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Tom Birmingham on Health Care
Former State Senate President; Democratic Challenger MA Governor
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Patient Bill of Rights; push for right to sue HMOs
Last year, Birmingham led the Senate in its fight for a Patients Bill of Rights, and sweeping reform of HMO’s. The Boston Globe reported that “consumers and health care provides hailed the Senate bill as a major advancement of patient rights.”
Now that the bill is law, patients have rights they deserve. The legislation puts patients, not profits, first. When people are consulting with their health care professionals, the insurance companies are out in the waiting room.
Tom is now working to give consumers a powerful tool to hold HMO’s accountable: the right to sue an HMO when it does harm. This will strengthen the power of doctors and patients to make healthcare decisions - without excessive interference from
HMO bureaucrats. Making HMOs liable for the harm done when they are negligent will not only provide compensation for those who are injured, it will also create powerful incentives for HMOs to improve the quality of the care they provide to everyone.
Source: Campaign web site, TomBirmingham.org
Nov 24, 2001
Protect genetic privacy in health insurance
The Senate, under Tom’s leadership, repeatedly passed genetic privacy legislation to ensure that the information we seek about our health cannot be used against us.
The bill has become law and helps ensure that scientific progress does not set us back when it comes to insurance coverage and premiums.
Source: Campaign web site, TomBirmingham.org
Nov 24, 2001
Health Now! funds low-income healthcare from cigarette tax
There are over 365,000 people in Massachusetts without health insurance. Seventy percent of these are working adults. Tom believes that people who work hard trying to raise a family should not have to fear that going to the hospital would be
financially devastating. That is why is fighting for the Health Now! legislation that provides access to healthcare for over 75,000 low income adults - and pays for it by increasing the tax on cigarettes by fifty cents a pack.
Source: Campaign web site, TomBirmingham.org
Nov 24, 2001
Make universal health care coverage for kids a right
Tom made universal health care coverage for kids a top priority and overrode a gubernatorial veto to make access to quality health care a right for all kids in the Commonwealth. “In our civilized society, no one should be without health care,”
said Tom. “The uninsured and underinsured are a rip in our social fabric and our safety net.” He has been fighting to increase and expand health care coverage, and the greatest strides have been made for kids and seniors.
Source: Campaign web site, TomBirmingham.org
Nov 24, 2001
Universal coverage for senior prescriptions
Tom has been directing dollars and sense to helping seniors grapple with the unacceptably high cost of buying medicine. Too many seniors face the unconscionable choice between food or prescription drugs. Now we’ve got universal coverage so that all
seniors get help to buy the medicines they need. Tom is also looking into ways, including bulk purchasing, that the state can improve the marketplace for prescriptions so that senior citizens matter more than shareholders.
Source: Campaign web site, TomBirmingham.org
Nov 24, 2001