AUSTIN, Texas – Revelada el jueves, la más reciente propuesta del Senado de los EE.UU. para revisar los seguros de salud podría ser votada la próxima semana, y los defensores de los consumidores y de los tejanos mayores dicen que sigue teniendo partes que podrían provocar que se dispare el costo de las primas y poner a muchos residentes de asilos en riesgo de perder los fondos para su atención.

Los defensores de los tejanos en edad avanzada advierten que si el Senado de los EE.UU. aprueba el nuevo plan de atención a la salud revelado el jueves, podría ser un desastre tanto financiero como sanitario para los tejanos mayores.

La AARP predice que la iniciativa, que podría ser votada ya en la semana próxima, subiría las primas anuales de salud para la gente de 50 a 64 años en 20 mil dólares, cinco veces la tarifa regular. También reduce Medicaid, del que dependen más de la mitad de los tejanos que residen en asilos.

El Director de la AARP en Texas, Bob Jackson, piensa que los Republicanos del Senado están haciendo las preguntas equivocadas en su intento de “arreglar el cuidado de la salud”.

“Lo primero que debes hacer es tener un sentido firme de “¿La ley actual causa la subida de esos costos o, francamente, los costos de la atención de la salud hizo que subieran? Porque hay una gran diferencia. ¿Creamos el problema, o el sistema de atención a la salud sólo se está poniendo más y más caro?”

Los líderes republicanos actualizaron el plan para enfrentar las preocupaciones de algunos senadores, pero no todas. El mayor cambio permitiría a los aseguradores vender las pólizas llamadas “bare-bones”, puros huesos, que no satisfacen los requisitos básicos de cobertura del Affordable Care Act.

La Oficina del Presupuesto del Congreso está lista para publicar el lunes su informe sobre la propuesta.

Jackson dice que la A-A-R-P y otros grupos están acudiendo directamente al Senador “senior” de Texas John Cornyn, pidiéndole que se asegure de que el plan de salud ayuda a los tejanos – o que vote “no” si no es así.

“Sí sólo tomas decisiones sobre la atención a la salud, considerando cómo tendrá alguien una ganancia, ya empezaste en el lugar equivocado. Necesitas empezar donde dice “¿Cómo podemos tener más eficientemente la mejor atención para todos?”

Jackson dice que otras preocupaciones sobre la propuesta de salud incluyen reactivar la prohibición sobre condiciones preexistentes. Los líderes del GOP necesitan 50 votos para aprobar un plan, pero hasta el jueves al menos media docena de senadores todavía expresaron objeciones a algunas de sus partes.

El borrador de la nueva iniciativa, en: www.budget.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/BetterCareJuly13.2017.pdf.


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While Black Maternal Health Week is wrapping up, health disparities for pregnant Black women continues to be an issue.

From April 11-17 this year, the high death rate of Black mothers is in the spotlight. Black women are three times more likely to die from pregnancy-related causes than their white counterparts.

Dr. Patricia Egwuatu, a family practice physician at Kaiser Permanente in Seattle, said racism is at the root of the disparities, which create barriers to health care access. She pointed out lack of access can lead to problems during pregnancy that are preventable or treatable.

"They may exist prior to pregnancy and then it gets worse during pregnancy if it's not managed as part of that maternity care," Egwuatu emphasized. "There are more pregnant women that have chronic conditions such as hypertension, diabetes and heart disease that are amplified during pregnancy."

The White House released a proclamation recognizing Black Maternal Health Week. The Biden administration began recognizing the week in 2021.

Egwuatu noted there are some warning signs any pregnant woman should be aware of and check in with their physician if they develop.

"You might get some changes in your vision that is not your normal. So, like, fuzziness, you can't see as well, or an excruciating headache," Egwuatu outlined. "You could also develop new swelling in your lower extremities that's making it difficult to get around or even new shortness of breath."

Egwuatu stressed physicians also need to recognize the role of racism in medicine. She argued continuous medical education is important for learning how to confront biases, and it is important for doctors to understand how they can provide people with resources.

"Asking the questions about personal barriers," Egwuatu suggested. "Does a patient have issues with getting to work, child care, transportation? What's their education, what's their cultural background and language? And do they even have a cell phone so we can connect with them?"

Today, Connecticut health care advocates are holding a student day of action.

They will speak to state lawmakers about raising the age limit for undocumented immigrants eligible for HUSKY, the state's Medicare program. Undocumented people up to age 15 are eligible and the General Assembly is considering raising it to 18.

Yenimar Cortes, New Haven organizer for the group Connecticut Students for a Dream, said undocumented people not having health insurance is problematic.

"When it came to some stuff, like even a simple physical, my mom would have to like work and my dad would have to work like more shifts to be able to cover the costs," Cortes recounted. "It also meant getting sick was something we didn't want to do."

She added if they got sick, they would try home remedies before going to the hospital. Some people pay for visits out of pocket and take on medical debt. Some lawmakers opposed the age limit increase due to high costs, which studies estimated to be $83 million. However, the study noted expanding HUSKY could save hospitals between $63 million and $72 million.

Though uninsured rates fell during the pandemic, health officials are trying to ensure people maintain any coverage they have.

Luis Luna, coalition manager for the nonprofit HUSKY 4 Immigrants, said the pandemic helped advocates see the problem as a whole.

"It helped us see that health care is a fundamental human right," Luna asserted. "It helped us see that when people get sick and they don't take care of themselves their family suffers, and it helped us see that there's a really big disparity with health care access."

Several states have made health care affordable or available to undocumented immigrants. Luna added the hope is to make all immigrants, regardless of their status eligible for HUSKY.

A 2022 survey found most people support expanding HUSKY to all immigrants.

Today is National Healthcare Decisions Day, a day when everyone is encouraged to review their end-of-life planning. The 2024 Alzheimer's Association annual report predicts that the number of Americans 65 and older who are living with the most common form of dementia will double from nearly 7 million to 14 million patients by 2050.

Jessica Empeño, national director of clinical engagement with the end-of-life advocacy group Compassion & Choices, said legal matters are just part of the equation.

"The most important part is to have conversations about what matters most to you, what your wishes are, and share those things, not only with your family and your loved ones but with your health-care team," she explained.

People may want to put in writing who they want to be able to make decisions on their behalf once dementia progresses. They might consider whether in the future they would be OK with things like artificial hydration or nutrition, aggressive treatments or surgeries.

Compassion & Choices' website offers a free End of Life Decisions tool and a Dementia Values & Priorities Tool that helps people communicate and document their future health-care wishes, both for those who have early-stage dementia or those who just want to be prepared for the possibility.

Angela Schultz, California state advocacy director for Compassion & Choices, said people need to make a plan sooner rather than later.

"We just did recent polling, and 93% of Americans said that having an advanced directive and a health-care proxy and sharing that with your doctor is very important. But only 37% of Americans have done that," she said.

National Healthcare Decisions Day falls on April 16th, the day after tax day. It is a reference to the famous quote from Benajmin Franklin that "In this world, nothing is certain but death and taxes."