Health care

11/06/2007 -- California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Kim Belshé today released the following statement after Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez and Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata announced new health care reform legislation:

“This new proposal helps to move the ball forward and is a step in the right direction. We are evaluating the details of the plan and there are still important differences that need to be negotiated, such as ensuring we protect small employers and California jobs."    » read more »

November 5, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senators Barack Obama (D-IL), John Kerry (D-MA), Pete Domenici (R-NM) and Chuck Hagel (R-NE) sent the following letter to the Assistant Defense Secretary for Health Affairs, Dr. S. Ward Casscells, calling on him to provide comprehensive information on eye injuries sustained by service members in Iraq and Afghanistan.    » read more »

Governor Highlights Health Care Reforms, Says More To Be Done

November 5, 2007 -- Montpelier, Vt. — A non-profit health advocacy group, working with the American Public Health Association and Partnership for Prevention, has ranked Vermont the healthiest state in the country, the office of Vermont Governor Jim Douglas announced today.

The ranking lists each state on 20 measures of wellness, including high school graduation, obesity and infant mortality rates, their focus on preventive medicine and wellness and the percentage of residents with health insurance.    » read more »

Senator Patty Murray of Washington delivers this week’s Democratic Radio Address. After years of this Administration under-funding our veterans, and as Veterans Day approaches, Murray calls on the President to enact Democrats’ effort to provide the largest-ever increase in veterans funding.

The text of the radio address, as delivered, is below:

“Good morning, this is U.S. Senator Patty Murray from the state of Washington. I want to talk to you about something that my Democratic colleagues and I have made a priority – our nation’s veterans.    » read more »

November 2, 2007 -- "We in the United States are fortunate to have some of the best medical facilities and services in the world. Yet, shamefully, 2005 US Census data estimates that there are 46.6 million people in our country – approximately 15.9% of the population – who are uninsured.

How to provide everyone in our country access to affordable, quality health care is the subject of extensive debate. Over the years, though, we have made some progress in making sure that the most vulnerable members of our communities – including children – can receive basic medical services.    » read more »

November 1, 2007 -- John McCain takes a bag full of tricks but no treats to the Kaiser Family Foundation's Presidential Candidate Forums today as he presents a health care reform plan that would bring the Bush Administration's failed health care policies back from the dead.    » read more »

November 1, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, D.C. – Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) praised today’s Senate passage of the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) bill. The bill would make health insurance available to more children in New Jersey and across the nation. The Senate passed a previous bill to expand children’s health insurance on September 27, but that bill was vetoed by President Bush.    » read more »

(As Prepared for Delivery)

November 1, 2007 -- "It’s a privilege to join my colleagues to support children’s health. I commend too the former Assistant Surgeon General, Dr. Woodie Kessel for his courage in speaking out for children. He has worked tirelessly for children’s health in Republican and Democratic Administrations alike – and he recognizes that a strong, bipartisan CHIP bill is the most important step we can take to improve the health of America’s children.    » read more »

October 31, 2007 -- WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) today introduced legislation to improve the prevention, detection and treatment of community and healthcare-associated infections—particularly antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as MRSA. Durbin’s initiative, the Community and Healthcare-Associated Infections Reduction (CHAIR) Act of 2007, follows several confirmed cases of MRSA infections involving students in the Chicagoland area over the last few weeks. The bill is co-sponsored by Senators Barack Obama (D-IL) and Chuck Schumer (D-NY).    » read more »

October 31, 2007 -- "Today, we continue our debate on the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Yesterday, I spoke of the legislation that is before the Senate, and described the many concessions that the bipartisan coalition supporting this bill has made to broaden support for our proposal.

It is important to discuss and understand the specifics of the legislation, and our debate will make sure that our colleagues will be able to sort the truth from the many fictions about this bipartisan proposal.    » read more »

New Deal Will Protect Coverage For Up To 5,000 North Country Residents

October 31, 2007 -- U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer hailed today’s news that a new agreement has been reached between the health care insurance provider HealthNow New York and the Hudson Headwaters Health Network. The agreement will result in a continuation of health insurance coverage for up to 5,000 residents across the North Country.    » read more »

October 31, 2007 -- Washington, DC — Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid made the following statement today in response to President Bush’s latest excuse against giving America’s children the health care they need. The President has changed on a regular basis his unsubstantiated arguments against CHIP:    » read more »

October 31, 2007 -- HAMILTON - New Jersey Governor Jon S. Corzine today signed legislation requiring New Jersey hospitals to report statistics on all hospital acquired infections to the Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS). This marks the first time the state will have a comprehensive, detailed system of reporting for hospital acquired infections, enabling hospitals to develop protocols to combat this problem.    » read more »

October 31, 2007 -- JEFFERSON CITY – Missouri Governor Matt Blunt today announced that Missourians now have access to additional information to help protect themselves from Health Care-Associated Infections (HAI). New information about health care associated infections related to certain types of surgeries are now available through the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services’ HAI Internet site.    » read more »

Des Moines, IA (October 25, 2007): Today U.S. Senator Joe Biden criticized his Republican rivals’ health care plans, which would benefit insurance companies at the expense of seniors and low-income American families, in advance of the AARP “Divided We Fail” Republican debate in Sioux City, Iowa. Only two Republican candidates accepted invitations to participate in tonight’s AARP forum, which will focus on health care and financial security for seniors.    » read more »