsured. Introduced by a key group of medical specialties, this policy calls on the AMA to join with other concerned medical societies and advocate for a bipartisan, congressional resolution to achieve "health care coverage through a pluralistic system for all persons in the United States on or before Jan. 1, 2009." Getting health care coverage for all Americans in the next six years is no small challenge. But if the physician organizations that introduced this resolution believe this goal is possible, we must believe it, too. We must stand up for the uninsured -- and stand behind our Federation partners, including the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Cardiology, the American College of Emergency Physicians, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the American College of Physicians--American Society of Internal Medicine and the American College of Surgeons. The first step to solving the problem is making the public and our elected leaders as aware of it as physicians already are -- and the AMA is doing its part. For three years, we have been part of a diverse coalition of organizations working under the auspices of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. This coalition -- through activities such as "Cover the Uninsured Week" -- is making the plight of the uninsured more visible to the media, to the public, to Congress and to opinion leaders. Last year, the coalition (which includes such groups as the American Hospital Assn., the Business Round Table and Families USA) launched a $10 million advertising campaign and educational Web site. Some of you may have seen the moving public health announcements showing how "life turns out differently" for the uninsured. If not, you can see the ads -- and get more information about the coalition -- at its Web site (http://www.coveringtheuninsured.org). This year, the group has focused its energies on "Cover the Uninsured Week," and I hope physicians around the country will lead the charge in speaking out for those without coverage -- our patients. Here are just a few ways to participate:
As physicians, it is crucial that we take the lead in calling attention to the uninsured, and that we play an activist role in reforming the health system. Too often, we miss opportunities to bring our experiences to bear on critical health care issues and policy. Our profession -- and especially our patients -- have suffered the consequences of our silence. This time, doctors can't afford to sit on the sidelines. When "Cover the Uninsured Week" begins March 10, we must be ready to seize the moment. So get involved. More than 41 million people are counting on you to be on their team. Dr. Hill, a board-certified family physician in Tupelo, Miss., was AMA board chair during 2002-03 and served as president during 2005-06. Copyright 2003 American Medical Association. All rights reserved.
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