HFMA announces it has become a national supporter of Cover the Uninsured Week 2006, coming up May 1-7. The initiative, a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation project, is a nonpartisan, nationwide effort to urge U.S. leaders to make health coverage for Americans their top priority.
“The large number of uninsured Americans is a national disgrace and destabilizes the system,” said Richard L. Clarke, FHFMA, DHA, president and CEO of HFMA. “Healthcare providers are working hard to help the 46 million people who have no health insurance, but national leadership and support is needed. I encourage HFMA members to visit the Cover the Uninsured Week web site to learn how they can support this effort, too.”
The initiative encourages citizens to contact their elected representatives and urge them to make healthcare coverage for all Americans their top priority. Also, volunteers will work at hundreds of events nationwide to help uninsured people enroll in existing public coverage programs for which they are eligible, and distribute information about local resources. In 2005, more than 2,200 events were held during Cover the Uninsured Week, supported by nearly 200 national organizations and more than 2,500 local organizations located in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
