May 26. 2010
îl!‘^lortlanì» (Observer
Health Reform Changed Landscape
Makes
healthcare a
civil right
that enable the uninsured to pur
chase health insurance at reason­
able rates. A t the sam e tim e, sup­
p o rte rs p u rp o s e ly d o w n p la y e d
oth er provisions that m ay have been
unpopular, such as one o f
the largest expansions o f
by D r . H esrif . M .T re ,\ dwell
social program s that ben­
W hen h ealth re fo rm w as
efit the n atio n ’s poor.
signed into law. V ice President
L et’s not be m istaken.
Joe B iden w as ridiculed for his
The health reform legisla­
use o f an off-color adjective in d e ­ tion m ay be the m ost im portant Civil
scribing the legislation to P resident R ights legislation since the 1960s:
O bam a. But lost in the rhetorical U nder health reform , 32 m illion u n ­
battle over health reform is the fact insured A m ericans w ill receive cov­
that Mr. B iden’s w ords w ere accu ­ erage. T he new law m andates that
rate: T his is a big deal!
every A m erica m ust obtain health
By getting the landm ark legisla­ insurance, w hile providing sig n ifi­
tion enacted. President O bam a has c a n t g o v e rn m e n t a ss ista n c e for
transform ed his presidency and ush­ those w ho cannot afford it. This will
ered in fun d am en tal ch an g es to save lives. It virtually gives all A m eri­
A m e r ic a ’s h e a lth c a r e s y s te m , cans a right to health insurance and
changes that will have a profound pro v id es w ays for the p o o r to o b ­
impact on m illio n so f A frican A m eri­ tain it.
cans and other people o f color. The
Since 1965, M edicaid has p ro ­
lack o f health insurance is a factor in vided health services for the poor.
one ofthe biggest inequities in A m eri­ T he new law will expand eligibility
can society - the health disparities to include all individuals u n d er age
that prem aturely end lives and cause 65 w ith incom es up to 133 percent o f
undue pain and suffering in m inority the Federal Poverty Level, nearly
com m unities across the country.
$15,000 a year. It m eans that low-
In a savvy m ove to gain m a in ­ w age earners w ithout children or
stream support for the bill, the a d ­ disabilities w ill now be eligible for
m inistration prom oted provisions M edicare, allow ing them to receive
such as requiring m ost US citizens a health benefit package that will
and legal residents to have health cover essential m edical services and
in su ra n ce , p re v e n tin g in su ra n ce provide m any w ith their first health
com panies from denying coverage insurance. In addition, people earn ­
because o f pre-existing conditions ing m ore than $ 15,000 may qualify to
and creating state-based exchanges receiv e g o v ern m en t sub sid ies to
help pay for health insurance.
A disproportionate num ber o f
A frican A m ericans w ill qualify for
these benefits. A lready, 24 percent
o f A frican A m ericans are covered
by M edicaid, and that num ber will
in c re a s e s ig n ific a n tly w ith the
p ro g ram ’s expansion. In total, ju st
m ore than h a lf o f those w ho cu r­
rently qualify for M edicare are racial
or ethnic m inorities, m eaning that
m any poor w hite fam ilies w ill also
benefit. A frican A m ericans are 12
percent o f the n a tio n ’s population,
but 16 percent o f the uninsured, so
a disproportionate num ber o f the 32
m illion uninsured w ho will receive
coverage w ill be people o f color.
The real-life benefits o f health
insurance are substantial.
In 2003, the Institute o f M edicine
issued a report saying that the ef­
fects o f being uninsured extend far
beyond the health o f fam ily m em ­
bers to their financial stability and
general w ell-being. It noted, for in­
stance, that a m ajor health problem
in an uninsured fam ily can cause a
financial disaster, w hile also greatly
increasing stress and anxiety in an
uninsured household.
R esearch has show n that the lack
o f health insurance has been a con­
tributing factor in m any o fth e health
disparities that ravish com m unities
o f color. For instance, people w ith ­
out health coverage are less likely to
seek preventive care and m ore likely
to receive a late diagnosis o f serious
illnesses. In fact, the health ou t­
com es diverge so m uch that adults
w ithout health coverage have a 25
percent greater chance o f dying and
dying prem aturely than those w ho
have private health insurance, ac­
cording to one study that m o n i­
tored people over a 17-year period.
D elays in screening for and d iag ­
nosing serious illnesses have co n ­
tributed to higher m ortality rates for
A frican A m ericans com p ared w ith
w hites w ho suffer from breast c an ­
cer, prostate cancer, diabetes and
cardiovascular disease.
H ealthcare reform should prevent
the kind o f tragic loss suffered by
A lyce D river o f M aryland, w hose
12-year-old son, D eam onte, died in
2007 from an infected tooth because
s h e -d id n ’t have health insurance.
D eam onte w as taken to a local hos­
pital w here he w as d iagnosed w ith
a tooth abscess and sinusitis. He
w as g iv e n a n tib io tic s an d sen t
hom e. But his unem ployed m other
d id n ’t have health insurance or the
$80 to have the tooth extracted.
B acteria from the tooth m igrated to
D eam o n te’s brain, killing him.
W ith healthcare reform . President
O b am a has g iv en c h ild re n like
D eam onte a chance. He has changed
the landscape. H ealthcare w ill be a
Civil R ight in A m erica.
