Who is behind families usa

In that way, millions are part of our mission, too. Our current health care system is riddled with inefficiencies that increase costs and harm patients. We are working hard to remedy this problem with a robust health transformation agenda designed to ensure all families get the support they need to live healthy lives, including receiving high-quality, low-cost, consumer-centered health care.

A key part of this work is helping state consumer leaders share best practices and learn from one another. To achieve this goal, we are working with a highly diverse coalition of partners, including people of color, people with disabilities, rural communities, ethnic communities, and others to create a policy agenda to address inequities. We also are increasingly focused on addressing the social determinants of health by exploring upstream approaches, such as those employing community health worker models that protect and improve health, thereby preventing the need for medical care.

We believe that a critical aspect of good health for all families is the ability to obtain comprehensive and affordable health insurance coverage, and we continue to lead efforts on the national and state levels to protect and expand such coverage. States need fiscal relief to staff pandemic response, save jobs and help hard-pressed residents.

Recession slashes state revenue while boosting the number of families using state programs related to health care, unemployment assistance, and food security programs, to name a few. This combination leaves states little choice but to make major cutbacks that harm people and devastate the economy when both need help.

To allow for appropriate COVID response and to prevent state and local actions that undermine Congressional efforts to combat recession , federal fiscal relief must include two key components :. Recent surveys have found that more than three-quarters of those without health coverage are unaware of how the law can help them. So, a robust public education campaign, collaboratively initiated by the private and public sectors, will be needed.

Since the first enrollment period begins in October , that initiative must begin soon. Second, the health care safety net will be strengthened. For low-income adults, the Medicaid safety net is badly frayed, letting many low-income adults fall through. For adults without dependent children, the situation is even worse: In 43 states, no coverage is available, even for the penniless. Beginning in January , states will have the option to raise Medicaid eligibility to percent of poverty, and they will receive unprecedented federal help to do so.

From through , the federal government will pick up all of the costs for covering newly eligible people; thereafter, the federal contribution will gradually decrease to 90 percent.

This is a bargain few states will refuse. It is therefore essential that the upcoming federal budget deliberations help instill that confidence and that federal Medicaid funding not be cut. President Obama has emphatically opposed a House-passed proposal to reduce projected Medicare spending by converting it to a voucher system.