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| OSNMA Letter Writing Campaign |
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE LETTER TEMPLATE
As President Obama is determined to fix our healthcare system, SNMA is determined to see solutions to
health disparities and inequalities. In the 2007, when some legislators identified the need to solve health
inequalities, the bill was never allowed to progress through Congress.
In 2008, the mental health parity bill which has been cycling around congress with no progress got
approved with the economic stimulus package bill. This was because Congress was determined to pass
the stimulus package. Thus, we have a prime opportunity that policies are made to ensure the elimination
of health disparities and inequalities. This opportunity is to include solutions in the healthcare reform bill.
4 Steps you can take:
1. Write to your local Representatives of House and Senators as they will ultimately decide on the
fate of any healthcare reform bill introduced into Congress. Tell you local Representatives
and Senators that they should make sure there are concrete solutions for health
disparities a strategic plan for achieving health equity before they finalize the bill.
Email your representative
Call or mail a letter
2. Write to the Office of Health Reform created by the White House to oversee health care reform
3. Write to President Obama informing him that the healthcare reform bill must contain concrete
solutions to health disparities/inequalities
4. Write to key players who are leading the committees that are in charge of creating the bill.
Key players are:
Senator Tom Harkin (D- Iowa)- Chairman, U.S. Senate Committee on Health,
Education, Labor and Pensions
Senator Michael B. Enzi (R- Wyoming)- Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Rep. F. Pete Stark (D- California)- U.S. House of Representatives Ways and Means Health
Subcommittee Chairman
Rep. Frank Pallone Jr (D- New Jersey)- U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce
Health Subcommittee Chairman
Rep. Robert Andrews (D- New Jersey)- U.S. House of Representatives Education and Labor
Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee Chairman
Rep. Tom Price (R- Georgia)- U.S. House of Representatives Education and Labor Health,
Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee Ranking Member
Our input and combined effort on this matter is critical: This important legislation may not adequately
address the needs of underserved communities without the our voices. If you have any questions or would
like to let us know of your Congressional representative’s response, please feel free to send us an email.
Even before being depicted in DuBois' The Philadelpha Negro, disparities in the healthcare of racial and
ethnic minorities have been noted to negatively impact the experience of these communities in healthcare.
It is now time to speak up and let Congress know that they MUST include evidence-based strategies aimed
at eliminating health disparities that are consistent with the latest discourse as they reconcile a
comprehensive healthcare reform bill.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE LETTER TEMPLATE
“In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
-Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
As President Obama is determined to fix our healthcare system, SNMA is determined to see solutions to
health disparities and inequalities. In the 2007, when some legislators identified the need to solve health
inequalities, the bill was never allowed to progress through Congress.
In 2008, the mental health parity bill which has been cycling around congress with no progress got
approved with the economic stimulus package bill. This was because Congress was determined to pass
the stimulus package. Thus, we have a prime opportunity that policies are made to ensure the elimination
of health disparities and inequalities. This opportunity is to include solutions in the healthcare reform bill.
4 Steps you can take:
1. Write to your local Representatives of House and Senators as they will ultimately decide on the
fate of any healthcare reform bill introduced into Congress. Tell you local Representatives
and Senators that they should make sure there are concrete solutions for health
disparities a strategic plan for achieving health equity before they finalize the bill.
Email your representative
Call or mail a letter
2. Write to the Office of Health Reform created by the White House to oversee health care reform
3. Write to President Obama informing him that the healthcare reform bill must contain concrete
solutions to health disparities/inequalities
4. Write to key players who are leading the committees that are in charge of creating the bill.
Key players are:
Senator Tom Harkin (D- Iowa)- Chairman, U.S. Senate Committee on Health,
Education, Labor and Pensions
Senator Michael B. Enzi (R- Wyoming)- Ranking Member of the U.S. Senate Committee on
Health, Education, Labor and Pensions
Rep. F. Pete Stark (D- California)- U.S. House of Representatives Ways and Means Health
Subcommittee Chairman
Rep. Frank Pallone Jr (D- New Jersey)- U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce
Health Subcommittee Chairman
Rep. Robert Andrews (D- New Jersey)- U.S. House of Representatives Education and Labor
Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee Chairman
Rep. Tom Price (R- Georgia)- U.S. House of Representatives Education and Labor Health,
Employment, Labor, and Pensions Subcommittee Ranking Member
Our input and combined effort on this matter is critical: This important legislation may not adequately
address the needs of underserved communities without the our voices. If you have any questions or would
like to let us know of your Congressional representative’s response, please feel free to send us an email.
Even before being depicted in DuBois' The Philadelpha Negro, disparities in the healthcare of racial and
ethnic minorities have been noted to negatively impact the experience of these communities in healthcare.
It is now time to speak up and let Congress know that they MUST include evidence-based strategies aimed
at eliminating health disparities that are consistent with the latest discourse as they reconcile a
comprehensive healthcare reform bill.
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE LETTER TEMPLATE
“In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.”
-Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
American Healthcare Reform in the 111th Congress
SNMA Health Equity Letter Template
5113 Georgia Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20011
ph: 202-882-2881
healthpolicy@snma.org
Washington, DC 20011
ph: 202-882-2881
healthpolicy@snma.org
