Key Health Reform Bill Passes Out of Committee. As a coalition of organizations representing over 800,000 Oregonians, we began the session with a 100 Day Countdown to Health with the goal of passing health reform by April 22. We are pleased to see real progress as HB2116 passed out of the House Health Care Committee Friday and Chair Greenlick announced his intentions to pass HB2009 out on Monday.
HB2116 will use money already within the health care system to cover Oregon’s children and more low-income adults.
As noted by Betty-Coe R. de Broekert, volunteer Executive Councilor for AARP Oregon, “access to quality, affordable coverage is increasingly difficult, especially for AARP’s 50- to 64-year-old members who are among the fastest growing groups of uninsured. With skyrocketing health care costs for both families and businesses and too many Oregonians just one illness or injury – or job layoff or loss – away from financial disaster, the cost of doing nothing is just too high. We’ve got to fix health care to help fix our economy.”
HB2116 is just one component of the health reform package before the Legislature. As Representative Kotek reminded her colleagues today, the rest of the reform package also needs to be enacted.
Tom Chamberlain, President of the Oregon AFL-CIO said, “The need for healthcare unites all Oregonians – the poor, middle class and the wealthy, young and old, the rural farmer and the inner-city teacher. That’s why we’ve partnered with advocates for kids and seniors, small business leaders and healthcare providers to ask our legislators to pass comprehensive healthcare reform. Our healthcare system must work for all Oregonians.”