Dr. Henrie M. Treadwell is di­
rector o f Community Voices o f
Morehouse School o f Medicine, an
organization working to improve
health services and healthcare
access for all.
Safety, Stability for Foster Kids:
by E rinn K elley -S iel
M a y is N a tio n a l
F oster C are M onth, a
tim e to turn our atten ­
tion to the children and youth in
care and to honor the dedicated
foster fam ilies, relatives, volunteers
and child w elfare professionals w ho
g et in v o lv e d w ith c h ild re n and
young people to help change their
lives for the better.
Last year in O regon, m ore than
13,000 children spent at least one
day in som e kind o f foster care b e ­
cause they could not rem ain safely
at hom e w ith their parents, usually
because o f drug and alcohol abuse
and/or dom estic violence in their
hom es.
C hildren in foster care need safety
and stability. In O regon, w e're w ork­
ing to becom e the safest foster care
system in the country.
T h e g o o d n ew s is w e a re g e t­
tin g c lo se r to re a c h in g th a t g o al:
L a st y e a r, o u r s ta te 's fin a n c ia l
su p p o rts fo r ch ild re n in fo ster care
in c re ase d , and the n u m b e r o f c h il­
d re n in fo s te r c a re w h o w e re
a b u s e d by th e ir fo s te r p a re n ts
d e c lin e d by 32 p e rc en t. P la c e ­
m e n ts w ith re la tiv e s in c re ase d by
m o re than 20 p ercen t, and the n u m ­
b e r o f c h ild re n w ho had tw o o r
fe w e r p la c e m e n ts in c re a se d by 10
p e rc e n t. In a d d itio n , 10 p e rc e n t
fe w e r c h ild re n in O re g o n sp en t
tim e in fo ste r c are in 2 0 0 9 c o m ­
p a re d to 2 008.
T hese m ilestones o f im prove­
m ent could not have been reached
w ithout the great w ork o f o u r staff,
the co m m itm ent o f foster and rela­
tive c areg iv e rs, q u ality serv ices
delivered by o ur partner providers,
and the support o f com m unities
across O regon.
N evertheless, w e stillh a v e a lo n g
w ay to go to be sure that all children
in O regon are safe, w ell, and co n ­
New Prices
Effective
May 1,2010
Martin
Cleaning
Service
Carpet & Upholstery
Cleaning
Residential &
Commercial Services
Minimum Service CHG
$45.00
A sm all distance/travel charge
m ay be applied
CARPET CLEANING
2 Cleaning Areas or
more $30.00 Each Area
Pre-Spray Traffic Areas
(Includes: 1 small Hallway)
1 Cleaning Area (only)
$40.00
Includes Pre-Spray Traffic Area
(Hallway Extra)
Stairs (12-16 stairs - With
O ther Services)-. $25.00
Area/Oriental Rugs:
$25.00 Minimum
Area/Oriental Rugs (Woolf.
$40.00 Minimum
Heavily Soiled Area:
Additional $ 10.00 each area
(Requiring Extensive Pre-Spraying)
MHMS - '
We have a long
way to go
Page 9
nected to their fam ilies, their co m ­
m unities and their cultural identi­
ties. Ideally, all fam ilies w ould have
the su p p o rt they need to safely
parent and prepare their children for
ad u lth o o d .
Ideally, no child w ould need the
g o v e rn m e n t
to
keep
them safe. H ow ever, k eeping c h il­
d ren safe an d fa m ilies stab le are
g o a ls th at C h ild w e lfa re c an n o t
a c c o m p lish alo n e. W e need the
h elp and su p p o rt o f in d iv id u a ls
and c o m m u n itie s in ev ery city and
to w n in O reg o n . T h a t's w h ere you
c o m e in.
No m atter how m uch tim e you
have to give, each one o f us has the
p o w er to do som ething positive that
w ill change the life o f a child or
young person in foster care. Be a
m entor or coach to parents w ho are
struggling, o r to a young person in
foster care. B ecom e a foster parent.
V o lu n te e ra to n e o fo u r child w elfare
offices to transport children or p ar­
ents to services or visitations. G ive
a foster parent o r relative caregiver a
break by providing respite chi Id care.
T utor a young person in foster care
and su p p o rt th eir acad em ic and
lifelong success.
These are ju s t a few o f the m any
w ays to have a positive effect on the
life o f a child in foster care. W e need
m ore everyday people to com e for­
w ard because no child should be
w ithout a strong relationship w ith a
caring adult to depend on.
If you are already a fo ster parent,
or involved in the lives o f children
and fam ilies in y o u r co m m u n ity -
th a n k
you. O ur
k id s
and
fam ilies need your support, and you
can m ake a difference.
I f you w ant to becom e involved
in the lives o f children and youth in
foster care in your com m unity, please
call your local D HS office, e-m ail us
or visit our w ebsite.
Erinn Kelley-Siel is the director
of the Children, Adults and Fami­
lies Division ofthe Oregon Depart­
ment o f Human Services.
UPHOLSTERY
CLEANING
Sofa: $69.00
Loveseat: $49.00
Sectional: $ 109 - $ 139
Chair or Recliner:
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Throw Pillows (With
Other Services)'. $5.00
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SERVICES
• Area & Oriental Rug
Cleaning
• Auto/Boat/RV Cleaning
• Deodorizing & Pet
Odor Treatment
*~ \
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• Minor Water Damage
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